Olive Tapenade Palmiers
A heavenly bite-sized snack for olive lovers – a vibrant burst of umami flavour intertwined in a delectable flaky puff pastry.
In o-love with olives
We must admit – we’re a household of olive lovers. We’re happy to eat them straight from the container, simply seasoned with a light sprinkling of The Salty Greek blend to compliment the natural flavourful olives. Whether they’re Sicilian or Kalamata, there’s not an olive we haven’t met that we haven’t loved. We understand they can be an acquired taste – but when we serve these olive tapenade palmiers at parties, even those who don’t adore olives reach for them!
Olive tapenade – our favourite dip
Olive tapenade is a household staple of ours – we could honestly eat it on it’s own, but layering this dip on a fresh sesame-crusted koulouri with classic toppings like tomato, feta, and cucumber (seasoned of course with The Salty Greek to bring out the flavours) is a perfect way to enjoy it. Try using it as a base for pizzas, as a dip on a charcuterie or antipasto platter, or alongside méze with warm pita bread.
Over the years, we’ve experimented with different ways to make it, so we’ve picked up a few tips and troubleshooting – the main advice being taste as you go. Everyone’s flavour palette is different, and if you’re missing a few ingredients you can still create a beautiful dip if you balance out the flavours.
Olive tapenade palmiers – the ultimate freezer snack
Our most common use for the olive tapenade though is to create palmiers – a French pastry in a palm leaf, butterfly or heart-like shape. They look impressive and luckily are deceptively easy to make! We use frozen sheets of puff pastry for convenience; simply spreading the dip on a lightly thawed sheet and folding in half twice to create the layers.
Make ahead - freezer friendly
The best thing about them – aside from the taste – is that they’re freezer friendly so they can be prepared in advance. Once you’ve cut them, simply freeze for later. When you’re ready to use them, they only take 20 minutes to cook, making them a perfect afternoon snack or for a low-fuss dish to entertain guests.
Serving suggestions
We often serve as an appetiser or on a platter for guests – you might want to have this recipe handy because we're sure you’ll get asked for it like we do. These are delicious warm from the oven or cold as leftovers. You could even crisp them up, chop them and serve in a salad for a crunchy bite.
Ingredients
1 cup, Pitted Kalamata Olives
2 Tbsp, Olive Oil
2 Tbsp, Capers
1 Lemon, juiced
1/2 cup, Fresh Parsley (more if prefer)
2 Tbsp, The Salty Greek
2 sheets, frozen Puff Pastry, thawed
Optional add:
1 cup, Almond Meal
1 Tbsp, Dijon Mustard
1/2 cup, Parmesan or Nutritional Yeast
Recipe Steps
To make the Olive Tapenade
Add all the ingredients to a food processor and pulse into a chunky paste. Stop regularly to scrape down the sides, ensuring that everything is evenly distributed.
Tip: you want there to be texture in this dip, not smooth like a paste, so pulsing in bursts rather than blending will help achieve this.
To make the Olive Palmiers
Remove the frozen sheets of puff pastry to thaw lightly. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 180°C. Line two baking trays with baking paper.
Spread out one sheet of puff pastry and cover evenly with half the olive paste.
Tip: be careful not to put too much (as tempting as it is) as they will be difficult to fold and cut. We’ve found 2-3 heaped tablespoons works well, spread thinly across the sheet all the way to the edges. If there is too much, they will look squashed when cutting them and have less of a refined shape – still tastes good though!
Fold two opposite ends into the centre to meet.
Fold each side over again to the centre.
Tip: keep the plastic sheet to help you fold, which avoids the heat of your hands softening the cold puff pastry.
Lightly spray oil over pastry or brush with non-dairy milk or an egg yolk.
Tip: this helps achieve the golden puff pastry when cooking.
Cut the roll into 1.5cm evenly thick slices. Shape the slices into a V-shape, with the two sides curving out slightly.
Place the shapes on the baking trays and bake 15-20 minutes, or until they are puffed and golden.
Tips: Just check your pitted olives first before making the tapenade, as sometimes a pit might have snuck in. If your mixture is too thin or lacks substance, adding almond meal will help thicken it while adding another layer of flavour. Grated parmesan can also add flavour and thicken it – nutritional yeast also works as a vegan substitute. If you don’t have access to fresh herbs, The Salty Greek will help add flavour, but you may need to balance it out with some more lemon juice to add brightness.
Omega Foods
Our go-to for olives is Omega Foods – they stock a variety, but their Kalamata olives, either in a big container or fresh from the deli are what we typically use for this recipe. They also have a range of cheeses (including a vegan feta!) and freshly baked breads, like the sesame-crusted Koulouri we used here. They stock the other ingredients, and now you can find The Salty Greek products near the counter, making it a one-stop-shop for this recipe!
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