Recipe: Olive Tapenade

This recipe comes from a reader, Suzanne. We love the addition of rum. Chefs and their little secrets...

Olive Tapenade

1 cup pitted Kalamata olives
1 cup pitted black olives
1 tsp. capers
1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
2 or 3 canned anchovies
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large shallot, chopped
1 Tbsp. olive oil (more or less)
1 Tbsp. rum

Blend all in the food processor and serve with crackers for hors d'oeuvres. Also tastes good in a salad dressing or even on pasta.

(Thanks, Suzanne!)

Categories: Appetizer, Recipe

Posted by Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan

Sara Kate is the founding editor of The Kitchn. She started the site in 2005 and has since written three cookbooks. The third, written with co-author Faith Durand, is The Kitchn Cookbook. It will be published in Fall 2014 by Clarkson Potter.
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Comments (4)

i cannot, for the life of me imagine what this would taste like, but i am certainly excited to try it!
does anyone else have fun recipes like this where unusual (and boozey!) elements are added to an otherwise "traditional" recipe?

i once made a lamb stew with a heavy hint of vanilla in the red wine sauce
it was both alluring and comforting, and no one could tell what that certain extra something was!

I bet brandy would be good as well. There's an Egyptian recipe for a lentil olive spread/dip in one of Paula Wolfort's books that includes brandy and it's delicious.

I make a variation of this and serve as an hors d'ourve on homemade crostini and a schmear of goat cheese. Serve with champagne.

In college, the coffee shop I loved made an awesome black olive tapenade. For 3 bucks, you could get a toasted whole-wheat bagel, yummy local organic cream cheese, and tapenade -- the combination is divine.