FRESH OLIVES STOCK FOOD PHOTOS, STOCK FOOD PICTURES & FOOD PHOTO ART PRINTS

Stock photos & stock pictures gallery of food.

The Olive is the fruit of the Olive tree (Olea europaea) and is a major component of the agriculture and gastronomy along the Mediterranean both in Europe and North Africa, as well as in the Middle East. Both fresh and cured olives are consumed by themselves, as an ingredient in other dishes and as olive oil.

Olives have been produced in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel/Palestine from prehistoric times. By 2000 BC, olive oil was being exported to Egypt and Phoenicia; records of the Mesopotamian Third dynasty of Ur empire (21st to 20th century BC), indicate olive oil as one of the exports from the region presently known as Syria.

Olives are inedible fresh. They are transformed when soaked in brine to make the olive that is eaten.

Gourmets from the Roman empire to the present day have valued the unripe fruit, steeped in brine, as challenging to the palate. The bitter juice deposited during pressing of the oil (called amurca), and the astringent leaves of the tree have many virtues attributed to them by ancient authors. Olive oil as a cooking medium emerged as an economical alternative to the butter and animal fats used elsewhere.

Olives are high in monounsaturated fat, iron, Vitamin E, and dietary fiber. Naturally ripened purple/black appearing olives contain anthocyanins. This does not include artificially ripened “black olives” that are frequently canned and sent to grocery stores. There is also an effect that typical processing has on the quantity and type of anthocyanins contained in olives.

Olive cultivation is an important part of the Mediterranean economy. Oleoculture has been moving westward over the last three millennia, and today Spain is the world’s largest producer of olives (36%) followed by Italy (25%)[10] and Greece (18%).

There are thousands of cultivars of the olive. In Italy alone at least three hundred cultivars have been enumerated, but only a few are grown to a large extent.

Kalamata Olives

“Kalamata”, a large, black olive with a smooth and meatlike taste, is named after the city of Kalamata, Greece, and is used as a table olive. These olives are usually preserved in wine, vinegar or olive oil. Kalamata olives enjoy PDO status.

Cornicabra Olives

“Cornicabra”, originating in Toledo, Spain, comprises about 12% of Spain’s production. It is mainly used for oil.

Amfissa Olives

Amfissa is an excellent quality Greek table olive grown in Amfissa, Central Greece near the oracle of Delphi. Amfissa olives enjoy protected designation of origin (PDO) status, and are equally good for olive oil extraction. The olive grove of Amfissa, which consists of 1,200,000 olive trees is a part of a protected natural landscape.

Frantoio Olives

“Frantoio” and “Leccino” cultivars are the principal raw material for Italian olive oils from Tuscany. Leccino has a mild sweet flavour, while Frantoio is fruity with a stronger aftertaste. Due to their highly valued flavour, these cultivars are now grown in other countries.

Lucques Olives

“Lucques” is found in the south of France (Aude département). They are green, large, and elongated. The stone has an arcuated (bow)shape. Their flavour is mild and nutty.

Olive Trees Of Lun

Our olives photos & pictures collection also shows images of the ancient olive groves of Lun, a village on Pag Island Croatia. These Olive groves are one of three world unique locations with biggest concentration of wild olive trees or in Latin “Olea oleaster”. To preserve this biblical landscape and olive trees older than 2,000 years. About 1,500 trees in 1963 were pronounced botanical reserve.

Buy all the stock photos in this gallery on line as Royalty Free or Rights managed stock photo. The stock pictures & stock images are all high resolution digital stock photos made award winning professional photographer Paul Williams.

Photo Art prints are also available to buy on line in large to small print formats for framing as art works for home, restaurant, pubs, office art , or commercial art.

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