Marinated Feta

Over the past year, I’ve been whipping up a little marinade for the plain feta cheese I buy. Of course, I still use plain feta in a slew of other ways, but for months I took real joy in serving it as an appetizer all on its very own. Feta has an intensely tangy flavor but it is a simple cheese that I wouldn’t normally serve on just plain. The way to make something simple sing is to joosh it up a bit.

I landed on the idea to smother it in flavor while I was reminiscing about how I used to marinate olives when I lived in Miami. Back then the city was not the culinary mecca it has become today, and marinated olives weren’t as readily available. I know that seems hard to believe given their ubiquity, but that was way before there were so many cool markets with speciality items or olive stations. So, I would buy a variety of plain olives and then make a citrus, spice oil mixture in which to marinate them. Heck, when you don’t find what you want or need, you simply have to rely on your own talents to create it. That’s what I did then, and continue to do now. That old Miami olive mixture made me think of how yummy something similar would be on feta cheese.

*Side note about feta that I just learned from my Bulgarian brother-in-law, Peter. Much like Champagne, the word feta can only be used when referring to the cheese if it is produced in a traditional way in particular areas of Greece. Who knew? Now we do. All other cheeses made in different parts of the world can only state that they are fresh sheep’s or goat’s milk cheese ripened in brine. So interesting, and a tidbit I thought I would share. That said, as much as I would like to be a stickler for food correctness, it’s much easier to write feta, rather than a longer description of the cheese. Is that bad?

Back to the marinade. As I stated, I’ve made this before and it was enjoyed by my guests, but I noticed a real uptick in its wow factor. Whenever I’ve offered it up, it has been a home run. So much so that I was forced to make it in much larger quantities. Once people get a taste of it, it’s like tortilla chips and salsa, you just can’t stop eating it.

The ingredients that provide major zing: Cilantro, lemon, scallions, parsley, black pepper, olive oil, feta, oregano, garlic, red pepper flakes.

Ingredients

7 oz. Feta cheese (sheep’s milk cheese in brine. I prefer the French one, as it it softer and milder)
*if you wanted to double the about of cheese the below marinade ingredients will be enough

2 T Scallions, sliced thinly
1/2 c Clilantro leaves loosely packed, minced (3 T)
1/2 c Parsley leaves loosely packed, minced (3T)
1-2 Garlic cloves, crushed (1 t)
2 t Dry Oregano
1/8 t Red pepper flakes
Black pepper
1 t lemon zest
2 t lemon juice
2/3 c olive oil
a few twists of ground pepper

It’s the small touches of red pepper flakes and garlic that really bring a zing to this dressing.

Instructions

I feel silly telling you what to do, but here goes.

Cut, chop, mince, crush according to ingredient list above.

It is so essential to use the freshest ingredients, always, but more so when you are making a raw dressing like this one. Freshness and brightness are key.

Give the herbs a good mince, and the scallions a thick slice.

The zest and juice of lemon adds a brightness and acidity that rounds out all the flavors.

Gently cube the feta and place in an airtight container. (I prefer a glass container.)

Salty, briny, delicious French feta

You can make the cubes any size you want. I like small ones.

Combine all the ingredients and whisk together.

Crushed garlic

Dry oregano

Red Pepper Flakes

Add all the ingredients and whisk together until combined.

Pour over the cheese, lovingly.

Pour the mixture all over the cheese ensuring every last piece is covered.

Note, that there is no salt in the ingredients. That is because the feta is brined in salt and you definitely do not need any additional. However, since the dressing amounts above make about twice what you need to marinate 7 oz of feta, you can do one of two things. You can add salt to the remaining marinade and use it to top fish, chicken or pork. Or you can simply double the about the feta, which is what I do because 7 oz may be enough for your crew, but it’s definitely not whenever I serve it. When you are ready to serve this up, remove it from the fridge at least 15 minutes prior so the oil comes back to room temp.

When I say it can be slathered on everything, I mean it. Naturally, it’s divine on crusty bread. A no brainer. But I’ve seen guests dollop it on salad. Eat with grilled shrimp. Top polenta, rice and pasta with it. Need I go on. As a matter of fact, we social distanced at my sister, Alyssa’s house this past weekend, and we literally had a slew of foods that this feta worked so well with. Pasta with pesto and shrimp, chick pea salad with fennel and herbs, sautéed string beans, a big salad and grilled sausage. We all made a big plate and mixed it all up together, and amazingly it was a medley in our mouths.

I recently made breakfast tortilla/tacos from leftover roasted veggies and decided to add some zing by topping them with this marinated feta. It took these already delicious tacos to another level.

Roasted cauliflower, onions, sautéd spinach on corn tortillas topped with marinated feta.

I love when something takes on a whole new versatility. Marinated ‘feta’. It’s a very good thing!

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Vegan Chick Pea Mash

First things first, please do not be put off by the fact that I named this Vegan Chick Pea Mash. This recipe doesn’t contain any weird, mystery ingredients posing as something else. I would never do that to you. I’m not going to take some soy based crap and try to turn it into bologna. NEVER. This is vegan simply because it doesn’t have any animal products whatsoever.

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s get down to how this dish came to be. I love a good challenge. One of my skill sets is solution providing. I love figuring out a better way, an easier way or simply just A Way to accomplish a task. So, when I was hired to cater a Traditional British Style Tea Party the major request was to offer gluten free and vegan options. Normally this shouldn’t be too much of a challenge, but remember the typical Tea Party food is finger sandwiches, which do not sit squarely inside the gluten free and vegan circle. But I’m so glad I was put to the test because it yielded some good finds. Like this Vegan Chick Pea Mash.

Since the event was all about finger food, I needed to devise a bite sized morsel that would fit the vegan criteria. Chick peas are a hearty protein, and versatile thus the top choice in helping me solve this dilemma. Chick peas being what they are, dense and round, make them easy candidates for rolling off the plate, onto the floor and then ultimately squashed under foot. Goal: No rolling. So, how do you keep them from falling onto the floor instead of your mouth? Smash ‘em before they hit the floor. And so I did. But you can’t just scoop up smashed chick peas with your fingers! They needed a vessel, and colorful would be nice, too. Introducing the baby bell pepper brigade to the rescue. Perfectly suited to be filled up with the robust, chunky flavor of chick peas; smashed, of course.

Since I had a good variety of other food offerings in different flavor profiles, I wanted to ensure that this protein mash could stand on its own with savor. The first thing that came to mind was garlic and onion, but then kept layering more and more flavors as I cooked it, adding cumin and turmeric, cilantro and lemon juice. Here’s how it went down.

Ingredients

1 15 oz can Chick Peas
1/2 red onion, minced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 t ground turmeric
1/4 t cumin
1 T cilantro, minced
1/4 c Aquafaba (chick pea liquid)
1 T + lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
3 T olive oil

Instructions

1. In a large sauté pan, heat oil, add onions and cook until softened.

2. Add garlic, cumin, turmeric, salt, pepper and cook until the aromatics are nicely toasted.

3. Add the aquafaba and 1 T lemon juice and stir until combined.

4. Add the chick peas, let warm through and then using a fork or a potato masher begin to smash them. I like it chunky so I smashed some very well and other only lightly to give different textures.

5. Squeeze some more lemon juice to finish, then add the cilantro.

You can serve this dish warm, room temp or cold. It truly does work well at any temperature. As I mentioned, the first time I made this was a for a catered event, so making individual pieces was the goal. The baby bell peppers as the vehicle to steer them into people’s mouths was a great choice. The sweet, crunch of the peppers perfectly complemented the earthy flavor of the chick pea mash so much so that it is my preferred serving vessel.

The size of the baby bell peppers makes it an ideal cocktail party bite. And because the chick peas are smashed, no rolling off onto the floor.

You could also, place the chick pea mash in a bowl, place on a platter filled with baby bell peppers and cucumber rounds and use it as a dip. Either way, these made the perfect bite size treat. I recently decided to test drive this again at a backyard party we hosted for our neighbors using the peppers, and then two days later for a small family gathering using endive. Happy to report; it was a hit with every serving.

The tower of offerings. Chick Pea Mash, Salmon Roll Cucumber Rounds and Watercress, Herb Butter Tea Sandwiches.

Since I had some leftovers, I served them up again using endive.

Now, of course, this dish can be used in a variety of other ways. You should know me by now, everything I make has to do double, triple, well, multiple duties. I had some leftover and tossed it over warm pasta. Naturally, it was yummy. You can spread this on toast and add avocado or tomato or both. Go ahead. Start your creative engines…

Postscript: In reading some of the comments, it got me thinking about this recipe. I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me before but this can be a heartier substitute for hummus in a pita sandwich. It’s chunkier and therefore will be squish out less than traditional style hummus. Keep it vegan and add cucumbers, sprouts, olives, etc. Keep it vegetarian and add some feta cheese. Just thought I would share the ‘stuff it in a pita’ idea, which quite frankly seems like a no brainer that I’m surprised I didn’t think of before.

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Tapenade or Pesto - Oven-Dried Tomato, Pecan, Basil Spread

Did I mention I had a freezer full of tomatoes? Well, I do. Oven roasted, slow roasted, and oven-dried. Containers and containers filled with jewel colored, candy tasting goblets of goodness.

My cart with 4 - 25lb boxes. Seemed like a good idea at the time but when I got home I thought, Wow this might take a while!

This wasn’t even 25 full lbs. I had oodles more of roasting to go!! But I persevered with spectacular rewards.

The tomatoes come out tender with concentration flavor. Sweet like candy but with a savory richness that enhances any dish. These are the oil roasted ones. I used oven dried for this spread recipe. No oil is used when oven drying tomatoes. But as you can see, the oil roasting method uses a ton of oil. I use Oleo, a Spanish Olive Oil from Spain. You can buy it at Despaña.

This is the way to oven dry the tomatoes. No oil is added, as you want them to dry out slowly in a low temp oven for 8-10 hours. Recipe here

To store them, all you need to do is place them in an airtight jar, fill with fresh olive oil and store in the fridge. They last months like this.

I will admit that I went overboard this tomato season but I felt I had good cause. I was stocking up for a family trip in November. Truth be told, even with that trip I was as gluttonous as Violet from Willy Wonka, but instead of turning blueberry violet, I’m a gorgeous shade of ruby red.

In my quest to provide you… and me, with ideas on how to use up your tomatoes, I came up with this spread of sorts. It’s almost like a pesto, but not quite. It’s half tapenade and half pesto. Tapenesto? Pestenade? Ugh, It’s a concoction. How’s that for a name?

Seriously as easy as: blend it up, pour it out, spread it on anything type of recipe.

Ingredients

5-6 oven dried tomatoes (or sun-dried)
3 oven roasted garlic cloves
4 c basil, loosely packed
2/3 c oil
1 t salt
1/4 t lemon zest
2 T lemon juice
1 1/3 c pecans, toasted

Toasted pecans

Instructions

1. Toast the pecans in a pan over low heat or in the oven just until lightly toasted.

2. In a blender or food processor, buzz up the roasted garlic and oven dried tomatoes until chunky.

3. Add the basil, and buzz until combined

4. Add the pecans

5. Drizzle in oil, add salt, lemon zest and juice and buzz until chunky consistency.

Basil, so green and fresh, it will add that herbaceous quality to this ‘dip’.

Rich, liquid gold pouring in.

I made this spread without any real need for it but just the desire to test it out. This is me back to my old tricks. Experimenting with no agenda. I’m sure glad I did, ‘cause two weeks later we had weekend guests and it was the perfect compliment to my cheese board. It goes great on bread, perfect on crackers and zippy on cucumbers.

Cheeses from Spain found at Despaña: Majorero Pimenton, Zamorano, Mahon Curado

I’m sure this ‘whatever’ you call it spread would be lovely on grilled chicken or even fish or roasted vegetables. These are the types of ‘whip ‘em up’ ideas I love. The ones that aren’t picky how you use them. They are happy to play on anyone’s plate in any fashion you can think up. And the thing I also learned about this little tapenesto pestenade was that it lasts for 2-3 weeks in an airtight container. How’s that for work horse?

Up close and personal. Rich and deep in flavor.

Name it whatever you like, but it goes with feta cheese, Middle Eastern fare, Italian fare, yada yada yada.

Spread it on bread add fontina cheese and arugula, some dried cured meat and slap the crusty bread… shut…up and eat.

Oh, I’ve fallen in love again. A pesto/tapenade concoction that will have you not caring what you call it. Just as long as you can make it, spread it and devour it.

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Tahini-Peanut Dressing

I am drawn to nutty flavors. So, combining tahini, which is ground sesame seeds, and peanut butter into a dressing, to slather on whatever I can, should be no surprise. It’s a classic combo, and there are many versions out there. I used to make mine with soy sauce and rice wine vinegar, but lately have been steering clear of those ingredients. But you can certainly include them to this dressing, too.

What I adore about this thick mixture, call it a dressing, sauce, dip or relish, is that you can use it for some many dishes. I typically incorporate it into my rice noodle bowl, or as a dressing option to Spicy Slaw. It’s also a tasty topping to pork chops, or chicken. It’s the go to mix for satay dipping, but why not for crudités, too, I say. Go ahead and slather it on a grilled tortilla, then fill it up with grilled fish or shrimp with a good helping of slaw for a Asian style taco.

Whenever you hear about musicians being termed as crossover artists, you understand that they are versatile in their craft. I would venture to say that this dressing has them beat. How many musicians can crossover as much as this little dressing. From pasta to veggie dishes to fish or meats, from Asian to Mexican to Indian dishes, this nutty, savory, tangy concoction is the ultimate of multi-duty. And if that’s not enough, it also can hang out in the fridge for awhile, too. But I usually use mine up fairly quickly.

The stars, peanut butter, tahini, sesame oil, garlic, lemon, red pepper flakes, scallions and cilantro.

Ingredients

1/2 c Tahini
1 c Peanut Butter (I like chunky, but smooth is fine)
1/4 c Sesame Oil
pinch of red pepper flakes
1 T Lemon Zest
2 T Lemon juice
1/2 T Garlic, crushed
1/4 c Scallions
1/4 c Cilantro
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/2 t Salt, or to taste
Peanuts, for garnish (optional)
Jalapeño pepper, (optional)

Instructions

1. Cut up the scallions, mince the cilantro and crush the garlic in a press.

2. Add all the ingredients, except the scallions and cilantro, into a blender or food processor and combine to the consistency you desire. If you want it more chunky, buzz it less. If you want a thinner sauce, you can add ice water or vegetable stock to thin it out. I prefer mine thick.

Add the cilantro and scallions on top.

On this particular Tahini-Peanut Dressing day, I mixed mine into rice noodles with a bowl full of greens; sliced scallions, arugula, cucumbers, bean sprouts, more cilantro leaves

I eat this by the bowl full. It’s so satisfying, I usually go for a refill.

It’s perfect for slaw. Top with more peanuts to add texture and crunch.

As I said, you can vary this base dressing by adding soy sauce, tamari, rice vinegar, jalapeño or toasted sesame seeds on top. You can use it for salad dressing, or a marinade. Put it on noodles or veggies… yada yada yada. You seriously don’t need me to make a list. I trust you find all it’s savory uses.

White Bean Dip

I am a serial food pleaser. I caught the entertaining bug from my grandmothers and mother while watching them put out dish after dish, platter after platter for holiday events, Saturday BBQs, or a Sunday meal.  There was something about those moments that dug in deep with me.  Preparing and offering up food made with love seemed to awaken a real joy in me. I loved the excitement of it. I love the way it makes me feel. Entertaining is part of my DNA...DANA. 

In my parent's kitchen on Long Island with sumo sized vats of food. Yes, I say from WAY back. That was my brother's bird named Qubiert.

Part of my High School gang. I guess I convinced them with more than just wine and cheese. It took 16oz Buds!

From way back when, luring friends and family to come over to nibble on my food experiments has been a constant agenda. I giggle at the memories of my high school years when I would try to convince my friends to gather at my house for wine, cheese and board games instead of their suggestion to go to a bar.  Nerd, or early onset foodie? Either way, it was and still holds true. Given the choice, I much prefer hosting a small gathering than going out.  Seeing as it's been a while since I've used my usual bullet point list, here goes a few reasons to entertain at home:

• Your guests can stay as long as they like, no one hovering over with a check waiting to seat the next group

• You can make whatever food you like, and experiment and use them as test subjects

• You don't spend nearly as much as in a restaurant

• You don't have to deal with a bunch of people who aren't part of your group

• You can laugh and dance and play whatever music you want

• You can move around from room to room, sit on the floor or lie on the couch or be outdoors

• You can display all your table decorating talents

• You can wear comfy clothes

• You can kick your shoes off, although I never do

When I lived in a studio apartment in NYC, my entertaining was contained to having a friend or two over for dinner.  After moving to Miami, I had the space to entertain but with crazy work hours, I barely had the time.  Go figure!  I was left with one option to soothe my aching entertaining soul.  Throw myself birthday parties.  I knew I could at least carve out time for my own birthday, and I also knew friends would make the effort because of that.  Buffet style was mostly how these shindigs went down.  It made it easy to put all the food out and have people fill and refill as they wished, at their pace.  Less fussy that way, too, kept the mood relaxed, informal and moveable.  You've heard me talk about the importance of having some food cold, some room temp and 1-2 options warm.  With these annual parties the guest list was usually my same dear friends. That meant I needed to come up with food ideas that would check all those boxes and as well as be different from the previous year. 

Friends always willing to help. Yay, for me.

Dear friends that I still have as a part of my life to this day.

My dear friends: Kathy, who sadly is no longer with us, me, Emilce and Helene. Can I blow them out? Sure, I've got plenty of hot air.

I promise to post more of those old favorites in upcoming posts, but today I want to share a white bean dip.  Reason being is that I recently revived this recipe during our latest trip to Miami.  So, it seems only fitting having first made it decades ago in Miami.

While on this trip, we had a few people over our apartment.  Perfect time to feed my need to 'food please'. So I whipped up a few bites.  JC always laughs because he says, "No, biggie we can just put out some cheese" and then I decide we need a few other nibbles, and in a flash we have a spread of food.  

I'm as comfortable as can be in George and John's kitchen.

On our last night of this past trip we were invited to our friends', John and George, house for dinner.  We  adore them for many reasons but are belly tickled that they are food lovers as well.  We make a perfect complement in the kitchen together.  Their part: the main meal. Our part: the appetizers.

Making the potato topped with with smoked trout & sour cream

You don't always have to make all the dishes. Sometimes buying really good prepared foods is just the right answer. Marinated olives & feta.

Leftover heirloom tomatoes from the night before...

Cut up to make the topping for bruschetta.

Talk about an excellent time to revive an old dip. This task was also going to require me tapping into my something from nothing style as we only had a few food items left in our apartment due to our return to NY.  Time to whip up what's available.  I had made the potatoes topped with trout and had extra, so that was on app down.  I had leftover heirloom tomatoes, chopped up made a tasty bruschetta. Lastly, in the cupboard... white beans.  In the fridge, standing by wanting to be needed: scallions and cilantro at your service. Perfect aromatics to jazz up a white bean dip. 

This is a dip that can be modified to use what you have available or what flavor profile you like.  Clearly, not a lot is needed to create this one. You can use a different kind of bean, or basil instead of cilantro. Mix and match to what you have, or whatever will rock your taste buds.

Only a handful of ingredients, so make sure they are fresh.

Chopped garlic

Ingredients

1 15 oz can Cannellini or Great Northern beans
1/3 c cilantro (plus extra for garnish)
2 T lemon juice
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 T olive oil
1/2 t salt
1/8 t pepper
1/3 c scallions, sliced (plus extra for garnish)

Instructions

Drain the liquid from the beans reserving 1 T.  Place the beans, garlic, salt, pepper, oil, lemon juice in a mini food processor.  I used a blender because it was all I had, but found it didn't chop as well as I would have liked.  Buzz them up to your liking.  You can make this dip super smooth and creamy, or leave it a little chunky.  I like it both ways.

Remove this mixture and place in a decorative bowl.  In same blender, add the scallions, cilantro and reserved bean liquid.  Buzz until you get a chopped mixture.  Dollop this mixture in the center of the bean mixture.  Then slice a few more scallions and cilantro and sprinkle on top.  Serve with crusty bread or vegetables like cucumber slices, celery, carrots, or even blanched broccoli.  

Dollop the scallion, cilantro mixture on top.

My appetizer offerings make with love part in our Miami home, part in theirs.

All of the appetizers were a big hit at our friends' house. But the dip got the most ohhs and ahhs. I almost felt I should have made more!  John's sister loved it so much she kept asking for the recipe. Hey, guess what? I have a blog just for that reason.  So, here you go Ann, and for all of you who might enjoy this super simple dip that will please your own guests, or bring to a party and please other guests.  Either way, a crowd pleaser.

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