Bite Of Minnesota: Baked Feta With Tomatoes & Olives

Finding and making truly simple recipes doesn't come easily (for me). It seems that I tend to pick highly involved dishes and insist on making most if not all of the components myself. Heck, if I were more adept at making cheese, I'm sure I'd complicate things even more. As much as I truly enjoy the creative aspect of prepping and cooking in the kitchen, I need to have quick go-to dishes for times when I should be doing other things.

This appetizer came together because I overbought feta cheese at Bill's Imported Foods. Trust me, overbuying at Bill's isn't hard to do -- this Greek shop has several varieties of feta (from different regions of Europe) and at times it is hard to decide. I also purchased a big bag of olives and had just a few kalamatas left. Since a block of cheese and a few olives weren't going to do it for me, I drained a can of diced tomatoes and scattered a few over top. Truly, this dish could be ready to go as is but I wanted to soften the feta and bring all of the flavors together in the oven. After baking and broiling, it was garnished with parsley before serving with crackers and sliced veggies.

4 oz. brick of feta cheese
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp kalamata olives, chopped
1 tomato, chopped (or 1/2 cup canned tomatoes, drained)
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
Crackers, for serving
Sliced carrots and celery, for serving

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a shallow dish, drizzle feta with olive oil. Sprinkle chopped kalamatas and chopped tomato over top and cover with foil. Bake for 15 minutes or until feta has softened (note: it will not melt, it will just get soft). Remove foil and broil for 2 minutes or until cheese starts to brown slightly. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve with crackers, carrots, and celery.