Chop up the olives.  Once you chop the olives, mix these with an array of different fresh herbs.

Fennel leaves, otherwise called fennel tops, mint, parsley, and coriander – a small bunch of each. Finely chop and add to the olives. Cato also says to put some cumin in, and he also mentions another interesting ancient herb called rue. It’s a popular ancient herb, slightly bitter in taste, which sadly is not very popular nowadays and hard to find unless you grow it at home. It will impart a certain bitterness to dishes and as with anything from the ancient world it’s worth experimenting with to see if you’ll like it!

Now add some extra virgin olive oil, enough to cover the olive and herb mixture and the best red wine vinegar you have. Then mix all the ingredients together and let it sit for two or three hours to marinate and let all the ingredients get to know each other. Once it is ready, serve with some hot-from-the-embers pita bread and eat eagerly as if your life depends on it! 

If you have some nice and fresh tangy sheep’s milk cheese to add some on top – let’s say feta perhaps? –  then go for it! It is a perfect accompaniment!  And finally, sip some wine, and wait this time patiently for the main course!