Q1 What was the most interesting thing you learnt about olives at the event? Please share this on the thread. Did it change your perception of olives?
The most interesting thing I learned was that the best olives to buy are ones in a tin, rather than the deli ones. Which is great as they are hopefully cheaper and now I know they are better.
I also learned that while there are different types of olives, that green, purple and black are just part of the ripening process, so the color depends on when they were picked, not on the type of olive.
Q2 What did you think of the recipes made on the day? Would you try them at home? If so, which ones and why/ when? What recipe did you like the most?
I thought all the recipes were good. My favorites were the custard made with goats cheese (which was amazing, even though it doesn't sound good), and the Romesco sauce.
I would try all of them at home, but the recipes for the romesco sauce, the custard and the candied Olives were not in the recipe book we were given, I wish we had known that at the time as I would have made notes. Is there any chance of getting those recipes?
I would use the romesco sauce for day to day cooking, while I would absolutely make the custard again for pudding and the Olives in marinade if we were having people over or for a snack.
Q3 What did you think about Omar Allibhoy’s knowledge of olives?
He was obviously very knowledgeable, and passionate about Olives and Olive oil. The information about how long they keep in a marinade was also brilliant - (for as long as the ingredients in the marinade last).
Q4 If a friend, relative or acquaintance asked your advice about eating olives, to what extent would you recommend eating them?
I would definitely recommend eating them, they also seem to be very low in calories (I can't remember the exact numbers) which is good to know.
Q5 Has the event encouraged you to experiment with olives in different ways?
Definitely. Just the fact that you can get better olives in tins encourages me to eat more, and then to have cooked with them, made the marinades and seen how easy and yummy it all makes them is brilliant. I would marinade olives now if I had friends coming over, or just as a snack.
Q6 Do you intend to eat or continue to eat table olives?
Absolutely.
Q7 Finally, would you like to make any comments about the event or suggest any ways it could be improved?
I really enjoyed the event and was very impressed by the goody bag, which had a lot more in it than I expected. Omar was really good and his food was lovely. It was really nice to meet some other mumsnetters too.
The only thing was I wish I had the recipe for the Romesco sauce. I have looked online and in the recipe catalog for Oive It, but couldn't find Omar's recipe. Pretty please mumsnet, do you think he would let us have it?
However there are other recipes there by him and others, so I will definitely be trying them.
It would be really good another time, if it was made clear that the recipes we were cooking were not in the recipe book for the event.
Thank you very much for the event. I had a brilliant time and it was great to have a day out.
My phone is being difficult at the moment, but I will try and upload some photos later.