When I'm asked to bring an hors d'oeuvre to a gathering, I always have a momentary feeling of panic. When I entertain I usually don't spend much time thinking about appetizers because I'm always focused on the main course or dessert, so I strive to keep my appetizers very easy and light. My sun-dried tomato tapenade definitely falls into the easy appetizer category because you just toss everything into the food processor and pulse it a few times. It really is that simple.
Traditional French tapenade is a puree made from black olives, capers, anchovies, and olive oil. Since I'm not a fan of capers or anchovies, you won't find either of those in my version, but you still need only three or four ingredients to make a fantastic appetizer. I use our homemade roasted garlic, olive oil, and sun-dried tomatoes.
You can make this up to two days in advance and keep it in the refrigerator. To serve, bring it back to room temperature and stir well.
[Updated August 2013.]
Sun-dried Tomato Tapenade
Equipment
- food processor
- small bowl
Ingredients
- 1 cup pitted Kalamata olives (drained)
- ¾ cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil (drained, reserving the oil)
- 3 cloves roasted garlic
Serve With
- fresh baguette (thinly sliced)
- endive leaves (gently washed and patted dry)
- assorted crackers
Preparation
- Put the drained olives, sun-dried tomatoes, and the roasted garlic into the food processor bowl. Pulse a few times until the olives and tomatoes are finely chopped.
- If the mixture appears to be dry, add some of the reserved oil from the tomatoes one tablespoon at a time (no more than 3 or 4 tablespoons) until the mixture has a wet appearance.
- Put the mixture into a small bowl and serve or refrigerate.
Joanna says
Sounds delicious ... I'm just about to make slow-roasted tomatoes using Kalyn's recipe as a guide ... so then I'll carry on and make this. I'm just the same, panic at the thought of nibbles!
But I couldn't manage without anchovies ... in so many dishes, they provide a wonderful savoury note, not fishy at all, and for us, cutting out saturated fat, they are what I turn to most often where I used to use cheese
Joanna
joannasfood.blogspot.com
Amy says
This looks awesome! I'm not a big fan of capers either but I love sun-dried tomatoes!
Andrea says
Hi Amy and Joanna, and thanks for stopping by! I took the tapenade to a Bunco night last weekend and the ladies really enjoyed it. I got several requests for the recipe. I also tried it over cooked pasta sprinkled with a bit of Parmesan cheese, and that made a nice light lunch.
Patricia Scarpin says
Andrea, what a delicious idea!
kellypea says
Mmmm...I love the sound of this tapenade and agree that it would be terrific with that potato foccacia. Delish!
SUE Cochrane says
HI ,, I HAVE RECIPE THAT CALLS FOR A TUB OF SUN- DRIED TOMATO TAPENADE. I DONT WANT TO MAKE IT , I WANT TO KNOW WHAT STORE CARRIES THIS . CAN YOU HELP,SUE
Andrea says
Hi Sue. I don't know where you live, but here in Virginia we can often find it in the store aisles with condiments or specialty foods. If you want to make it, this recipe makes about 15 ounces of tapenade.