Canned Tuna With Olives and Capers √
Serves 4 to 6.
Note: This dish is the pride of the Aeolian Islands, located off northeastern Sicily, because it uses their two principal products: tuna and capers. It's also the quintessential last-minute sauce and offers decisive flavors — tuna, capers and olives, with a background of fragrant oil, garlic and pepper. With no tomatoes, it's the oil that serves as sauce and vehicle for distributing the solids, so an assertively fruity oil is the best choice. From "Sauces and Shapes," by Oretta Zanini de Vita and Maureen B. Fant.
• 4 tbsp. salt-packed capers, rinsed free of all salt
• 1/2 c. pitted black olives in brine, preferably Gaeta or taggiasche
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/2 c. extra-virgin olive oil, preferably intensely fruity
• 1 (7-oz.) can top-quality imported oil-packed tuna, drained well
• Freshly ground black pepper