Sicilian Style Marinated Olives
Makes 2 cups

Serve in a shallow ceramic bowl with crusty bread on the side. This recipe also makes a nice gift.

1 lb. Calamata, Nicoise, or Greek olives, or a combination, drained

8 cloves garlic, cut lengthwise in half

Zest of 1/2 lemon, cut into 1/4-inch julienne

Zest of 1/2 orange, cut into 1/4-inch julienne

1 Tbs. chopped fresh rosemary

2 Tbs. chopped fresh parsley

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

3 Tbs. best-quality olive oil

Combine the olives, garlic, citrus julienne, rosemary, and parsley in a large bowl. Drizzle with lemon juice and oil. Marinate, stirring occasionally, at room temperature at least 24 hours.

-Adapted from The Silver Palate Good Times Cookbook

Endive Cups Filled with Cheese, Mango, and Toasted Pecans
Serves 6 to 12

Belgian endive cups are a perfect appetizer container to hold cheese because their slight bitterness is nicely offset by the richness of the filling.

1/4 cup pecans
1/2 small ripe mango, or 1/4 cup store-bought mango chutney
1 Tbs. finely minced ginger
1 tsp. Asian chili sauce or hot sauce (optional)
4 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
18 large leaves Belgian endive (about 4 large heads), chilled

Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Spread pecans on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature and coarsely chop the nuts. If using fresh mango, peel the mango, cut the flesh away from the seed, and coarsely chop the flesh. In a bowl, combine the nuts, mango, ginger, Chile sauce, and cream cheese. Cover and refrigerate. The recipe can be completed to this point up to 8 hours before serving.

No more than 2 hours before serving, fill the endive cups and place on a serving plate and serve.

-Fast Appetizers by Hugh Carpenter and Teri Sandison