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Honey Baked Feta

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Honey Baked Feta

Simply Divine…..

Whenever I start a post, I first think about WHERE in this big wide world I experienced the dish I am writing about and then my mood is set and I happy dance my way through the blog post all the while I transport back in time.

Since it is going to hit about 94 degrees today , my traveling day dream took me right to Greece, the island of Santorini to be exact, and my blissful moment with honey baked feta and warm flatbread.

We had just returned from a day of exploration on the sandy white beaches of the island and were making our way up the windy cobblestone roads, pressing between the bleach white buildings with cobalt blue awnings and windows draped with magenta and purple flowers filling the air with floral perfume.

We had a quaint rooftop room, which opened to the sea, and each morning and evening we would scan the horizon only to be entranced by the vastness of the unseen border. Magical does nothing to describe the moment.

Because we longed each day to drink in the view, we opted to “splurge” and enjoy a pre-meal nosh with a crisp glass of local Greek white wine. The first evening we encountered Pietro, the boy who was in charge of delivering us our evening delights. He made his way through the tiny opening and onto the balcony with a tray of 2 glasses and a small plate of honeyed warm feta and homemade flatbread. He explained that his family owned a farm out in the country and each week this uncle would deliver fresh sheep feta and honey. His mother would prepare flatbread, warm from the oven, and slather it with the fresh feta and finish it with a dollop of the honey whose hue was golden and fragrant with the flowers from the local hillside. He proceeded to continue explaining not only the simplicity of the dish but also the magnificence of all the accentuating flavors. By the time Pietro left, we were so entranced that all we could do was and envisioned the preparation.

As the sun started to lower over the horizon and the breeze blew against our faces with the slight mist of the sea water, we opened our eyes and bit into the flatbread whose texture was soft and chewy making the perfect platform for the melted feta dripping with honey. We glanced at each other and looked back out over the water. We both smiled and lifted our glasses in honor of the artisans whose love of the craft created a blissful moment in time and a memory of a lifetime.

Honey Baked Feta
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Appetizer
Cuisine: Greek
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 1 chunk of fresh sheep feta
  • 2-3 T of warm honey
  • 2 sprigs of thyme
  • fresh warm flatbread or crackers
Instructions
  1. Preheat broiler on low. On a sheet pan lined with parchment paper, put feta. Heat honey on stove with a little water until spreadable. With a spoon or brush, cover feta with honey and place 2 sprigs of thyme. Put under broiler and watch until browns around edges. Remove and place on plate with flatbread or crackers. Serve immediately

Honey Baked Feta

Greek Lamb Shanks

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Greek-Lamb-Shanks-with-Cipollini-and-Potatoes

Greek-Lamb-Shanks-with-Cipollini-and-Potatoes

Whenever I ask Enrique what special meal he wants on a Sunday, 9 times out of 10 he asks for this recipe. It really is quite the marriage of flavors and couple that with “fall off the bone tenderness” and you truly have a magical experience.

Since I know how often the request for this recipe is coming, I always have some shanks in my freezer. I have an awesome local source that makes this dish that much more amazing; gotta love these farmers and purveyors!

Another special element that highlights this dish is when I remember all the amazing lamb dishes we have had when we travel. I could eat lamb everyday and in everyway but infused with lemon, white wine, and fresh herbs is probably one of my most favorite preparations. I think for both of us, some of this fondness comes from our 8th anniversary spent in Greece.

We were on the Island of Santorini for 1 of the 2 weeks we spent in this amazing country. If you haven’t been to Santorini, you need to put it on your bucket list immediately! If you have been to Santorini, you already know how completely enchanting this island is so you won’t be surprised that we had a delightful anniversary dinner in a small, local restaurant on the second floor with our own balcony overlooking the sea. I probably could have been fed rocks and dirt and been in bliss completely due to the ambience…. but top it off with a delicious Grecian dinner and I think we probably were transported to Heaven’s main gate; in fact, I am positive we were.

The evening began with 2 appetizers of various fresh fishes, simply prepared both fried and grilled and combined with fresh herbs and local olive oil. Next was a simple salad topped with grilled Mediterranean vegetables and fresh lemon juice. I couldn’t have imagined anything could get better until they served us the lamb shank prepared in the outside wood burning oven with herbs, white wine, lemon, and olive oil. It was succulent, rich, and decadent. Dessert was fresh fruit and local cheeses. Simply divine and one of the best anniversary dinners we ever had…..

So this recipe is my interpretation of that memorable lamb dish overlooking the sea in Santorini…..try this for Valentine’s Day and transport yourself….

Greek-Lamb-Shanks-with-Cipollini-and-Potatoes

Greek-Lamb-Shanks-with-Cipollini-and-Potatoes

 

Greek Lamb Shanks
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Greek
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 4 Lamb Shanks (each about 1¼ lbs., 1 shank is a portion)
  • Parsley Leaves, lightly packed
  • 4 T Dried Oregano
  • 8 Garlic Cloves, minced
  • 4 Lemons, juiced
  • Olive Oil
  • Salt and Pepper
  • 1 Cup White Wine
  • Chicken Stock
  • 1 lb. Small Potatoes
  • 12 Cippolini Onions or 4 Sweet Onions, quartered
Instructions
  1. Squeeze lemon should be about ½ cup total
  2. In a food processor, add ½ garlic, 2 T oregano, bunch of parsley and a little oil, blend together. Rub lamb shanks with mixture, set aside.
  3. In same food processor, repeat process above. In a bowl, add onion and potatoes and toss with mixture. Add salt and pepper and set aside.
  4. Heat oven to 375
  5. Heat dutch oven and salt and pepper the shanks and then brown all over med-high heat. Add lemon juice and white wine, reduce by half.
  6. Add back shanks and add chicken broth until ½ way up sides of meat and add bay leaf. Put in oven for 1½ hours. After 1½ hours, reduce oven to 350 for another 30 minutes.
  7. Remove shanks from oven and pull out of dutch oven. Add potato onion, juices, salt, and pepper. Add back shanks and more chicken broth, if needed. Reduce heat to 325 and cook for another 1½ hours.
  8. Serve with naan and a greek salad

Oven Roasted Lemon Potatoes

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Anytime I have something at a restaurant, someone’s home, a food truck, a festival, or wherever, I spend a RIDICULOUS amount of time working at recreating the dish…. how can I wait until the NEXT time?? Seriously? Anyone relate to this? I almost have to take a 2-week vacation JUST to perfect my newest obsession….. I mean who needs to work anyway? It’s completely overrated compared to satisfying my inner addict.

So these little gems came my way via our monthly getaways to Los Angeles back in early 2000. We used to fly out once a month for my schooling but really I think it was just an excuse to eat chicken wings in our hotel room while watching Jerry Springer, dancing till all hours of the night, shopping until we drop, giggling endlessly over great sushi, and launching out at crazy hours to find the latest “hot spots” to savor the dishes and hopefully catch a glimpse or two of a star.

Whatever it was, it didn’t matter because we had the ride of a lifetime doing adventure. We still miss it and this dish takes me back to one of the many late night launches ……

I can’t remember the name of the mom and pop Greek place where we discovered these but I do remember the food and the couple. They were great. First generation immigrants from Santorini and they shared their stories with us all the while they just brought dish after dish of their families best kept secrets.

So you ask, why lemon potatoes? Why not baklava or lamb solvalki? Or the perfect gyro? Really, lemon potatoes? It’s NOT rocket science girlfriend.

Okay, I get it BUT, mastery came into need when perfecting the marinade and the cooking, they needed to have the flavor and be able to “crisp up” just like they were cooked with more oil. I KNEW that if I ate these babies as much as I was planning, I needed to find a bit healthier balance instead of ringing myself of oil each time I finished. Don’t get me wrong, they are awesome but finding a better balance helped me be able to justify the deliciousness and still fit into my newest threads that were purchased on the same trip.

So enjoy the “skinny” lemon potatoes! Have a good time changing up the herbs to fit your style and go ahead and indulge, I promise your fashion self will thank you!

Just don’t confess to the mom and pop I got inspiration from, I’m sure I have committed a Greek sin having altered the recipe. 🙂

Oven Roasted Lemon Potatoes
 
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I have made them with various herbs, parsley, oregano, cilantro, rosemary, tarragon, and the list goes on. It could be fun to try some spices as well, cumin, smokey paprika…Just be sure to watch the potatoes as they cook so that the liquid doesn't "dry" out at the bottom, add little bit more chicken broth as needed but watch they don't get "soggy" or "too wet".
Author:
Recipe type: Side Dish
Cuisine: Greek
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 3 lbs yukon gold potatoes or 3 lbs other waxy potatoes, peeled
  • ½ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • ⅛ cup olive oil
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • ¼ cup fresh oregano or any herb/spice of choice
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
  • 2 cups chicken stock plus more if needed
Instructions
  1. Peel potatoes and cut them in half (from medium size potatoes, quarter if large).
  2. Let them stand in water while preparing sauce.
  3. Combine all other ingredients in a gallon size"zipper" bag, and shake to combine.
  4. Dry off the potatoes, and put all of them in the bag and let marinate for 2 hours.
  5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  6. Put the potatoes and marinade in a large casserole, approximately 13 x 9.
  7. Roast for 1hr 10min, turning occasionally.