Tuna Dip

*There was initially a bit of debate in our house as to whether this is a dip or a pate. Since you don’t need a knife of any kind to cut or spread it, and since this is my blog, I’m calling it a dip.

This is easily one of the most popular things I can serve up when we have a gathering. Which, funnily enough, really surprised me, because while I always loved fresh tuna steaks and sashimi I hated the tinned stuff. But this dip converted me quick smart. It’s also good spread on toast and sandwiches as a spread.

The original recipe comes from my one of my husband’s favourite cousins overseas, but since she makes it on the other side of the world I had to swap some of the ingredients. It often features on cold antipasto plates thourghout Dalmatia, and it never stops tasting delicious no matter how often you have it.

My version makes a large-ish quantity {like basically everything I do}, but it does keep in the fridge for up to a week.

I usually make it with goats cheese, but when I was supplying it to deli’s I swapped it for cream cheese, and it was actually far more popular. It is creamier and milder with cream cheese, but if you’re after that slightly sharper tang then goats cheese it is. And feel free to tweak the quantities until you’re happy with the flavour.

What you need:

• 1 large can of good quality tuna
• cornichons or gherkins, about 10 or so, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tbpn salted capers, rinsed
• 6 anchovy fillets, in oil
• 100 g fresh goat’s cheese or 250 g cream cheese
• few sprigs fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

What to do:

1. Place all the ingredients except the olive oil in a food processor or blender. Pulse a couple of times to just combine.

2. Slowly adding the olive oil in a thin stream, process until you have a smooth paste. You may not need all of the oil to reach the desired consistency {or you might need a bit more}. Serve with toasted sourdough, Turkish bread, or crackers.