Beef Free Basil & Olive Tapenade
This vibrant spread is built entirely from the Mediterranean pantry — briny Kalamata and green olives, a generous handful of fresh basil, garlic, lemon, and a whisper of thyme and turmeric that gives the whole thing an unexpected warmth. Everything comes together in a food processor in just a few pulses, so you get a coarse, deeply flavored paste without much effort at all. The combination of two olive varieties keeps the flavor complex, while the fresh lemon juice and zest cut through the richness and keep it tasting bright. It's naturally plant-based and completely free of any animal proteins, so there's zero guesswork about what's in it — just honest, whole ingredients. Spread it thick on crusty bread, swipe it across a flatbread, or use it as a bold base for a cheese board. The drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil at the end pulls everything together into something that looks and tastes far more impressive than the effort involved.
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Learn more →Ingredients
8 servings
- 1 cup pitted kalamata olives
- ½ cup pitted green olives
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves, packed
- 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to taste
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt, or to taste
Instructions
- 1
Drain the Kalamata and green olives and pat them dry with a paper towel — excess brine will make the tapenade watery.
- 2
Combine the olives, basil, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, thyme, and turmeric in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 8–10 times until the mixture is roughly chopped and no large olive pieces remain.
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