baked feta
Ingredients:
2 containers/pints cherry tomatoes
2-3 Shallots, quartered
3 cloves of garlic, smashed
8 oz Block of Feta Cheese
1/2 cup Olive Oil
1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt
Sprinkle of Pepper
2-3 sprigs of fresh Thyme (any other Italian seasonings welcome- oregano etc)
Pasta of choice
Fresh Parmesan
Fresh Basil to garnish
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place the cherry tomatoes in an oven safe baking dish. Add the smashed Garlic.
Pour some Olive Oil on top, season with Thyme, Salt & Pepper. Mix until well combined and tomatoes are coated.
Place the whole feta block in the middle of the dish, surround by the tomatoes. Drizzle some olive oil on top of the feta. Sprinkle with a little Salt & Pepper.
Bake in the oven for 35-45 minutes, until the tomatoes have a slight char and are cooked down/have burst. You’ll want the feta to have a golden brown .
While the tomatoes and feta are cooking, cook the pasta in pot of salted water according to the package directions.
Drain the pasta and reserve 1/4 cup of pasta water in case you want to thin out your sauce.
Once your tomatoes and feta have cooked, remove from the heat.
Take half of the feta and half of the tomatoes and add them to your blender. Blend until smooth.
With the remaining feta and tomatoes, use the back if your fork to smash the tomatoes and combine with the feta.
Add your cooked noodles to the pasta dish, and pour your blended sauce on top. Stir to combine.
You can eat your pasta as is right now if you wish, topping with Parmesan and fresh basil. I personally like to take it one step further. I top my pasta with the parmesan and throw it back into the oven for an additional 10 minutes.
Top with fresh basil and enjoy.
