Fig/Olive Spread - Brad Sale's

By gnoll

Ingredients

• 1 C chopped stemmed dried Calimyrna figs
• 1/3 C water
• 1/3 C chopped pitted Kalamata olives or other brine-cured black olives
• 2 T extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 T balsamic vinegar
• 1 T drained capers, chopped
• 1 1/2 t chopped fresh thyme
• 2 5.5 oz logs soft fresh goat cheese (such as Montrachet), each cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick rounds (I have used feta cheese for those that don't like goat cheese.)
• 1/2 C chopped toasted walnuts
• 1/4 C toasted walnut halves
• Fresh thyme springs (optional)
• Assorted breads and/or crackers

Details

Preparation time 15mins
Cooking time 15mins

Preparation

Step 1

Written directions from epicurious.com:
Combine chopped figs & 1/3 C water in heavy medium saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat until liquid evaporates & figs are soft, about 7 minutes. Transfer to medium bowl Mix in olives, live oil, balsamic vinegar, capers, & chopped thyme. Season tapenade to taste with salt & pepper. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature before serving.)

Arrange overlapping cheese rounds in circle in center of medium platter. Stir chopped walnuts into tapenade; spoon into center of cheese circle. Garnish with walnut halves & thyme springs, if desired. Serve with breads and/or crackers.

Prior to receiving the above, written instructions, I used figs directly from package & did not cook in any water. I used the following directions & tosted all of the walnuts. I used approximately 1/3 C of balsamic vinegar & approximately 1/3 C olive oil & 1 T black pepper, which made it pretty spicy. & mixed it together as follows: Mix first 8 ingredients together, reserving 1/2 of toasted walnuts to top the mixture with.
Serve with goat or feta cheese on toasted french bread pieces.