Black Olive and Jalapeno Tapenade

Keep rolling your shopping cart past those sad, dusty jars of olive tapenade occupying the shelves of your local grocery store and pick up the ingredients to make your very own Black Olive and Jalapeno Tapenade.

Every so often while on a solo grocery shopping excursion, an unfamiliar product catches my eye and inevitably winds up in my cart. In years past, jarred olive tapenade has been one of those products. 

The jar was a bit dusty, but still far from reaching its expiration date. I love olives so I thought, “Why not give it a whirl?”

While it was tasty enough to not be completely disappointing, it lacked the freshness and boldness I expected it to have. The pulverized kalamata olives had simply been swimming in a pool of olive oil for too long to retain their own rich, smoky, salty flavor. 

After coming across some olive tapenade recipes online, I decided to make my own. Many recipes I read were straightforward and easy to execute. I wanted to create an olive tapenade with Midwexican influences so that I could serve it with tacos or quesadillas. Thus, Black Olive and Jalapeno Tapenade came to be.

I chose black olives because they are the blank canvas of the olive world, playing well with other flavors. With black olives as the base for Black Olive and Jalapeno Tapenade, both fresh and pickled jalapenos, garlic, green onion, lime juice, Italian parsley, and a few carefully chosen spices come together to create something truly crave-worthy. 

When I purchased my first dusty jar of olive tapenade, I assumed that it was one of those items that would be too fussy to make at home. Admittedly this recipe is a tad fussy… but you could also take the first 4 ingredients (black olives, garlic, green onion, Italian parsley) plus olive oil and wind up with a simple 5-ingredient olive tapenade that’s bold and fresh. But I had to be extra.

Here’s the recipe. Why not give it a whirl?

5.0 from 1 reviews

Black Olive and Jalapeno Tapenade

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Total time

15 mins

 

Keep rolling your shopping cart past those sad, dusty jars of olive tapenade occupying the shelves of your local grocery store and pick up the ingredients to make your own.

Ingredients

• 1 (DR WT 6 ounce) can of large ripe black pitted olives
• 1 garlic clove, diced*
• 2 green onions (including tops), diced
• ½ bunch of flat Italian parsley (tops only, not the stems)
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• ¼ cup sliced pickled jalapenos
• ½ of a fresh jalapeno, sliced, seeds removed
• ½ teaspoon cumin
• Salt, to taste
• Black pepper, to taste
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (use a good quality olive oil)*
• Lime zest (optional)

Instructions

1. Add the black olives, garlic cloves, green onions, parsley, lime juice, pickled jalapenos, fresh jalapeno, cumin, and 2 pinches of salt and black pepper to a food processor.
2. Pulse 5 times. Remove lid and scrape down the sides of the food processor.
3. Add 1 tablespoon of the extra virgin olive oil and pulse 2 more times.
4. Scrape down the sides of the food processor again.
5. Add another tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and pulse 2 more times.**
6. Taste and add more salt, if desired.
7. Put into a serving bowl and garnish with lime zest (optional).
8. Spread on crusty French bread, crackers, or pita chips, incorporate into salads, toss with pasta, or top tacos and quesadillas.
9. Store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.

Notes

*Or 2 garlic cloves if you're feeling those raw garlic vibes and/or have some mints on your person to tame the garlic breath after eating.
**I prefer a slightly chunky tapenade, but if you prefer a finer tapenade, feel free to add a little more extra virgin olive oil and pulse a few more times.

3.5.3251