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Green olive tapenade
OK, so tapenade isn’t exactly Portuguese, but this salty, fishy dip is great for Christmas time and in a place with plentiful tasty olives, it seemed a shame not to make it.
Tapenade
What you need:
250g pitted green olives
25g anchovy fillets, chopped
50g capers – drained and rinsed
1/4 teaspoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon dry oregano
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 dessert spoon white wine vinegar
Small handful chopped fresh parsley
Black pepper
All you have to do is chuck all of the ingredients except the pepper and parsley in a food processor and process until a smooth paste – I like to make mine a bit rustic and leave a few olive chunks here and there but this is up to you. Stir in the fresh parsley and a good grinding of black pepper. Serve it with crusty bread, crostini or crackers. This also makes a lovely base for Christmas canapes – enjoy!
PS. I have tested this recipe on my wife and father in law, both of whom DO NOT like: olives, capers, anchovies or mustard. They both like this very much – the oil seems to take the edge off the other strong tastes.
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Portugese / Moroccan Style Carrots
Portugese Carrots
When you sit down in most restaurants in Portugal, you are presented with some bread and a selection of things to nibble on – this can range from some sardine or cheese spread and a few olives, to cheese and home made pates, and often, a small bowl of these delicious marinated carrots.
I think they may have originated in Morocco as I have found a similar recipe in a book which describes them as Moroccan Carrots – given that there are many Moorish influences in this part of Portugal I think it more than likely.
You need:
3 peeled carrots, salt and pepper, 3 tablespoons of good extra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon of wine vinegar (red or white,) a finely chopped clove of garlic, half a teaspoon of cumin and a handful of coriander or parsley or a mixture of both.
Boil the carrots in salted water for long enough for them to soften but retain some bite, drain them and leave them to steam dry and then cool. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the cumin, oil, garlic, a pinch of salt and pepper, and the wine vinegar (white is usually used but we have had good results with red also.) Once this is mixed, finely chop the herbs (coriander is used usually but the parsley works nearly as well,) and add them to the mixture.
Once the carrots have cooled, add them to the mixture then put everything in a serving dish and chill for a couple of hours or overnight. Enjoy on their own or with a chunk of bread as a starter, and use within a day or two.
This is one of those recipes that is more than the sum of its parts, and all of those parts are the kind of thing you have lying around in the kitchen. I hope you enjoy it.
I found the Moroccan version of this recipe in a fantastic cookery book full of recipes which only require 3 or 4 ingredients – perfect for credit crunch times or those reluctant cooks. Click the link below to find this book on Amazon.
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