11.22.2011 Fig and olive tapenade... the black butter of Provence
I first tried tapenade on my honeymoon in Provence 19 years ago. One morning, my then "shiny new husband" and I eagerly set out to the early morning outdoor market at L'Isles-sur-la-Sorgue in search of this rich condiment that we had just read about in Peter Mayle's iconic books, "A year in Provence" and "Toujours Provence." (I wrote about our encounter with Mr. Mayle here) The market in this picturesque riverside town is known for its "antiquaires" and "broquantes" (antique dealers and nic nacs) but we were fortunate enought to find a purveyor of olives and tapenade. I've never seen so many varieties and colors of olives all lined up in baskets... stunning. We purchased an earthen pot of tapenade along with a baguette and a fine bottle of Chateauneuf du Pape. That evening on our balcony at the auberge in Bonnieux we slathered our "black butter of Provence" on slices of baguette and sipped our bold wine while watching the sunset... marriage is good indeed.
The next morning my husband decided to again have the tapenade smeared on his croissant. He informed me that he had wisely kept it outside on the balcony to keep it cold overnight. Very unfortunately for him, the night was not cold enough and with one of the key ingredients being anchovies... he became violently ill for the next four days. Who'd have thought the "in sickness and in health" part would become relevant so soon after the vows. So for the second week of our honeymoon I discovered Provence on my own. I explored ancient hilltop villages, I toured world class wineries, I savored memorable meals.... alone.
Since that fateful day, my husband prefers his tapenade 'sans' anchovies. A traditional tapenade would have black olives, capers, anchovies, and olive oil. My recipe is a simple one of equal parts dried figs and black oil cured olives combined in a food processor with a drizzle of olive oil to bind it all together. The sweetness of the figs is a perfect balance to the saltiness of the olives.
I made the tapenade to put in a little gift basket of homemade goodies to bring with me this weekend to give to my in-laws as a housewarming gift for having us for the Thanksgiving weekend.
May you have a wondeful Thanksgiving filled with many blessings!
Fig and black olive tapenade
1 cup oil cured black olives
1 cup dried figs with the stems trimmed off
a drizzle of olive oil
In a food processor combine the olives and figs by pulsing them many times until the mixture is well combined but still a bit chunky. Drizzle a little olive oil in to the mixture to make it the consitancy you prefer. Store refigerated in an airtight container for up to one week. Serve at room temperature. Spread on crackers or slices of toasted baguette.
Printable recipe.... click here.
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Reader Comments (13)
I've never tried tapenade before, but I love figs--fresh or dried. Beautiful photos; they make me want to try this!
Oh no! Your poor husband, I bet he stayed far away from tapenade after that.
Pitty-Pat is a lucky lady this thanksgiving! I see the un-refrigerated, un-anchovied tapenade sitting proud and pretty (and botulism-free) in that basket: what a treat. And the vanilla-pear jam that I still want to try. Can you make some of both for our next boat picnic up at CBC?
Anne- Absolutely! They would make great boat picnic nibbles!
This is my kind of butter!
What a gourmet butter! I adore olives...never consumed them with figs though. Gotta get some and try the combination.
Your in laws are so lucky to receive such a wonderful homemade gift basket. The tapenade sounds like my kind of spread. i love both figs and olives.
Happy Thanksgiving Lisa, to you and yours.
Lisa, you poor things with the upset but boy, it certainly inspired an amazing recipe here. You won't find that in the markets in Provence. I can just see your stall at Ile-sur-Sorgue next to the jazz band! Love it: "shiny new husband". Well with this black butter, this must keep him shiny!
C'est original le mélange figue/olive!
Encore une très belle réalisation! ;)
Bise
I love both ingredients. I was planning to make something like this for my friends with Turkish pantry items for Christmas gifts, this will drop in the basket nicely...
I had to chuckle about your "new shiny husband" and how he got sick over your honeymoon. My shiny new husband as well was so sick during our honeymoon 7 years ago, he could not leave our room at the little B&B's on Turkey's Aegean coast. My days were spent with visiting the local markets, pharmacy and I read TONS of books :)
Oh dear! That's an awful thing to have happened...but quite a funny little story to tell nowadays :) I can't wait to try this tapenade. And I'll make sure to put it in the fridge!!!
I love olive spreads! Yours looks gorgeous!
How the heck did I miss this? Being part of your 'frequent reader program' I popped over to see if you'd been blogging (knowing you must be swamped at this time of year) and see I missed this sunny post. What a tragic honeymoon story with lasting consequences it sounds in the permanent omission of anchovies from this dish. I'd suspect a bad fish hangover rivals the worst of tequlia hangovers. Sound like you've whipped up a perfect alternative and lucky inlaws for your beautiful gift!