Showing posts with label feta. Show all posts
Showing posts with label feta. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart


Okay, before I give you this recipe, I must tell you that I changed a LOT to turn it from an appetizer to an entree.  But I will give you the original recipe and then let you know the changes that I made later on.

Ingredients

all-purpose flour, for rolling
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 T sour cream
1 t. grainy mustard
coarse salt and ground pepper
2 large leeks, white and light-green parts only
1 T unsalted butter
3/4 lb. grape tomatoes, halved, or plum tomatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick, or a combination
2 oz. fresh goat cheese, crumbled
2 t. fresh thyme or basil leaves

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  On a lightly floured work surface, roll out puff pastry to a 12-inch square; transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.  In a small bowl, stir together sour cream and mustard and season with salt and pepper.  Spread sour cream mixture evenly over pastry.  Fold over 1/2-inch border on all sides and press edges to seal.  Refrigerate 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, halve leeks lengthwise; rinse thoroughly, pat dry, and slice 1/4 inch thick.  In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high.  Add leeks, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, 5 minutes.  Arrange leeks evenly over sour cream mixture on pastry.  Top with tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.  Bake until pastry is golden brown and crisp, 25 minutes.  Let cool slightly.  Top with goat cheese and herbs before cutting into squares.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Okay, here are the things I changed:
1. I used feta instead of goat cheese.
2. I used 8 oz. of feta instead of 2 oz. of goat cheese (I love cheese!  2 ounces is not enough!).
3. I put the cheese on before putting it in the oven so that it would be melted in.
4. I added salami slices to make it more substantial and entree-like.

It was delicious!  I'm sure the original recipe is good too, but the changes I made were quite good.  The leeks add a tangy flavor, plus lots of greens to the "pizza".  It was really good.

*Recipe adapted from Everyday Food Issue 75*

- Sarah

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Quinoa with Feta and Cucumber

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa
coarse salt and pepper
1 t. olive oil
1 cup English cucumber (6 ounces), diced small
1/3 cup roughly chopped dill
2 t. fresh lemon juice

Preparation

1. In a small saucepan, bring quinoa, 2 cups water, and 1 teaspoon salt to a boil over high. Reduce to a medium simmer and cook until water evaporates, about 15 minutes. Transfer quinoa to a medium bowl and let cool 5 minutes.

2. Stir cucumber, dill, feta, oil, and lemon juice into quinoa. Season with salt and pepper. Eat. Yum.

** I found quinoa in the Natural Foods section of the grocery store. **

*Recipe from Everyday Food Issue 71

- Sarah