White Bean Dip and Tapenade

So much time on my hands right now.  I recently had foot surgery, so I have had many weeks to be home going from wheelchair to walker to crutches, and now I have on a large boot that looks like something out of Star Wars! Anyway- point being I have plenty of time to go through recipes I have been collecting for years and trying them out.  This one I have had for a very long time and just so happened that I had all the ingredients and I love the end product!  I did, however, use Kalamata olives in place of the black ones so my flavour would be different from this recipe. This jar of olives I bought with 3 of my 4 kids, on a wild road trip from Bellingham, WA to Los Angeles to see my other son.  On the way we stopped at a place called The Olive Pit, an amazing store with any kind of olive imaginable! Anyway, that is why I used that kind, so feel free to use what you have or the kind you prefer.  I added some salt to the bean dip but keep in mind if you are pairing the 2 dips together the tapenade is quite salty so use your own personal taste. You can also mix some tapenade with some mayo for a dip or spread...yummy! Serve with veggies, crackers or bread.

Tapenade

1cup black olives, pitted (I used Kalamata)

1/4 cup green olives, pitted

1/4 cup capers

2 cloves garlic

2 tsp. balsamic vinegar

2 tsp. olive oil

Fresh thyme sprigs
*touch of salt optional

Place all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth or desired consistency

White Bean Dip:

1 can cannellini beans, drained

2 cloves garlic

1/2 tsp. pepper 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme, no stems

Place all ingredients in food processor and process until smooth