Easy Olive Tapenade
Olive tapenade is a savory Mediterranean spread made with olives, capers, garlic, a hint of lemon juice and olive oil for a bold, salty flavor that comes together in minutes without any cooking needed. It’s an easy appetizer to whip up for parties or keep on hand for sandwiches, crackers, and snack boards.
We entertain a lot all year round but it really ramps up near the holidays.
And you absolutely can’t entertain without some knock your socks off appetizers and snacks.
It’s an added bonus if said appetizers take less than 10 minutes to put together without any actual cooking required.
This olive tapenade fits that bill.
It’s packed with that fruity, buttery olive flavor, a little bite from garlic, brine from the capers, and the brightness of lemon juice and parsley.
Serve it up with a charcuterie board, crackers or toasted pieces of baguette and you’ve got an impressive, elegant, tasty appetizer with almost no work other than a quick pulse in the food processor.
Ingredients
To make this you’ll need:
- Garlic cloves– Minced or pressed.
- Olives– A mix of well drained, pitted kalamata olives and well drained Castelvetrano olives
- Parsley– Fresh Italian parsley. Wash it well.
- Capers
- Lemon juice– Fresh
- Extra virgin olive oil– Don’t substitute another kind of oil. The extra virgin olive oil adds a more intense fruity flavor that other oils don’t add.
How to Make
Olive tapenade is one of the easiest appetizers you can make since it doesn’t require cooking or lots of chopping.
Just add all of the ingredients to the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment and pulse it a few times.
Scrape down the sides of the food processor in between pulses and keep alternating pulsing with scraping the sides down until the consistency’s still chunky but with very small pieces.
Serve with baguette toasts, freshly sliced baguette, or assorted crackers and enjoy!
Storing
Leftover olive tapenade is one of those dishes that gets even better as it sits in the fridge since the flavors continue to meld.
Store leftover olive tapenade in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
For the best results, use a clean spoon each time you scoop some out and keep the container tightly sealed between servings.
If the olive oil solidifies a little in the refrigerator, let the tapenade sit at room temperature for a few minutes and give it a good stir before serving.
Tips and Tricks
- To make the baguette toasts that you see in the pictures just slice a fresh baguette into 1/2″ slices, and then transfer the pieces to a rimmed baking sheet in an even layer. Brush them with olive oil. Bake at 400°F for 5-8 minutes or just until they are crispy and golden brown.
- You can pulse the tapenade a little more if you want a smoother tapenade.
- It’s not only delicious as a dip or spread on toasted baguette, but tapenade also makes a delicious condiment on sandwiches with Mediterranean flavors.
- This is the perfect make ahead appetizer. It actually tastes even better if it sits in the fridge for a little while prior to serving so you can make it a day before you plan on serving.
Other Easy Appetizers
Olive tapenade is an effortless, elegant appetizer perfect for entertaining.
Make it and enjoy!
Looking for other easy appetizers?
Try these:
- Zucchini Hummus
- Whipped Ricotta Cheese Spread
- Hot Pesto Dip
- Creamy Black Bean Salsa
- Crispy Baked Boursin Cheese
- Marry Me Chicken Dip
- Quick & Easy Salsa Fresca
- Italian Caper Deviled Eggs
If you’ve tried this OLIVE TAPENADE or any other recipe on the site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!
Olive Tapenade
Ingredients
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives well drained
- 1 cup pitted castelvetrano olives well drained
- 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley washed
- 2 tbsp capers
- 2 tbsp lemon juice fresh recommended
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment.3 garlic cloves, 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, 1 cup pitted castelvetrano olives, 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, 2 tbsp capers, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Pulse a few times, roughly 6-8 and scraping down the sides as you go, until the consistency's still chunky but with very small pieces.
- Serve with baguette toasts, freshly sliced baguette, or assorted crackers and enjoy!
Notes
- To make the baguette toasts that you see in the pictures just slice a fresh baguette into 1/2" slices, and then transfer the pieces to a rimmed baking sheet in an even layer. Brush them with olive oil. Bake at 400°F for 5-8 minutes or just until they are crispy and golden brown.
- You can pulse the tapenade a little more if you want a smoother tapenade.
- It's not only delicious as a dip or spread on toasted baguette, but tapenade also makes a delicious condiment on sandwiches with Mediterranean flavors.
- This is the perfect make ahead appetizer. It actually tastes even better if it sits in the fridge for a little while prior to serving so you can make it a day before you plan on serving.
Nutrition
