Here's my typical process whenever I get a new cookbook: I read half of it, flip through the pages and feverishly bookmark it with yellow post-its. It involves lots of mental thoughts of: Oooh, that would be perfect side dish for a dinner party and aha! I’ve always wanted to make something with spelt flour...but what IS spelt flour? The list goes on. And while I will make some of them, many of them just endure bend post-its over time. But I recently revived the cookbook A Modern Way To Live by Anna Jones that I got a couple years ago and this cherry tomato and feta recipe instantly caught my eye. Particularly because it involves roasted feta.
I love the unexpected idea of roasting lemon with lemon zest and coriander. The citrus tones of the tomato and lemon mixed with the salty cheese that when baked at 400 degrees turns milky soft and creamy on the inside and crisped golden on the outside. You think it'll burn, it doesn't, just be sure to watch it closely in the oven. From this recipe, I now want to roast feta with everything. This dish takes no time to make and it really is an ode to the end of summer and early fall days with the various colors of cherry tomatoes in cherry red, orange and yellow, refreshing mint, feta, olive oil and sea salt.
CHERRY TOMATOES WITH LEMON-ROASTED FETA from A Modern Way To Live
INGREDIENTS
½ lb feta
1 lemon
1 tsp ground coriander
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Olive oil
Cherry tomatoes, in different colors and shapes
Handful of mint, chopped
Preheat oven to 400
Place the feta on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
Grate half of the lemon and sprinkle over feta. Add the ground coriander as well as black pepper (no salt here). Drizzle with a little olive oil. Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes, until feta turns a golden brown.
While feta is roasting, chop tomatoes and place in a bowl. Doesn’t have to be all the same shape and slices, I like a mix of halves and fourths. Season with salt and pepper, grate over the zest of the rest of the lemon. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and add half the lemon juice. Taste and add more if needed. Mix and put aside for a couple minutes so everything can soak up.
Once the feta is roasted, lay the tomatoes on a serving platter and scatter over the mint. Use a spoon to dot chunks of feta over the tomatoes and serve.