Olive all'Ascolana
Post frying, these suave little buggers get dusted with Parmesan and lemon zest.
Mustard seed for the goat cheese filling, an unusual touch.
Garlic, mustard seed, red pepper flakes (and rosemary, which is late to the party), awaiting the arrival of goat cheese.
After the goat cheese is added, you mash it up with a fork.
There is indeed light at the end of the tunnel.
Stuffing the cheese into the pastry bag -- never a neat and easy task.
Merrill twists the end of the bag to keep it sealed.
Olive and cheese filling meet.
Amanda marching olives across the kitchen.
Make sure you let the olives chill completely because it prevents the cheese from spurting out when frying. Yes, that's a bottle of Budweiser, and it's not Amanda's or Merrill's.
Setting up our coating station. That's flour on the left, egg in the middle and panko on the right.
Working hard, again.
A lightly flour-dusted olive.
If you stare at this for a really long time, it starts to look like a button. No, a turtle surfacing in a pond. No, a macaroon in custard....
Assembly line (think I Love Lucy chocolate episode).
Olives coated in a flokati rug.
We tested the oil with a bread cube. When the oil seems like it's getting hot enough, you toss in a breadcube and if it browns in 30 seconds the oil is ready. Not exactly a precise method...
Plus, these suckers cook so quickly you'll never be able to keep the oil a precise temperature. They brown in about 30 seconds. You'll need to flip them once.
Our first handsome fried olive.
Share
- ✉
-
Author Notes: I am an olive fiend, and for me, this dish is the ultimate snack food. Olives, stuffed with a savory goat cheese, breaded and fried until crisp, and topped with a shaving of sharp cheese, lemon zest, and a spritz of lemon. I do hope you like them! - arielleclementine - arielleclementine
Food52 Review: This high-low snack can work just as easily for a movie snack as it can for a dinner party hors d'oeuvres. These crunchy little flavor bombs come out of the hot oil looking like hedgehogs with a shaggy brown coating of panko. Inside is a layer of tangy olive and then rosemary-and-dried chile scented goat cheese. They hold up well, so you can fry them up to an hour in advance; just keep them warm in a low oven. And chill some prosecco. - A&M - A&M
Serves 2 dozen
- 24 large green olives, pitted
- 1/2 cup goat cheese
- 1 teaspoon whole mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped fine
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 cup breadcrumbs (fresh or panko)
- 1/3 cup parmigiano reggiano, or similar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- parmigiano reggiano, for sprinkling
- zest and juice from one lemon, for sprinkling
- In a small bowl, mix the goat cheese, mustard seed, rosemary, chile flakes, and garlic. Stuff the olives with the cheese mixture (I like to use my fingers, but you could also use a piping bag if you're really classy). Put the stuffed olives on a plate and refrigerate for 20 minutes, to let the cheese firm up.
- While the olives are chilling, heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan to 375 degrees.
- Set up three plates for your breading station. Put the flour on one plate, the beaten egg on the next, and mix the bread crumbs and cheese on the last plate.
- When the olives have chilled, roll half of them in the flour, then in the egg, then in the bread crumbs and carefully drop them into the heated oil. Fry until golden brown, about one minute per side. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain, and repeat with the remaining olives.
- Pile on a plate and finish with a shower of freshly grated cheese and lemon zest and a spritz of lemon.
- Your Best Movie Snack Contest Winner!
Tags: cheesy, deep-fried, green olives, savory
More Great Recipes
.jpg?1365001675)
Share a Recipe
Enter one of our contests, or share that great thing you made for dinner last night.
Add a Recipe
5 months ago rederin
Made these for a New Year's Eve party. Yum! Everyone wanted to help fry them, so it was fun to cook, too. Even my husband loved them, and he isn't an olive guy. Mine didn't turn out as pretty as yours, but they sure tasted great. I had a hard time getting them breaded uniformly.
about 1 year ago betty888
I made these for a dinner party last night and my guests LOVED them (also made the creamy stuffed mushrooms). I made over 30 olives and I still had a little filling left over - which will be great on crackers. I used a pastry bag to pipe in the filing. I am not experienced at frying - the first few olives fell apart so I increased the heat and did not touch them until they were really brown on one side before flipping. Perfection. Per other posters, you can make these ahead of time and throw them in a low oven to keep warm - they actually held all evening. I put the remaining (3) olives in the fridge and had them for breakfast. Even without re-heating the breading held. Will definitely make again - the only change might be to make the holes in the olives larger (per another poster's suggestion) to accommodate more filling.
about 1 year ago arielleclementine
thanks betty888! thrilled you liked them, and thanks so much for your helpful suggestions!
about 1 year ago betty888
I made these a second time last night, this time for a vegetarian crowd. A huge hit yet again! Big fan. :)
about 1 year ago arielleclementine
so sweet of you, betty888- i'm thrilled that you and your friends enjoyed them!
over 1 year ago Adam E
I served these yesterday at my Christmas party, and they were a hit. Still delicious at room temperature, and the lemon zest at the end really makes the dish. Thanks for a great recipe!
over 1 year ago arielleclementine
oh thank you! so happy you liked them! i agree about the lemon zest- it helps perk everything up :)
almost 2 years ago micook
I'm back with another report because I am making these regularly. We had quite a few left over the other night and I tossed them into a baggie and reheated them in a warm toaster oven the next day. Frankly, they weren't noticeably different than after being held in a warming oven for an hour. In other words, the coating held well, they weren't greasy . . . we downed them pretty easily!
about 2 years ago micook
I made these for friends last month and did let them sit in a warm (165 degrees) oven for probably close to an hour and they were fine. In fact, I'm going to make them for Easter and plan to do the same. Actually, I had leftover ones on the counter and they were still very tasty the next day at room temperature, so I don't think you have to worry.
about 2 years ago arielleclementine
thanks for your kind feedback!
about 2 years ago mjlandry
Great! Thanks I look forward to making, eating & sharing. Can't think of a better combo.
about 2 years ago mjlandry
I want to make these to bring as an appetizer to an Easter party on Sunday. Will they get soggy if I fry them and then wait about an hour to serve? They look so yummy I can't wait to try!
about 2 years ago arielleclementine
i second micook's experience- i've happily eaten these an hour or more after cooking them. i hope you like them!
over 2 years ago aricooks
oh.my.yum! I am happy to report that I will be making this recipe from Israel, where the goat cheese and olives are abundant, delicious and (relatively) inexpensive. Thank you!
about 3 years ago Amber
My husband's family is from this region in Italy (don't ask me to spell it), so making the fried olives is a family tradition. They would be surprised by a goat cheese stuffing (since they are usually made with ground meat or fish), but this sounds delicious... and easier without the corkscrewing.
To simplify Wolfert's technique a little, we buy pitted large olives. Then you corkscrew the olive to maximize the amount of filling you can squeeze in. We usually use a combination of ground pork with garlic, sage and parmesan for stuffing. Then I bread them in fresh breadcrumbs, because I find panko is more likely to fall off when you deep fry them.
about 3 years ago ENunn
yes! Congrats. Olives were our friends. Now, they are our very good friends.
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
haha! so cute! anything fried is definitely my friend.
about 3 years ago pierino
pierino is a trusted source on General Cooking and Tough Love.
Be careful what you wish for. Here in Arizona where I'm woefully stationed, they will deep fry anything including your hotel room pillow. And then they'll put sliced jalapenos on it with queso fresco. Thankfully they haven't figured out IED's yet.
about 3 years ago Helenthenanny
What the what?!? I thought I had this one in the bag!!! I was ROBBED!!! My victory was supposed to taste like BACON!!!! Sorest. Loser. EVER. Family rift starts now.
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
are you going to stab a fork in my forehead?
about 3 years ago Helenthenanny
sleep with one eye open.
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
i guess i will, girl-with-keys-to-my-house...
about 3 years ago mrslarkin
Mrs. Larkin is a trusted source on Baking.
uh-boy. She sounds like trouble. Arielleclementine, you'd better send Helen some bacon right quick, to appease the monster.
about 3 years ago MyCommunalTable
My son was just visiting from overseas and will back for good in August. He made me promise to make these for him when he gets back. I think the comment of "deep fried goodness" that sealed the deal for him. Congrats. Obviously your family cooks like ours.
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
oh wow! how kind- thank you for sharing that with me! happy travels to your son- i hope you both like the olives :)
about 3 years ago TheWimpyVegetarian
It really was a tough choice this week between the two of you! They are both great snacks - the olives ultimately won me over and I'm sending you a huge well-deserved congrats!!! Both you and your sister turned out great snacks for us to enjoy all week. Very fun for everyone.
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
thank you so much! i'm very lucky to have a sister like her :)
about 3 years ago nannydeb
Congratulations! You and your sister are both awesome!
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
thank you! helen is truly wonderful :)
about 3 years ago Food Blogga
What a fabulous recipe! I can't wait to try it.
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
oh boy! thank you, Food Blogga!!
about 3 years ago Molly Bacon
Sister face off was perhaps one of the toughest decisions I have ever made, but I can't wait to combine the two into even deeper fried goodness!!!
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
yeesssss! we must and shall make this union happen.
about 3 years ago NakedBeet
These look absolutely sinful. I'm afraid if I made them for a movie snack and not a dinner party I would never share my plate!
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
haha! thanks, Naked Beet! i'm a notoriously terrible food-sharer, so you'll get no judgment from me!
about 3 years ago panache
This was a tough call, but our lives were threatened after all....Thanx for the recipes, but most especially for the laughs.
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
haha! you're awesome- thanks :)
about 3 years ago Kayb
A bar in Memphis, unfortunately no longer extant, did deep-fried olives, but they involved minced olives (green and black) mixed with other ingredients, formed into olive-sized croquettes and fried. I can only imagine these would be even better. Gets my vote!
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
what a cool bar snack! thanks for the vote :)
about 3 years ago agamom
This would be a perfect treat to try making with the Seal Cove Farm goat cheese that is in the Shop. Olives and goat cheese are two of my favorite before dinner indulgences, and I can not wait to try this tonight, as all of these ingredients live in my cupboards. You have my vote and good luck!
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
oh fun! i hope you like them! i think they'll be great with that goat cheese. thanks so much for your vote!
about 3 years ago pierino
pierino is a trusted source on General Cooking and Tough Love.
From the food history standpoint this dish comes from Ascoli Piceno in the Marches. The way they do it involves a delicate spiral cut with a small sharp knife on the olive to remove the pit. Paula Wolfert will tell you that this is easy. It's not.
about 3 years ago mrslarkin
Mrs. Larkin is a trusted source on Baking.
Found this youtube video demonstrating the olive cutting method. http://www.youtube.com... Looks simple, but I'm sure I'd slaughter the poor olive.
about 3 years ago pierino
pierino is a trusted source on General Cooking and Tough Love.
Just kibbitzing now because I love fried olives whether you pit them or slice them. Personally I prefer to use fine unseasoned bread crumbs as opposed to panko. I also would like to try them filled with "nduja", a spicy, semi-soft Calabrian sausage I buy from Boccalone in San Francisco. Unfortunately at the moment, I'm stuck in Fort Stinking Desert, AZ, 400 miles from my own kitchen.
about 3 years ago arielleclementine
I haven't heard of that sausage before- I'll have to check it out!