Fried Olives (Ocvrte olive)

Heike finishes her marathon of Slovenian appetizers with a batch of fried olives:

Fried Olives make a great snack, and are served at Slovenian wine vineyards during wine tasting, to cleanse the palette. They are delicious made with a cornmeal batter, and are a hit at any cocktail party.

Makes 36 small or 24 medium-size fried olives

2 ½ ounces olives, pitted (approximately 36 olives or 24 medium-size olives), pitted, rinsed, and patted dry
1 egg
½ cup cornmeal
¼ teaspoon salt
Olive oil, for frying

Beat the egg in a shallow bowl, with a teaspoon of water.
Pour the cornmeal into another shallow bowl. Mix in the salt.
Coat the bottom of a skillet with olive oil. Heat the oil on medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes.
One by one, take each olive and roll in the egg mixture, then in the cornmeal mixture, until the olive is covered in cornmeal.
Fry each olive in the oil for 5 to 8 minutes, or until lightly browned on all sides. With a spatula, roll the olives around periodically so that they brown evenly.
Remove from the pan and dry on a paper towel. Serve immediately.

Fried olives being served at a wine tasting at Movia Vineyards.

Images courtesy of Heike Milhench and Wikimedia Commons.