Ascolane Olives, Marche-style

Name: Ascolane Olives, Marche-style
Ingredients: OLIVE STUFFING; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 rib celery, minced; 1 medium carrot, minced; 1 small onion, minced; 1/4 pound ground beef; 1/4 pound ground pork; 1/4 pound ground chicken; 1/2 cup dry white wine; Zest of one lemon; A grinding of nutmeg; Salt and pepper to taste; 1 egg, lightly beaten; 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese; 1/2 cup breadcrumbs; 2 pounds pitted Ascolana olives, or the largest olives you can find; Flour for frying; 2 eggs, lightly beaten with a fork; 1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs mixed with 1/2 cup regular breadcrumbs; 3 tablespoons grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese; Olive oil for frying

These succulent fried, stuffed olives originated in Ascoli Piceno in the Marche region of Italy. Perfect as an appetizer, I dare you to eat just one!

Serves 6

Ingredients

OLIVE STUFFING
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 rib celery, minced
1 medium carrot, minced
1 small onion, minced
1/4 pound ground beef
1/4 pound ground pork
1/4 pound ground chicken
1/2 cup dry white wine
Zest of one lemon
None
A grinding of nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
2 pounds pitted Ascolana olives, or the largest olives you can find
Flour for frying
2 eggs, lightly beaten with a fork
1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs mixed with 1/2 cup regular breadcrumbs
3 tablespoons grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
Olive oil for frying

Directions

Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan; add the celery, onion, carrot, beef, pork and chicken and cook until meat loses red color. Add wine, zest, cloves, nutmeg, salt and pepper and cook until mixture thickens. Cool.
Transfer to food processor and process until smooth. Transfer to bowl. Add the egg, cheese and 1/2 cup breadcrumbs to form a compact mixture.
Fill olives with meat mixture using a pastry bag or make small marble sized balls by hand and wrap olive around the filling.
Flour the olives, toss in the beaten eggs; drain them and coat them in breadcrumbs. Set aside.
Fill a heavy-duty pan 2-quart pan with 4 cups of olive oil and bring to 375°F. Fry the olives, a handful at a time, until nice and golden brown. Drain. Serve warm.

This recipe was featured on Season 27 - Episode 2713.

Comments

Rosemary Tucker

March 30, 2019 at 9:24 pm

Can you skip the frying and bake instead?

Debbie Macdonald

May 12, 2019 at 4:29 pm

where can I get pitted olives from Ascoli? My family is from there and we have been making them for years, I usually get my olives from The Olive Pit in California but would love to make them with pitted olives from Ascoli, we have always just sliced the one side to stuff.

Ralphine L. Lamonica

November 14, 2020 at 4:54 pm

Can these be fried in an air fryer?