feta cheese

While the bridal shower was sunny and sophisticated, my friend Ronda's bachelorette will be fantastical and fabulous. Since she's a huge fan of belly dancing, the maid of honor has chosen this sensual dance to serve as the party's theme. Ronda's girlfriends are invited to a belly dancing class complete with Mediterranean nibbles. After the class, everyone will head to a local hookah bar to practice their newfound talent. I'm planning the menu; it will be a spread of delicious appetizers. In between songs, the girls can snack on mini Mediterranean pitas topped with hummus, tapenade, or pesto.

Crisp Turkish cigars are filled with tangy feta cheese. Flatbread squares with mint and ground lamb are hearty and scrumptious. When skewered on rosemary springs and served with a garlicky mint sauce, shrimp is irresistible. To check out these recipes that are perfect for any backyard bash, read more

Sometimes serendipity leads me to sandwiches at the most surprising times — like when I once found myself at an antique mall, housed in an old grocery store, with a restaurant in the middle. I ordered the feta BLT, which turned out to be an unfussy yet decadent, creamy, and salty twist on the crispy classic. Luckily, the woman who owned the restaurant also had a cookbook, and I got my hands on the recipe.

I've been meaning to make this for a while now, so last week I did feta cream-cheese BLTs for dinner. Turns out, April is not only National Grilled Cheese Month, it's also BLT Month. Serendipitous, indeed. To celebrate the sandwich yourself, read more

Although one of her specialties is turkey burgers, lately DearSugar has been in a recipe rut. I decided to help her spice things up with this savory and scrumptious recipe.

Instead of being served on a bun, the burger gets placed inside a pita pocket. The meat is seasoned with tons of fresh herbs before being stuffed with salty feta cheese. Paired with red wine or a cold beer, this flavorful burger is far from boring. To experiment with the recipe, read more

Named for the Greek heir and playboy, Stavros Niarchos, this week's nacho creation is a delectable mix of Greek ingredients. I topped crispy pita with a spicy ground lamb mixture. Instead of using cheddar or Monterey jack, I used salty feta and creamy goat cheese. A "salsa" of fresh tomatoes and kalamata olives finished off the dish. Hot pepperoncinis replaced pickled jalapeños as a heat-inducing garnish.These nachos were insanely scrumptious. While munching, I couldn't help but wonder why more people don't make Greek nachos? They're to die for. Trust me, run to the grocery store, you must make these nachos! They'd be an excellent starter to a Mediterranean barbecue. For the recipe details, read more

When I opened my fridge the other day and saw fig preserves and almond butter, I thought, "that's like the Mediterranean equivalent of peanut butter and jelly!" Remembering that I also had a block of feta cheese, I took that glimmer of an idea and came up with something weirder: a Mediterranean-inspired marriage of a PB&J and a grilled cheese. I spread the fig jelly and almond butter on apple-walnut bread (though any sweet bread, such as cinnamon raisin, would do). Then, I added some crumbled feta and grilled it in a skillet coated with olive oil. I figured the flavor combination would either be totally gross or totally good, and thankfully, it was the latter. This 'Wich of the Week is at once creamy, nutty, salty, and sweet. If that sounds like your sort of sandwich, check out the recipe and more photos when you read more

My sister and I recently got into a debate over whether or not meat was necessary on a salad. While I don't think it's necessary, I do think it's a delicious addition. I especially love the way the meat juices create their own sort of dressing. With that said, I must also admit that while I've had plenty of chicken and steak salads, I've never had a lamb salad. Last night I shared a recipe for Roast Lamb for one; you probably don't have any leftovers, but if you do give this lamb salad a try. If you don't — or if you didn't make it — there's a recipe for a delicious lamb too. To get these recipes, just read more