St Clements Marinade for Olives from Spain

The world is divided into those who love olives and those who don't.  When I was a child, I couldn't understand why my Mum loved these strange green or black fruits, to me they didn't taste good at all.  However, as I reached my twenties somehow I too found a taste for olives.  I was totally converted by olives stuffed with anchovies which I first tasted in Spain.

Olive expert and chef, Omar Allibhoy has created some fantastic marinade recipes for 'Olives from Spain' just in time for the party season.  I've also been included in a group of bloggers who have been challenged to come up with our own festive marinade for Spanish Olives.  Last week, I received a bumper hamper full of lovely Spanish ingredients, olives, olive oil, Manchego cheese, chorizo and a selection of fruits and herbs.

I wanted to create a marinade full of festive colours and flavours so chose to use oranges and lemons, reminding me of the rhyme 'Oranges and Lemons say the bells of St Clements' hence the title for my marinade.

St Clements Marinade for Olives

 150g black olives in brine (drained and rinsed)
1 clementine
1/2 lemon
1 tsp pink peppercorns
10 cloves
1 tbsp honey
6 tbsp Spanish Olive Oil
3 tbsp dry white wine
1 sprig rosemary

1. Cut the clementine and the half lemon into small pieces.
2. Put Spanish Olive Oil, dry white wine and honey into a bowl and mix well.
3. Add the pink peppercorns, cloves, clementine, lemon pieces and rosemary.

 4. Add the Spanish olives.

 5. Leave to stand for at least an hour, but the flavour will be even better if you put them into a plastic bag and refrigerate overnight.

 I was delighted with the light fresh flavour of the olives and marinade.  I deliberately didn't use vinegar or lemon juice in the marinade because of the citrus fruit that was already included and this meant that he olives have a fresh but mild flavour.  The fruit pieces are also edible and have absorbed some of the oil and wine so are also delicious.  I loved the pretty colours, the contrasts of  the reddish pink peppercorns, green rosemary and orange and yellow fruits against the shiny black olives.

We enjoyed the olives with some Manchego cheese and Medjool dates with a glass of wine before dinner.

Why not visit the Olives from Spain website, the Facebook page 'Taste of Spain' for more information and recipes and follow Taste of Spain on Twitter for all the updates.

I received a hamper from Olives from Spain and have created a marinade recipe using some of the ingredients from the hamper and some ingredients from my own kitchen.