Peppercorn Press

In both of our families, at major holidays (especially Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter), one of our aunts will open a can of black olives to put on the dinner table.  We both grew up with this practice, but when we started hosting some of the holiday dinners at our home we started wondering what we could do to liven up this decades old tradition.  We fiddled, tested and fiddled some more until we arrived at this flavorful mixture of sautéed herbs and olives.

Now we serve these at most of our holiday gatherings, but they are an excellent addition to buffet tables and are a must when serving antipasti.  They are a fast and easy dish that takes only minutes to prepare and can be made several days ahead.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

1 scallion chopped

1 ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

3 cloves fresh garlic, minced

1 cup black olives, drained and pitted

1 cup Greek olives, drained and pitted

1 cup Kalamata olives, drained and pitted

Note:  Any combination of good olives will work well

Preparation

In a medium skillet, sauté the parsley, scallion, garlic and red pepper flakes in the olive oil stirring constantly until the garlic just begins to brown, about 3-5 minutes.

Add the olives, stirring well to coat the olives in the oil.  Cover and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the skin of the olives just starts to wrinkle.

Remove from heat and spoon the olives into a serving bowl.  Serve at room temperature.  If making ahead, store olives in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.  Remove from the refrigerator and allow the olives to reach room temperature before serving.