Baked Feta Appetizer with Olives

Baked Feta Appetizer with Olives is an easy and scrumptious appetizer that's perfect for a small crowd and guaranteed to be a hit. The presentation is beautiful, and you can make it almost entirely ahead of time!

This baked Feta appetizer is one of my favorite recipes to serve a small group. It's fantastic for sharing and easily comes together with just a handful of simple ingredients.

I make this for guests all the time, and I put it together the night before, so all I have to do is bake it just before serving. Easy and foolproof!

I love crumbled Feta served chilled, like in salads, and in my Melon Feta recipe - but, it's also amazing served sizzling hot in block form. Add to that, smoky roasted red peppers and Kalamata olives with fresh herbs, and it's a huge hit.

Key Ingredient Information

• Feta cheese - Feta is a Greek cheese made from sheeps' milk and has a salty, tangy flavor. It’s always best to buy Feta in its salt water brine. The texture will be smoother and creamer, and the shelf life is longer. It's a good idea to lightly rinse and pat dry the Feta when it's used directly from brine to remove any excess salt.
• Kalamata olives - Kalamata olives have a salty wine-like flavor. Buy pitted Kalamatas to save time, and if you'd like to substitute them, use Niçoise or green olives like Castelvetranos. (Warmed Castelvetrano olives are superb!)
• roasted bell peppers - Using a couple of colors is really pretty, though you can use one if you prefer. Red, orange and yellow are best -- do not use green for this -- it won't be nearly as good. We roast them for this recipe which adds a delicious smoky flavor to their natural sweetness. Choose peppers that are heavy for their size and shiny. If you want to save time, substitute with jarred roasted peppers.
• fresh oregano - Oregano has a pungent earthy flavor that's lovely with the sweet peppers, salty cheese and olives. Choose perky, dark green bunches without yellow areas. You can substitute the fresh oregano with dried oregano, using about ⅓ the amount.

How to Make Baked Feta with Roasted Peppers & Olives

- First, roast and peel the red peppers. Here's a step-by-step guide for How to Roast and Peel Peppers.

- Finely chop the roasted peppers, olives and oregano, and combine them with the olive oil and lemon juice in a small bowl.

- Place the blocks of Feta cheese in a casserole or other baking dish large enough to fit them with a good few inches around them.

- Pour the pepper-olive mixture over and around the cheese, and gently lift the blocks so some of it goes underneath.

- Bake it in a 375°F oven until the oil is sizzling and the edges of the cheese are golden. If the oil is sizzling before it begins to brown, place the dish below the broiler until it's slightly golden, about 30 seconds or so. Recipe Tip: If you place it under the broiler, watch it carefully as it can go from perfect to too dark within seconds.

Serving Suggestions

• I serve the baked Feta appetizer with thin, toasted baguette slices or another sliced crusty bread.  If desired, rub a raw garlic clove on them. (I don’t add any additional else because the cheese with olives and peppers is already intensely flavored.)
• Plain crackers, pita or bagel chips are also great choices.

I love a party of appetizers or small plates. Below are a few delicious ideas if you'd like to do just that.

More Appetizers for Sharing to Serve With the Feta

Variations

• This recipe is also fantastic with fresh basil, thyme or rosemary. If you use rosemary, use about 1 teaspoon less.
• It's common to drizzle honey on top of baked feta, and it would be really tasty with the salty tangy flavors in this baked Feta recipe.
• Use sliced cherry tomatoes or marinated sun-dried tomatoes, if you prefer them to red peppers.
• Make it lemony. As soon as it comes out of the oven, drizzle it with a couple of tablespoons of lemon juice and sprinkle it with a tablespoon of lemon zest.
• Turn it into a main course Baked Feta Pasta dish. Once baked, you can crumble the cheese and mix everything together, and then combine it with a pasta of your choice.
• Gluten-free version. Instead of serving it with bread or crackers, serve it with large, diagonally sliced cucumber.

Making it Ahead and Storage

• You can prep the recipe 100% the day before you want to serve it. Keep it refrigerated, covered tightly with plastic wrap or in an airtight container, and about 40 minutes before serving remove it from the refrigerator and preheat the oven to 375°F. Put it in the oven to bake about 20 minutes before you're ready to serve.
• Unlike in a baked brie recipe, baked Feta cheese doesn't really melt -- it softens. Therefore, once cooled to room temperature, it can easily be wrapped and stored. (I love the leftovers in a grilled cheese sandwich!)

More Must-Try Recipes with Feta

• Watermelon Basil Salad with Feta
• Lamb and Feta Cheese Lasagna
• Spinach Feta Quiche in Portobello Shells
• Mediterranean Burgers with Olives and Feta

I would definitely keep this Feta cheese appetizer in mind the next time you have a casual dinner party.

Hope you love it as much as I do!

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