BLACK OLIVE TAPENADE

 I'm the type of gal who will take salty over sweet any time.  I always keep a jar of olives or capers on hand, and I add them to meat sauces or pasta.  As a kid I would snack on green olives while I watched my mom cook dinner.  I've never really experimented with black olives though. A couple of months ago I bought a jar of black olives to add as salad toppers for a diet I was doing, but found that this particular brand of black olives (which shall not be named) didn't have much flavor.  So the olives sat in my fridge, and sat, and sat, and took up space from all the other delicious condiments.  So I thought, "how can I get rid of these suckers?" Olive Tapenade.

Here's the recipe:

     - 1 4.6 oz jar of Kalamata Olives

     - 1 tbs Olive Oil

     - 1 tbs Capers

     - 1 tsp Whole Grain Mustard

     - 1 tsp Fresh Lemon Juice

     - 1 clove of garlic

     - salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

     ( I added a few green olives with pimentos in there to punch up the flavor)

In a food processor, mince together the olives, capers, garlic, mustard, lemon juice and olive oil.  Once the ingredients are chopped to your desired texture (I don't like mine too minced and mushy), add salt and pepper.  Be careful with the salt!  All of these ingredients are very salty on their own.

Serve on a warm crusty baguette.  I added a little crumbled feta on top of mine.  Everything is betta' with Feta.

Easy, quick and tasty recipe great for snacking or to serve as an appetizer for dinner parties.  Enjoy!

Ale

"I'M A BRAND NEW SKY TO HANG THE STARS UPON TONIGHT"

A blog is the quintessential "blank canvas".  It's a creative outlet you are sharing with anyone and everyone on this infinite space called "the internet".  This outlet in particular is one of creativity, motivation, and growth.  It's about completing goals, pushing yourself to continue to grow, and also acknowledging you will fail from time to time.

Pretty serious stuff, huh?  I promise it won't be.  I suppose the first post is equivalent to the "tell me a little about yourself" question on interviews, or (for me) the Conclusion paragraph in college essays...a big ol' stinky brain fart.

Ale