Robust Onion-Olive Tapenade

From "Eat Well Naturally," a free e-letter with lots of yummy, healthy recipes. The cuisine of Provincial France has given us a wonderful gift in tapenade, a savory black olive paste that is absolutely divine on bread, pasta, or salads. It‘s a cinch to make and completely versatile: you can use it as an appetizer, snack, salad, side, or as a tasty condiment for your main dish. Heart-nurturing fatty acids and the healthful properties of garlic are just a few of the reasons this robust spread (or dip or condiment) is such a popular feature of the Mediterranean diet. Make sure to use good quality olives, not the canned variety!

• Ready In: 15 mins
• Yields: 2 cups

Ingredients

• 1⁄2 cup  vidalia onion, finely chopped
• 1⁄2 cup  sweet red onion, finely chopped
• 1 3⁄4 cups kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
• 2  tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained
• 3  tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2  tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1  tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
• 1  tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
• 1⁄4 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
• 1  garlic clove, crushed
•  fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 2  tablespoons red bell peppers or 2  tablespoons orange bell peppers, finely chopped

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix the onions, olives, and capers.
2. Pulse lemon juice, oil, parsley, oregano, lemon zest, and garlic in a food processor for 3 to 5 seconds.
3. Pour over onion-olive mixture and combine with a fork.
4. Place tapenade in a serving bowl, season with pepper to taste, top with chopped peppers, and serve. May be used as a dip for pita, spread on bruschetta or sliced baguette, on top of a mixed greens salad, or as a topping for rice, potato, or pasta.