Zeitun Tapenade

I know this post was going to be my entry for Nupur's A-Z of Indian Vegetables. But I am late for that, still posting it for you guys.

Zeitun is a Middle-Eastern term for Olives. In hindi it is called Jaitun and the same in Gujarati. (look here for the info)

It didn't originated from one language but perhaps a mix of different languages.

The olive is the only member of the Oleaceae to bear edible fruit. The fruit, a drupe like a peach, cannot be eaten fresh because of the presence of a bitter glucoside. Thus the olive must be processed in order to be served as food; either processed for its oil or processed with lye and salt to produce the canned or preserved table fruit. While fruit processed in California has almost all of the bitterness removed, that processed in the Mediterranean area is often left somewhat bitter.

Tapenade is a Provençal dish consisting of pureed or finely chopped olives, capers, and olive oil. Its name comes from the Provençal word for capers, tapéno. It is a popular food in the south of France, where it is generally eaten as an hors d’œuvre, spread on gourmet breads such as baguette or ciabatta. Sometimes it is also used to stuff fillets for a main course.

The recipe: Makes about 1/2 cup

1 cup of mixed olives, black and green

1 garlic cloves, sliced

1 tbsp minced fresh parsley

1 tbsp salted capers, rinsed and dried (optional)

2 tsp lemon zest (optional)

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

2 to 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

lemon juice to taste

Put olives, parsley, garlic, capers, lemon zest and process it by drizzling olive oil from the feeding tube. Once its finely minced. Take it out in a bowl and adjust the seasonings.
Set aside for 30 minutes before serving. Serve it on a toasted sliced baguette (crostini) or eat with crackers or toasted pita bread. It's tastes so good.

The tapenade will keep in the refrigerator for a day or two, after that its flavors will deteriorate. You can make this tapenade using almost any olive, including the mixed olives sold at the olive bars common in upscale markets these days.

If you select the olives yourself, try a mix of kalamatas, picholines, cracked green, and California black.

Salted capers are available in good delis and markets.

P.S: Do not add salt as olives are very salty and if using capers they have lot of salt too.

Black Bean Hummus and the Wrap

Black beans are one of the 12 best foods for us to eat, since they rank at the top of the legume family for antioxidants, and are high in folates. Eating them helps lower cholesterol and LDL levels, reduces cancer risk, and scavenges free radicals.

Here is the Black Bean Hummus I love and it's not just a dip, actually you can use it as a spread for veggie wraps. Tastes delicious and it's a healthy substitute for the fat laden mayonnaise and the cream cheese spreads.

For the hummus:

1 cup black beans cooked, or 1 can (15 oz) drained
1 tbsp tahini

4 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

salt to taste

black pepper to taste

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika (optional)

handful of cilantro leaves

Combine all the ingredients in a processor and process till smooth.

You can adjust the salt, lemon juice, and the spiciness according to your taste.

I ate some with my usual corn chips and below is the recipe for the wrap.

1 flour tortilla (10")

4-5 thin slices of cucumber

2 tbsp of black bean hummus

1 red radish thinly sliced

3 slices of tomato (thinly sliced)

1/4 cup of thinly shredded lettuce

baby spinach leaves (optional)
3-4 black olives chopped

sliced pickled jalapeno (optional)

thinly sliced onion (optional)

I have listed the above veggies optional as it is up to you, what kind of veggies you want in your wrap. Either you can have all or may be some of them.

Warm the tortilla in the microwave.

Spread the hummus on the tortilla and arrange the veggies in layers and then wrap the tortilla like the way you do a burrito.

You can add hot sauce, maybe mustard or wasabi (made from horseradish) to the wrap to jazz it up a bit.

Here's the link to the article that I contributed to Meeta's Daily tiffin blog

http://dailytiffin.blogspot.com/2007/07/superfood-allium-family.html

you will find the article on superfoods every month contributed by me on daily tiffin blog.

Don't miss it.

I will soon be practicing as a Holistic Nutritional consultant! yeahhhh!! hopefully.

I have few months left to my graduation in B.S in Holistic Nutrition.