I want you all to know something before I post this. I fought doing this, I fought posting this “recipe” as a blog for today but apparently a lot of people wanted to hear what I did when I created my own spin on the feta/tomato pasta that went viral all over the interwebs. The answer to that is honestly the bare minimum, but alas, here we are. My changes to the dish feel pretty self-explanatory to me but I guess to the folks on the internet butchering this recipe, they are not. Anytime I came across someone complaining about how nasty the recipe was I noticed two commonalities. 1. They didn’t season it. They took the recipe at face value & expected it to be full of flavor & goodness. No. 2. They treated the recipe like it was Italian NOT like the CLEARLY EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN DISH THAT IT IS!!! All of that to say I treated the dish with these two things in mind & people act like I deserve a Michelin star haha.
I don’t. Let’s make that clear. I don’t deserve a Michelin star.
Anyway….
Better Viral Feta Pasta
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 30-35 Minutes
Total Time: 40-45 Minutes
Ingredients:
-1/2 Medium Yellow Onion - Diced
-2 Cloves Garlic - Minced
-2 Pints of Cherry Tomatoes
-8 Oz. Block of Feta Cheese
-1 Lbs. Noodles Of Choice (Something Meant For Thick Sauces Like Elbows or Ziti)
-1/2 Cup Good Quality Olive Oil
-3 Sprigs of Fresh Thyme (Leaves Only)
-1 Sprig Rosemary
-1 Lemon
-1 1/2 Teaspoons Oregano
-1 Teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
-Fresh Basil
-Salt
-Pepper
Instructions:
-Preheat your oven to 400º.
-In a casserole dish place in the cherry tomatoes (washed).
-Toss tomatoes in just under the entirety of your 1/2 cup of olive oil.
-Top tomatoes with salt, pepper, thyme leaves, red pepper flakes, onion, garlic, & oregano.
-Place your block of feta in the middle of the pan so it’s touching the bottom, surrounded by the tomatoes.
-Pour remainder of olive oil over feta.
-Pepper the feta & place the sprig of rosemary on top.
-Slice your lemon in half & place it, rind down, in the opposite corners of the pan.
-Place pan in the oven for 30-35 minutes.
-In a pot boil your pasta of choice until al dente, strain & set aside.
-When you pull the pan out of the oven remove the sprig of rosemary & the lemons. The rosemary can be discarded, the lemons will be used.
-With a broad spoon begin smashing the tomatoes & spreading the cheese.
-Once all tomatoes are properly smashed squeeze the juice from both halves of the lemon over the entirety of the pan & add in the pasta.
-Mix thoroughly until smooth.
-Serve & top with fresh basil.