Black Olive Dip

Olives and olive oil are very much part of the Mediterranean diet recognised as being one of the healthiest in the world.  Full of antioxidants, olives have a range of health benefits and if you are able to harvest and cure them yourselves, they would be free from chemicals and preservatives and you get to control the amount of salt in them.  Black olives are particularly rich in oil, which practically oozes out of the fruit when you press one open.  This is a lovely dip made with my dry salt-cured olives.  You can also use a jar of shop-bought black olives in brine.  

INGREDIENTS

• 250g / 9oz cream cheese
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise 
• 1 cup dry salt-cured black olives*
• ¼ teaspoon red chilli flakes
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder or granules
• ½ cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

*Alternatively, use about ½ cup of shop-bought pitted black olives in brine, drained and rinsed.

METHOD

1. Remove pits from olives if required by placing them on a flat surface and firmly pressing down with the bottom of a glass jar to break open their flesh, then coax the pits out with your fingers.  Discard pits and check that none are left in the olives.  Roughly chop them if the pieces are big.
2. Combine all ingredients in a bowl, reserving a handful of olives for garnishing.  Chill in the fridge before serving with biscuits and vegetable sticks.