A really good ingredient

I buy this at my supermarket. It’s in the refrigerated foods case near the vegetables. If your market doesn’t carry it, ask them to get it, because it’s really useful.

Madama Oliva makes four or five different olive spreads, but this spicy one is the only one I use. I stir it into things that might otherwise be a bit bland, or I smear it onto breads, piadine, tortillas to brighten up sandwiches and wraps. I make crostino spreads by mixing it with other things like cream cheeses. In yogurt or mayonnaise, it makes a perky dressing.

Try melting it into besciamella, or white sauce, when making savory foods. Add a spoonful or two to the beginnings of a soufflé.

When you have geared down the spiciness of a dish for more conventionalist palates, place tiny bowls of this Battuto Piquante near place settings so that diners can add the amount of chili heat they like. The effect mounts slowly, so it is much harder to ruin your food than it would be with Tabasco or cayenne.

I know someone who would love this smeared onto corn on the cob. Today I ate it on a cheeseburger.

It comes in four tiny sealed packets and you cut away the number you need. After opening it should be refrigerated. The manufacturer is Madama Oliva at Recocce. provincia di Aquila. Italy, of course.