This is one of those recipes that seems kind of fancy, but is ridiculously easy and quick to make. So it's perfect for impressing guests to serve as a canapé or even on grilled bread to make bruschetta as a starter. It's great because you can make it up to a week in advance and it'll keep well in the fridge, and you may well have most of the ingredients you need already in your cupboard. Salty, herby, lemony, and garlicky - what more could you ask for?!
Easy Vegan Olive Tapenade
Ingredients (makes 1 cup):
1 cup pitted kalamata olives
1 Tbsp capers, drained
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Method:
Chuck all ingredients into a small food processor (not a high speed one like a nutribullet - that's too powerful) and pulse until at the desired consistency. Pulse less if you're serving slightly chunky for bruschetta, or more if you'd like is as a smooth spread (this is great in sandwiches too by the way).
Tip: to make crunchy melba toasts to serve with the tapenade as a starter / canapé, simply pop a couple of slices of bread in the toaster. When done, lay the toast flat on a chopping board, place one hand on top, and carefully use a serrated bread knife to slice through the bread to split into two halves. Then cut each half into four triangles, and place un-toasted side up under a grill until golden and crunchy. The corners will turn up a little so be careful they don't burn!
Nutrition (per 4 melba toasts & 4 tsp tapenade):
Protein: 2.3g (Women: 4.6% / Men: 4.2%)
Iron: 1.2mg (Women: 8.1% / Men: 13.8%)
Calories: 107 (Women: 5.4% / Men: 4.3%)
Sugar: 0.9g (Women: 1.0% / Men: 0.8%)
Total Fats: 6.7g (Women: 9.6% / Men: 7.1%)
Saturated Fats: 0.9g (Women: 4.5% / Men: 3.0%)
Salt: 0.7g (Women: 11.7% / Men: 11.7%)
Fibre: 1.9g (Women: 6.3% / Men: 6.3%)
See the Nutrition Info page for more details on % of Dietary Reference Values for men and women.