Olives Salad, Stuffed Olive celery, Crusty bread, cheeses, fresh berries

Ranch and Black Olive Stuffed Celery

Ingredients

• 8 celery ribs, cleaned (dried well-very important)
• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 -2 tablespoon milk, as needed
• 1 (1 1/4 ounce) packet Hidden Valley dry ranch dip mix
• 10 green olives, diced very small

Directions

1. Wash celery. Dry well with a paper towel (very important).
2. Cut into 3" pieces, and set aside.
3. Put cream cheeses into a glass bowl. Put in microwave for 45 secs., until soft.
4. Add enough milk to get creamy texture, starting with 1 T. and adding more if needed.
5. Add Ranch dip mix, diced green olives, and add to all. Mix well.
6. Stuff celery with cream cheese mixture.
7. Wrap, and put in refrigerator for at least 1 hours.

Strong in flavor, garlic-stuffed olives are green olives that have been pitted and then stuffed with whole cloves of garlic before being preserved. While these olives are high in sodium, they also contain a number of health benefits: Garlic may help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, and olives are full of healthy monounsaturated fats.

Green Olive Nutrition

Because of how are prepared they are high in sodium.  But because you are only going to serve perhaps 20 olives they are not so extreme a salty food as one might think.  Because of the small serving size, green olives do not contain large quantities of essential vitamins and minerals, but they are still a source of calcium, B vitamins, and vitamins A, E and K.Green olives are picked before the olive is fully ripe and then cured in a salt brine, pickling solution or water to make them edible. Ten olives have only 39 calories per serving, just over 4 grams of total fat, the majority of which is monounsaturated, and no cholesterol. 

Benefits of Garlic

Garlic is rich in antioxidants, which help protect your body’s cells from damage from free radicals and environmental toxins. Antioxidants may also help with lowering cholesterol levels as well as potentially preventing heart disease, particularly atherosclerosis, the hardening of the arteries. The chemical that produces the strong scent of garlic, allicin, is also responsible for its numerous health benefits, as well as the high sulfur content of the herb. Naturally low in calories, 10 cloves of garlic, one for each olive, have only 45 calories per serving and less than 1/4 gram of total fat. Garlic is a good source of iron, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, and vitamins C, E and K relative to its small serving size. It also provides some B vitamins, vitamin A and magnesium, phosphorus and zinc.

Olive Salad

4 cups of olives, the wider the variety, the more appealing

¼ cup olive oil
1 red pepper
½ white onion and ½ purple onion
½ cup fresh parsley or cilantro
2 scallions, sliced thin

Crusty Bread  and a Good White Table Wine,

Fresh berries and assorted cheeses. 

Yum

Judi Singleton owns bejewelu.com where you can dress the whole family for less