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Baked feta with tomatoes is a simple Greek-inspired appetizer that’s ready in under 25 minutes. Serve with bread or enjoy as is!
Here’s a recipe inspired by our recent trip to Greece (which seems so long ago, now). Contrary to our last recipe that we claimed as an authentic Greek rendition, this one is simply a riff on a dish we enjoyed.
A baked feta recipe inspired by Greece
We came to love a certain baked feta appetizer, prepared in different ways but always delicious: melty, gooey feta in a tomato sauce, sometimes with onions or red peppers, sprinkled with a few herbs. One server brought it out to us and declared, “Feta in the oven!” We loved this way to describe it, learning only afterwards that this was the accepted English translation on most menus. So, feta in the oven it was! Alex even recreated it a few times while in Greece in the kitchen of our rental home.
Read this: Santorini, Greece Travel Guide
While in Greece, we baked the feta with fresh, standard tomatoes and it turned out beautifully. Of course when we came home to the US, we somehow could not quite replicate it, always ending up with a watery mess! Switching to cherry tomatoes solved our water problem and also tasted quite delicious, so we’ve used that method here. However, neither are the preparation that we had in restaurants, which was more tomato-saucy and gooey (if anyone has any recommendations for a recipe of this type, let us know!).
In any case, this is a vibrant, fresh appetizer that’s easy to prepare and slide in the oven for some dinner guests, or on a Friday evening in with a glass of wine. It’s also a good recipe for “winging it;” the concept is very simple, and the quantities below can be used as guidelines. As we’ve noted, the portion is a modest appetizer for four, but it’s quite easy to double it for a more substantial portion, so keep that in mind when you’re planning the ingredients.
Have you tried baked feta? What’s your favorite variation? We’d love to know.
Looking for more Greek recipes?
- Greek Sofrito Quinoa Bowl
- Baklava Cups
- Greek Salad
- Greek Pita Sandwiches
- Greek Grilled Portobello Sandwich with Tzatziki and Feta
This recipe is…
Vegetarian and gluten-free.
Baked Feta with Tomatoes
Baked feta with tomatoes is a simple Greek-inspired appetizer that’s ready in under 25 minutes. Serve with bread or enjoy as is!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 18 minutes
- Total Time: 23 minutes
- Yield: 4 as a small appetizer 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 8 to 10 cherry tomatoes*
- 1 garlic clove
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
- 10 Kalamata olives
- 4 to 5 ounce block of feta cheese
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- Kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
- Slice the cherry tomatoes in half and add a few pinches kosher salt. Finely mince the garlic. Chop the parsley.
- In a small oven-proof dish, place the tomatoes, garlic, parsley, and Kalamata olives, then top with the feta cheese. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with the dried oregano.
- Bake for about 18 minutes, until the feta cheese is warm and soft. Serve immediately with crackers, pita, or bread.
Notes
*Note that the portion size is a modest appetizer for four. For a more substantial portion, the recipe is easily doubled.
I’ll have to look for block feta, but I suppose a pile of crumbled feta would work as well, maybe not have to bake as long. As for the tomatoes, using paste tomatoes (Romas as the common pastes at the store) should produce a drier tomato topping. Sounds delish!
What a clever idea- I’ve never tried baked feta before! I’m always looking for simple appetizers and this is so colorful and vibrant. Your Greece pictures are amazing. I love your photography!
What a beautiful blog! I love Greek fried cheese and this kind of reminds me of that. this recipe seems easy and delicious. I’m definitely going to give it a try. Thanks for sharing!
I LOVE anything feta and I’m sure this would not be an exception. Thanks for sharing!
This sounds perfect, I adore feta cheese! Loving the Greek inspiration posts :)
Sophie
http://what-sophie-said.blogspot.co.uk/
xxx
This looks amazing, and I love that you served it with tabbouleh. I’ve wanted to make baked feta and haven’t so this is the nudge I need!
This looks wonderful. I have made baked feta before but with olive oil, lemon juice and crushed red peppers. It was wonderful, and I’m sure this version would be too. Best to eat while still warm.
This looks fantastic! I made a baked feta dish once, but it didn’t have olives and fresh oregano, and I have no idea why! Don’t you love how travel inspires up to eat & cook in new ways? :)
That looks so incredibly delicious! Is there a recipe for that… cous cous-ish looking salad in the bottom left corner of the last picture?
Julia, yes! It’s a bulgur wheat salad, and I think we’re hoping to post the recipe a week after next! :) Make sure to check back!
this is really unique..i love your travel inspired dishes.
It’s hard to beat a fresh Greek salad in the summer. Love it!
I am in love with how simple this is! So yummy!
Wow… summer in a bowl!!! Love love love.
Oh, yum! I used to make something like this a couple of summers ago and I forgot about it! I never added the tomatoes though. I would put a brick of feta on a sheet of foil, drizzle in olive oil, then sprinkle fresh thyme and chopped, fresh oregano over the top – then wrap it up and cook it on the grill. Super yum! I’m guessing the wateriness comes from American tomatoes. . . . :( I bet it’s a different, very natural variety over there that we just can’t get here.
Well, you’ve managed to combine pretty much all of my favourite things in one delicious bowl here!