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Marinated Olives

From The Boston Globe Magazine, 2004 December 5

Makes 4 cups

Use a good mix of olives to get varied shapes and colors. We combine, among others, black Greek kalamata; cerignola, which are huge and bright green; and picholine, small green French olives.

• 4 cups mixed olives
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Pared rind of 1/2 orange
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 bunch fresh thyme, leaves removed from stems
• 1 small hot chili pepper, cut into rings and seeded

Set a colander in the sink and tip the olives into it. Rinse them with cold water. Transfer to a bowl.

Add the oil and stir well. Cut the orange rind into the thinnest possible strips and add them to the olives along with the bay leaves, cumin, thyme, and chili pepper. Toss gently but thoroughly.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate the olives for 1 week, turning them occasionally. Transfer to small dishes, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until giving as gifts.

Notes: Haven't tried it yet. I love olives, and there are other people in my family who would like these as a gift. Problem is, keeping them refrigerated.