flipCured Olives and Almonds from the Hérault, Studio Snack
Cured Olives and Almonds from the Hérault, Studio Snack
Why this dish? Bruyas spent his time visiting studios and galleries, notebook in hand, and entertained amateurs and painters at home. Cured olives and almonds — quintessential preserved products of Languedoc — were the snack nibbled while looking at canvases, a glass of local wine in hand.
Lucques olives marinated in herbs and salted toasted almonds, preserved in oil. The frugal and fragrant plate that accompanies contemplation of artworks and conversation.
When a visitor entered my study to pause before a Courbet or a Delacroix, I never let him leave empty-handed. We would set down a plate of our olives, cured all winter in oil and thyme, and a few almonds toasted with salt. We nibble, we chat, we contemplate — and time passes without notice. These are modest pleasures, but it is in these trifles that fine friendships and good painting deals are forged.
- •Green Languedoc olives (lucques) — one bowl (base)
- •Almonds — a handful (crunch)
- •Olive oil — to cover (preservation)
- •Thyme, rosemary, fennel, orange zest — to taste (flavoring)
- •Salt — as needed (seasoning)
Cured Olives and Almonds from the Hérault, Studio Snack
Lucques olives marinated in herbs and salted toasted almonds, preserved in oil. The frugal and fragrant plate that accompanies contemplation of artworks and conversation.
Why this dish? Bruyas spent his time visiting studios and galleries, notebook in hand, and entertained amateurs and painters at home. Cured olives and almonds — quintessential preserved products of Languedoc — were the snack nibbled while looking at canvases, a glass of local wine in hand.
When a visitor entered my study to pause before a Courbet or a Delacroix, I never let him leave empty-handed. We would set down a plate of our olives, cured all winter in oil and thyme, and a few almonds toasted with salt. We nibble, we chat, we contemplate — and time passes without notice. These are modest pleasures, but it is in these trifles that fine friendships and good painting deals are forged.
Ingredients (period version)
- Green Languedoc olives (lucques) — one bowl (base)
- Almonds — a handful (crunch)
- Olive oil — to cover (preservation)
- Thyme, rosemary, fennel, orange zest — to taste (flavoring)
- Salt — as needed (seasoning)
Ingredients
- Green olives (lucques or picholine) — 250 g (base)
- Whole almonds — 150 g (crunch)
- Extra virgin olive oil — to cover (preservation, binder)
- Thyme, rosemary, fennel seeds — 1 sprig each + 1 teaspoon (flavoring)
- Orange zest and garlic cloves — 1 zest + 2 cloves (flavoring)
- Fleur de sel — 1 teaspoon (seasoning)
Method
- Toast the almonds dry in a pan until golden, salt with fleur de sel while hot.
- Drain the olives, mix with herbs, orange zest, and lightly crushed garlic.
- Cover with olive oil in a jar, add the fennel seeds.
- Let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 48 hours to allow flavors to develop.
- Serve the marinated olives and toasted almonds in two small plates, with a glass of Languedoc wine.
How it was made : The olive and the almond, cultivated since antiquity in the Hérault, were the quintessential preserved snacks of the Midi: oil preserved olives all winter, almonds kept for months. This *friendship plate* preceded or accompanied meals throughout the Mediterranean, long before the word *apéritif* appeared.
The contemporary twist : Serve on a slate board like a still life, with a drizzle of new oil and a few fresh orange zests — a palette of greens and golds worthy of a painting in the Musée Fabre.
Alfred Bruyas · Charactorium
