“Dress Up Your Dish” with Black Ripe Olives

I adore black olives. I eat them on pizza. In salads. In sandwiches. Mixed with hummus. Tossed with pasta. By themselves, straight out of the can.

Did you know that California’s olive growers produce more than 95% of the black ripe olives grown in the U.S.? From breakfast to dinner, January to December, and from everyday to gourmet, olives can be as casual or as elegant as you’d like to make them, adding color, texture, and flavor to any meal.

Black Olive, Red Pepper & Cucumber Salad

This refreshing salad I made with ingredients I picked from my mom’s garden. Adding a handful of California Black Ripe Olives made it complete! I forgot to snap a pic before digging in, but it looks a lot like the photo that goes with the recipe that I got from calolive.org.

•    1/2 cup sliced California Black Ripe Olives
•    1 red bell pepper, chopped (I also added yellow to make it even brighter!)
•    1 English cucumber, seeds removed and cut cubes
•    2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
•    1/4 cup garlic-infused olive oil
•    Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Toss together the olives, red pepper and cucumber; set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together lemon juice and olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour this over the veggies, and ta-dah! A healthy, elegant salad in minutes.

For more information about black ripe olives (and more recipes!) please visit www.CalOlive.org.

“Dress Up Your Dish” recipe contest

•    Just like a pair of peep-toe pumps or a cool clutch can make an outfit, California Black Ripe Olives are every season’s – and every dish’s – hottest accessory and can truly make the dish. Now show them why!
•    Share how you accessorize your dish with California Black Ripe Olives by uploading your original recipe to their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/CaliforniaBlackRipeOlives for a chance to win a $2,500 cash prize or one of three $100 Gilt.com gift cards!
•    Entries will be accepted through June 30th, 2011.
•    Three finalists will be selected based on creativity, ease-of-preparation, taste, and if the recipe uses at least 6oz of black olives. Finalists are announced on July 15, and then it’s up to all the olive-loving fans out there to decide who takes the top prize!

Disclosure: The California Olive Committee provided me with black olives, recipes, and a gift card to cover the cost of ingredients for sharing the information above.