Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club

Lamb Tagine with Olives and Lemon

My wife, Meghan, and I took advantage of our proximity to Morocco to spend a long weekend there. We fell in love with tagines and ordered several during our visit. If you don’t own a tagine—the large ceramic vessel with a conical top that seems unique to North Africa— use a Dutch oven to cook the stew. 

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for serving
  • 5 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
  • Two 2 1/2-inch strips of lemon zest
  • 2 teaspoons ground ginger
  • 2 teaspoons sweet paprika
  • 2 teaspoons ground coriander
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
  • 4 cups water
  • 6 large carrots, thinly sliced
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 2 cups pitted green Picholine olives 
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • Pinch of saffron threads, crumbled
  • One 3-inch cinnamon stick
  • Kosher salt
  • 3 1/2 pounds boneless lamb shoulder, cut into 1-inch pieces 
  • 1 cup at-leaf parsley, chopped
  • 1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • Couscous, for serving 

Directions

Step 1

In a large bowl, mix the olive oil, garlic, lemon zest, ginger, paprika, coriander, cumin, black pepper, cayenne, cloves, saffron, cinnamon stick, and 1 tablespoon of kosher salt. Add the lamb and toss to coat. Refrigerate for 4 to 6 hours. 

Step 2

Tip the lamb and spices into a large tagine or a medium enameled cast-iron casserole; discard the lemon zest. Add the water, carrots, and onion and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook over low heat until the lamb is very tender, about 2 hours. 

Step 2

Spoon off any fat from the broth. Stir in the olives, season with salt, and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the parsley, cilantro, and lemon juice. (Discard the cinnamon stick.) Ladle into bowls and serve with couscous and extra olive oil for drizzling. 

Serves 8Recipe from Food and Wine, October 2008

Chicken with Romesco Sauce

Originally concocted by shermen in Tarragona, Catalonia, olive oil- and nut-based romesco sauce is often served with seafood. This dish is perfect for a casual supper with friends. Accompany it with a green salad. 

Ingredients

  • For the chicken:
  • 12 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for serving
  • 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
  • Sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste 
  • For the romesco sauce:
  • 2 whole red peppers, cored and seeded, cut into halves
  • 2 ripe tomatoes, stemmed and roughly chopped
  • 1 to 2 pieces of stale bread, crusts removed, roughly torn
  • 1 garlic clove, peeled and finely chopped
  • 12 toasted Marcona almonds, plus extra for serving
  • 12 whole hazelnuts, skinned
  • 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon Spanish sherry vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1/2 teaspoon
  • Spanish smoked paprika (pimentón)
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions

Step 1

Preheat your oven’s broiler. Place the pepper halves, skin side up, on a broiler pan and broil until the skins are black, 3 to 5 minutes. Allow the peppers to rest for 10 minutes. Peel off the blackened skin, then coarsely chop the peppers. 

Step 2

Make the romesco sauce. In a food processor or blender, combine the peppers, tomatoes, bread, garlic, almonds, hazelnuts, cumin, and paprika. Slowly add the olive oil and sherry vinegar and blend lightly until you have a chunky paste with the consistency of pesto. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. The sauce is best if made the day before. (Cover and refrigerate if making ahead. Warm to room temperature before serving.) 

Step 3

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Drizzle the chicken thighs with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. In a large oven-safe skillet, brown the chicken thighs for 3 minutes on each side. Add the thyme and garlic. Place the skillet in the oven and roast the thighs, skin side down, for 30 minutes, or until cooked through. 

Step 4

Serve the roasted chicken thighs on a bed of romesco sauce, topped with some crushed almonds and a drizzle of olive oil. 

Serves 6Recipe adapted from Javier De La Hormaza, basconefoods.com 

Spanish Cod with Celery Salsa Verde

We often detect celery leaf–like flavors in the superior-quality oils we deliver to your table and were excited to find the following recipe. It uses celery leaves in a deliciously creative way. 

Ingredients

  • For the salsa:
  • 1 small garlic clove, minced
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup chopped celery leaves
  • 2 tablespoons chopped mint
  • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
  • 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil 
  • For the cod:
  • 2 skinless cod fillets (6 to 8 ounces each)
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 lemon wedges, seeded 

Directions

Step 1

Make the celery salsa verde: In a small bowl, combine the garlic, lemon zest, mustard, and salt. Stir in the celery leaves, mint, parsley, and 1/3 cup of olive oil. Taste for seasoning and adjust the salt as needed. 

Step 2

Pat the fillets dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper on both sides. In a large skillet, warm the remaining olive oil over medium-high heat. Carefully lay the fillets in the hot oil and cook until the sh separates into opaque white flakes. Transfer to dinner plates. Finish with a squeeze of fresh lemon and the celery salsa verde 

Serves 2Recipe adapted from Jamesbeard.org 

Compound in Olive Oil Shows Promise in Fight Against Cancer

The following is excerpted from an article by Chris Weller, published February 20, 2015, on MedicalDaily.com, based on the results of a recent study conducted by Rutgers University and Hunter College scientists.

Oleocanthal, the primary phenolic compound found in extra virgin olive oil, has been shown to eradicate cancer cells in less than an hour, giving scientists hope that targeted drug options in the future may be possible.

A team of researchers from Rutgers University and Hunter College published their recent study in the journal Molecular & Cellular Oncology. The findings add even more firepower to the argument in favor of olive oil, which has been shown in prior studies to shield our bodies against air pollution, improve our immune systems, protect aging bones, and perhaps even prevent the slide into Alzheimer’s disease….

The study isn’t without its limits. Cell cultures provide a reliable model for understanding how an external substance affects a new biological environment, but cells aren’t as complex as rats, which aren’t as complex as humans. It will still be years before oleocanthal makes its way into a clinical setting, by which time other technologies may have already crowded it out.

As a proof of concept, however, the findings suggest a robust set of possibilities for the compound. Oleocanthal is just one of the many phenols — a type of antioxidant — that appears in extra-virgin olive oil. It’s no accident the stuff appears in so many of the world’s healthiest diets. In addition to the heart-healthy antioxidants, olive oil provides a rich source of healthy fats that may preserve brain health and improve memory.

“We think oleocanthal could explain reduced [cancer] incidence in Mediterranean diets where consumption is high,” Foster told Medical Daily in an email. “And it is also possible that purified (higher-dose) could possibly be used therapeutically.”

Ultimately, the co-authors want to learn more about why oleocanthal targets and shrinks cancer cells specifically. “We also need to understand why it is that cancerous cells are more sensitive to oleocanthal than non-cancerous cells,” Foster said in the release. Even if consuming more olive oil won’t necessarily protect you from cancer today, budding research may help bring [some of its compounds] into the hospital in the future.

Source: LeGendre O, Breslin PAS, Foster DA. Oleocanthal rapidly and selectively induces cancer cell death via lysosomal membrane permeabilization (LMP). Molecular & Cellular Oncology. January 23, 2015. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/23723556.2015.1006077