Lot of black olives, what to do?

[vegiefudie]

Hello folks,

I got a big tin of pitted and chopped black olives from Costco. I love olives and usually just eat it like that but after developing some stomach issues, I have been asked by the doctor to refrain from eating raw food, including olives.

I wonder what recipes I can make using these olives, apart from Pasta and pizza to use them up?

Many thanks in advance.

[ursy_ten]

How funny, a few days ago I posted a couple of recipes for olive cookies in the unusual cookies thread, which is here for anyone who is interested: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/466950

Scourtins: french olive cookies:
http://www.travelerslunchbox.com/journal/2005/11/27/imbbshf-cookie-swap-around-the-world-in-four-cookies.html

Portugese sweet lemon and black olive cookies:
http://leitesculinaria.com/20723/reci...

I tried the second recipe a day or so ago. They were really good. The recipe kind of mellowed the flavours somewhat - I was expecting more of a punch in the mouth. They're all gone now, so I'm regretting not making a double batch.

[will47]

How about a puff pastry tart, with caramelized onions, and olives on top. Basically, a pissaladière, but without the anchovies.

[foodieX2]

My veggie niece loves these veggie burgers. They call for green olives but black work fine too.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Millet-Burgers-with-Olives-Sun-Dried-Tomatoes-and-Pecorino-51118800

When I searched for the recipe this came up on Epicurious's site too

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/foo...

[iL Divo]

"Lot of black olives, what to do?"

exercise your throwin arm....California isn't that far :-D

[tcamp]

If cheese is acceptable, you might consider Black Olive Pesto. Along the same lines as tapanade, you mix garlic, pine nuts, black olives, and olive oil in a food processor. Add grated parmesan or romano, then stir in more black olives to add a coarser texture to the finished "pesto." Delish as a dip, mixed with pasta, on pizza, on steamed veggies, etc.

[youareabunny]

Maybe you can eat some yogurt for the acidity or take a probiotic.

I usually marinate my olives in oil, herbs de Provence, lemon rind, peppercorns, and garlic. I heat the oil up slowly and put everything together on low for several minutes. Maybe by "cooking" the olives for a bit your issues will be alleviated. I remove the garlic before storing though.

This isn't really a meal suggestion though, more like an appetizer.

I also use this oil for goat cheese. I noticed that I can get acidity from eating too much marinara, but if I have dairy with it (cream, creme fraiche, cheese) I don't have a problem. Maybe the dairy counteracts the acidity, although I forgot if you even eat dairy.

Good luck.

[hill food]

ya got a slingshot and neighbors you don't like?

me, I'd just slowly wander through them until they get rancidy. then compost.

[ninrn]

Nice thought on the slingshot, Hill Food, but OP says they're chopped.

[hill food]

chopped? so? better spray pattern.

[suzigirl]

Two things right off the top of my head are arroz con pollo with black and green olives. The other is puttanesca. I make a, for lack of a better term, bastardised version of puttanesca with seared boneless pork loin chops covered with the sauce and mozzarella, and pasta with the rest of the sauce. Tasty stuff.

[goodhealthgourmet]

the OP is vegetarian ;)

[ninrn]

I missed that this was in the Veg category, too. Sorry.

[goodhealthgourmet]

I missed it at first, started posting all sorts of fish, pork & chicken recipes, then realized I was on the Veg board.

[ninrn]

Still think something like a tempeh paella or even just tempeh with olives cooked in the style of chicken with olives (with lots of lemon, garlic and wine or tomatoes and Moroccan spices) might be nice.

[suzigirl]

Darn. I missed that. Thanks. No wonder the answers were so limited

[pbo2444]

tapenade....:)

[hill food]

tapenade is a good idea and with pita or something, an easy appetizer for a potluck, given that it is the holiday season and all.

[lola12345]

third the tapenade idea.

[foodieX2]

Wouldn't tapenade be the same as eating them plain, which the OP says she cant do?

[KarenDW]

One could sautee the olives in some oil and garlic first, then cool before continuing with the usual method.

[ninrn]

Canned black olives are usually just green olives artificially darkened with a lye solution, so you can use them like green olives in Moroccan or Italian recipes for chicken and olives, or cook them in with couscous. They're also a good addition to moussaka or paella, or tossed in when roasting asparagus or green beans.

You can freeze some, too, and use them later. Since they're already chopped, you can freeze them in ice cube trays, store the cubes in a zip-loc and thaw a few out whenever you're making pasta sauce or something like that. I think grilled cheese sandwiches with olives would be good, too.

I'm pretty sure that canned olives are heated to well over 160degF, as well as cured, so I don't think you have to worry about their being raw, but Goodhealthgourmet's suggestion to roast is a really good one.

[goodhealthgourmet]

Did your doctor really specify olives? Because they're not raw, they're cured. If he told you to avoid them it may be due to the acidity, and that won't change much if you cook them.

You honestly don't have many options beyond pizza, pasta, and the bread suggested by escondido123. And you could add some to ratatouille.

I'd actually suggest roasting them - then you can either snack on them straight or use them up in things that don't require cooking, like tapenade & hummus. Plenty of recipes/methods to choose from:
http://www.google.com/search?q=roaste...

[escondido123]

Olive bread?