Beef Stuffed Olives

Drain your jar of colossal olives and rinse them under cold water to wash away excess surface brine. Place the olives onto a clean kitchen towel or layers of paper towels. Pat them completely dry. Note: If the olives are wet, the meat filling will slip right out during cooking.

In a small mixing bowl, combine the raw lean ground beef, minced onion, grated garlic, chopped parsley, grated Parmesan, cumin, salt, and pepper. Use your hands or a fork to mix the ingredients thoroughly until a smooth, uniform paste forms.

To get the meat inside the olive cleanly, transfer the beef mixture into a pastry bag or a heavy-duty ziplock bag with a tiny corner snipped off. Alternatively, you can use a small espresso spoon or your fingers. Gently widen the pitted opening of an olive, insert the tip of your piping bag, and squeeze the beef mixture inside until it gently plumps the olive and peeks out of the top. Repeat for all olives.

Heat 1 to 2 tablespoons of high-quality olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Carefully drop the stuffed olives into the hot pan. Sear them for about 4 to 5 minutes, rolling them around frequently so the olives get beautifully blistered and the beef sticking out of the ends cooks through completely.