Let’s all come together and start supporting light, bite sized appetizers, shall we?
I’m all for hearty first courses, don’t get me wrong, but how many holidays have you experienced where everyone fills up on appetizers and then leaves almost no room for the main meal, let alone dessert?
When I’ve been cooking all day, be it Thanksgiving or a dinner party, I want people to come to the table HUNGRY.
These Feta Stuffed Marinated Olives are just the sort of appetizer I love to serve on a holiday because:
- It’s served at room temperature
- It is very easy to make
- It is savory and delicious, going really well with cocktails
- It’s something to nibble on without filling up, leaving plenty of room for the dinner I’ve worked hard on.
“what else can I use?”
- I use these Weck jars for everything in my kitchen, including these. They are great for storage, but also look nice enough to serve right to the table.
- I love Castlevetrano olives for their mild, buttery flavor, but any large, pitted green olive will do.
- Fresh thyme, or even dried Za’atar or Herbs de Provence can be used in place of the rosemary in the marinade.
- If you don’t care for feta, use goat cheese… it’s just a bit messier to handle so be aware of that.
These olives can be marinated for 4 hours, and up to 3 days, making them a perfect make-ahead option for cocktail hour. Just be sure to take the olives out of the fridge a couple of hours before serving to come to room temperature and allow the olive oil to liquify again.
If you make these Feta Stuffed Marinated Olives, and I hope you do, please leave me a comment here or post to Instagram and tag me. I love to hear your feedback and share your creations!
Feta Stuffed Marinated Olives (Gluten-Free, Vegetarian)
Equipment
- Vegetable Peeler
- Medium storage jar, glass or reusable plastic
Ingredients
- 1 lemon
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh rosemary, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/4 tsp Kosher salt
- 1/8 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- 2 oz. block feta cheese, cut into 30 sticks (1 x 1/4 inches)
- 30 large Castelvetrano olives, pitted
Instructions
- Use a vegetable peeler to remove lemon peel from the lemon in thin strips. Chop roughly, so you have thin slices about 1 inch long. Reserve the lemon for another use.
- In the storage jar you plan to use for the olives to marinate, stir together the lemon peel, olive oil, red pepper flakes, rosemary, salt and black pepper.
- To stuff the olives, insert one piece of feta cheese into each olive. You can use your fingers, or do as I do, and use a chopstick to pick the feta up and stuff the olives.
- Add stuffed olives to the olive oil mixture and toss to coat.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least four hours and up to 3 days.
- Bring olives to room temperature before serving.
