Tapenade and Tapenade Butter

Tapenade is a Provençal olive paste that is served on croutons and as a dip for vegetables and hard-cooked eggs. We sometimes spread a thin layer on our pizza crust before adding tomatoes or cheese. It can be thinned with olive oil and a little lemon juice for a sauce or vinaigrette, but is is pretty intense. We find most people like it mixed with butter. We pipe the Tapenade Butter under the skin of chicken and roast or broil it, and spread it over grilled steak and fish. Niçoise olives ar