Olive Tapenade Recipe (3 Ingredients)
This olive tapenade recipe may be the best and simplest that you’ll ever use. It contains only three ingredients, and is ready in minutes!
If you buy olive tapenade from the store, this recipe is for you!
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Using only three ingredients, it takes minutes to make, and is much less costly than that jar you’ve been buying which most likely contains seed oils and preservatives. This recipe is courtesy of my lovely cousin, Cinzia who was born in Canada, but now lives in Belgium (we don’t stay put in my family!) Read more about her and why we can trust her recipe below ⬇️.
What isTapenade?
Tapenade is a spread or paste hailing from the south of France. Its popularity has spread (pun intended) around the world. It’s made to be eaten as an appetizer.
What is Tapenade Made of?
Tapenade is normally made with olives, capers, and anchovies, but can easily be customized according to your taste buds!
What do you Serve OliveTapenade With?
Tapenade can be served in a bowl alongside rustic bread, or as a topping for crostini, baguette slices or crackers. (Serve this beautiful Provençal vegetable bake from my friend Jillafterwards!)
I love these gourmet Italian capers under sea salt!
Why This Olive Tapenade Recipe Works
This is the most basic recipe with a minimal of ingredients so there’s no complicated combination of flavors to go awry. However, it’s important that you use quality ingredients.
Why Should I Trust This Tapenade Recipe?
This recipe comes from my cousin, Cinzia, who is an excellent cook, avid baker, major foodie, and world traveler! She’s constantly in the kitchen cooking up classic European dishes like arancini or sausage rolls, to Asian food, to sticky toffee pudding (one of her favorites, as well as mine–are we related?)
Cinzia is also mother to Sofia (was one of my bridesmaids), trained massage therapist, cake decorator, SCUBA diver and Winnie the Pooh and cat lover! How can we go wrong?
Cinzia also gave me this authentic Liege waffle recipe which is simply stupendous!
Let’s see just how easy tapenade is to make whether you want to make black olive tapenade, green olive tapenade or a combination of both. I love an olive spoon for use in a jar of olives as it doesn’t require draining the liquid.
You’ll also have to choose whether you want a finely chopped version or a smoother texture. Both are incredibly delicious!
Olive Tapenade Recipe
Recipe by Cinzia VDB Serves 6
FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW
Ingredients
- black and/or green olives
- capers – in brine or salted (if using salted, soak in water for 10 minutes)
- extra virgin olive oil
- anchovy (optional)
Special equipment: food processor, olive spoon (optional)
Directions to Make this Olive Tapenade Recipe
Place the olives into the food processor bowl.
Add the remaining ingredients.
Process the ingredients until the tapenade takes on the texture you prefer. Leave chopped and a little chunky, or blend longer for smoothness.
If you like a smooth paste, you can even use an immersion blender.
Here are two slices, side by side, showing a smoother tapenade versus a more chopped version. You can make it really smooth if you prefer. Which you you like better? Notice the big holes in my no knead bread? Not the best for spreading a topping, but boy, is it delicious!
If you’ve been a reader for a long time, you may recall that I shared a list of family recipes from my mother and all six of her sisters (my aunts) to my children, as well as some of my cousins. I never got around to sharing one from Cinzia, but given that she’s turning the big 5-0 today, I thought this would be a good time to celebrate my wee cousin by adding her recipe!
Here’s Cinzia with her mother, my Zia Francesca, who gave me my fantastic penne alla vodka recipe. You can’t be my aunt’s daughter and not be a great cook! Case in point: Cinzia’s sister, Ketie (her smoked salmon and goat cheese appetizer is fantastic, too!)
Happy Birthday, Cinzia! 🎂
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Olive Tapenade Recipe
Special Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup olives Kalamata olives, or green pitted, or Manzanilla (separately or mix as desired – see notes)
- 1 Tbsp capers (if using capers in salt, soak them for about 10 minutes so they're not too salty)
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil (be sure to use good quality oil)
- 1 anchovy (optional – but try to add a little anchovy for flavor)
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients into a small food processor.
- Process until the ingredients have the texture you prefer.
- If you like a smooth spread, continue to process for more time.
- Serve as desired.
Notes
- Use all black olives for black olive tapenade, all green olives for green olive tapenade or a mix of both types if you prefer a blend.
- This tapenade will keep in your fridge for over a week.
- Do not freeze tapenade.
Nutrition
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