Sluttishly Easy: Olive Tapenade

I've long since given up on making dips after all my attempts at hummous had the consistency of plasticine, my guacamole turned brown, and everything else seemed like such a faff compared to buying it ready-made. But then I dropped in on a friend at short notice, and he casually whipped up this olive tapenade in about a minute for us to enjoy with crackers and wine. Even I couldn't bungle this one, I realised, as I scribbled down the ingredients before they were forever lost in a sea of Pinot Grigio.

Olive tapenade has a fantastically strong, earthy taste that can be tamed by adding sun-dried tomatoes. Add capers and/or anchovies for a saltier taste. I used green olives but black olives look much classier, or combine the two for a different look.


Olive tapenade

You will need:

• 100g olives, stones removed
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Squeeze of lemon juice
• Small handful of basil
  

Make it!

Simply put everything in a food processor and blitz for a just few seconds - you don't want it super smooth, it should have texture. If you don't have a food processor, finely chop the olives, garlic and basil, and mix with the other ingredients.

This is ideal with crackers or sticks of carrots and peppers, or use it like pesto for a quick pasta dinner. It'll keep in the fridge with a thin film of olive oil over it for around two weeks.