Doug wrote on Fri, 19 Mar 2010 21:36:47 +0000 (UTC):

> Damaeus wrote:
>> Mark Thorson > posted:
>>
>>> Olives are naturally very bitter, and the purpose of curing
>>> them is to remove that bitterness.

> It's a wonder they are considered edible given the treatment
> it takes to make them edibile. I wonder if some trees grew
> near a tidal pond and the olives that fell into the sea water
> cured enough to give someone the idea.

>> I actually do like black olives, but I can only eat one olive
>> by itself if

> I like black olives. I like green olives more. I like the
> various fancy types of olives even more still. Small batch
> varietals from Santa Barbara CA rule.

>> all I'm going to do is eat an olive. I like them sliced on
>> pizza and on salads. That's pretty much it. I sometimes
>> would put black olives on my homemade pizzas to make them a
>> little saltier without adding salt.

> Green olives burn very easily, but since I like them I want
> them on my pizza instead of black olives if possible. Very
> few places offer green olives on pizza, maybe because of the
> burning problem maybe because they are less popular than black
> ones. The prick is to put the "toppings" underneath the
> cheese. Which both protects the green olives from burning and
> makes the word "topping" a misnomer.

>> Actually salting pizza, especially after it's already baked,
>> has always made pizza taste very odd to me, so I never have
>> salted pizza at the table. If it needs salt, I find a way to
>> work it in with the hamburger meat, or by putting olives
>> and/or feta cheese on it. A little feta goes a long way on a
>> pizza that has pepperoni on it.

I like black Kalimata olives not only on salads but in many dishes,
particularly Chicken Marbella.

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not