Comments on: Olives

by: Maria Rowena Rillen-Rizzi

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 16:39:07 +0000

I’ve been married to an Italian and been living here in Italy for almost 10 years now,and considered myself a foodie,every November we travel to the nearby outskirt town of Verona, and there they celebrate olive oil festival. They normally show how a they process the olives from the fruit to oil. Olives are picked from the tree by hand or sometimes they use wooden pole to shake it off from the trees and they use nets to catch the olives to prevent it from from falling into the ground, then they immediately hauled it into a tractor to be brought to the mill. The mill itself is made of 2 huge circular boulders, that goes around in circle, so the olives are turned into a mushy paste, then they spread it on a flat sieve and press it, and the end result is a fruity complex delicious olive oil, so good with bruschetta! Another thing, did you know that olives grown around lake garda here in verona has the fruitiest taste amongst all olive oil. Did you ever try using it as a condiment for your steak with balsamic vinegar? Oh heaven..

by: betty q.

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 03:26:26 +0000

Hello MM and Homebuddy: Sweet Olives…indeed a MUST TRY!!! You can use Kalamata or a mixture of Kalamata, Green or Picholine..the Cerignola are way too big for this concoction, I think but feel free to use them if you want. I use KALAMATA and Green ones. Make a LEMON INFUSED SIMPLE SYRUP first (use the rind and lemon slices). Let it cool and store overnight to get maximum flavour. Then next day, drain the olives and rinse under cold running water. Blanch them three to five times in boiling water….just to get rid of that saltiness. Then drain them, put in a pot and add your lemon infused simple syrup. Let it come to a boil and let it cool in the syrup. Pack them into jars. …MM, if you want to try this and have leftover Kalamansi marmalade, it would make a terrific add-on to the Sweet Olives concoction and the pureed ones as well…

Now, my family doesn’t like the PITS…so I take out the pit of each olive…give them the same treatment as the ones above …I add an apple - lemon marmalade(to add sweetness and pectin) and boil everything till mushy. Then puree….YOU ARE IN OLIVE HEAVEN when you try this, HOMEBUDDY!

by: kurzhaar

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 23:01:08 +0000

If you have a source of fresh (uncured) olives, for heaven’s sake don’t let them go to waste! Curing is very easy–soak in strong brine which you change a couple of times until the bitterness is leached out. Then pack in salt for salt-cured olives, air-dry (in a low humidity climate) and roll in a bit of olive oil for a drier texture, or simply store in fresh brine to which you can add your choice of herbs. I used to cure my own olives when I lived in California and miss that terribly!

For an easy (and utterly delicious) meal, try oven-braising a rabbit or chicken with sweet onions, a generous handful of both green and black olives, and a whole chile pod or two; use dry vermouth (undiluted) as your braising liquid. Braise slowly at a moderate temperature until the meat is meltingly tender. The olives’ herbal bite and onions’ sweetness is reflected in the vermouth. Lovely with fresh egg noodles or a nice crusty loaf.

by: Glecy

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 21:27:19 +0000

How about frying your artichoke in extra virgin olive oil. It’s worth every penny. Enjoy!

by: Homebuddy

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 07:52:44 +0000

Olives is one of my favorite foods but sweet olives, this I have to try!