I happen to love olives. And I just realized that there are three versions of tapenade on my blog – the lovely, briny olive spread that’s just perfect served alongside cheese and charcuterie.

Tapenade can be made with any olive variety of any color, but I especially love black olive tapenade, made with Kalamata olives. Today I’m tossing tapenade in with cooked spaghetti to make a beautiful pasta dish. Of course, any protein could be added, but I’m leaving it simple and meatless.

If you want your tapenade lightened up a bit, try adding some diced sun-dried tomatoes, roasted red bell peppers, or even fresh tomatoes. But for this spaghetti, I’m using olives only, both Kalamata and oil-cured, for a rich black color.

Bucatini or pappardelle would both be good, but I happened to have some spaghetti so I decided to use it for this dish. I added chopped parsley to the pasta, and also a generous amount of cayenne pepper flakes. They are both optional!

Tapenade Spaghetti

2 cups olives, pitted
1/4 cup capers, drained
2 garlic cloves, peeled
2 oil-cured anchovies (or salt to taste if preferred)
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
16 ounces pasta of choice
4-6 ounces grated Parmigiano Reggiano (2 ounces can be used for serving)
1/4 cup chopped parsley
Cayenne pepper flakes, optional

Place the first four ingredients plus 1/3 cup of olive oil in a food processor jar. Process until fairly smooth and saucy.

Place in a bowl and proceed to cook the pasta of choice according to package directions.

When cooked, drain the pasta, then place in a large bowl. Add the remaining 1/3 cup of olive oil and stir.

While the pasta is still warm, add the Parmesan and gently stir in the tapenade, followed by the parsley. Save some parsley for serving.

Stir well, and serve with more Parmesan, if desired, as well as some grilled bread.

This pasta is so good, I can’t believe I didn’t think of making this before. I think a Beaujolais would be perfect with it.