I was going to entitle this post "finger-poppin' good"--some kind of combination of popping things in your mouth with "finger-lickin' good," I suppose... But no, I did not, and hopefully my restraint is one of the reasons you are still reading this post.
I've de-allergified vegetarian cooking guru Deborah Madison's simple recipe for fried olives to make it safe for those of us who can't eat wheat or eggs. This is one of my favorite things to make when I'm expecting guests, and then finish eating them myself before they actually arrive. Hint: make sure you have twice as many olives as you think you'll need.
Fried Olives
1 tbsp flax, ground
3 tbsp water, warm
1/2 c. rice flour
1/2 c. oil
15-20 green olives (or black. or an assortment.)
Mix flax and water in a bowl. Have a separate bowl with the flour in it. Heat oil in a skillet. Dip each olive in flax mixture then flour, then drop into pan. Cook until flour just starts to brown on all sides. As olives are cooked, remove them from pan to a plate with a paper towel on it to cool a bit. Eat warm.
