Sour citrus and spicy peppercorns are perfect foils for salty feta. (See photo)

　　

Ingredients

serves 6

　　1 8-ounce block of feta cheese

　　16 black peppercorns

　　1 lemon

　　2 tablespoons olive oil (extra-virgin is nice)

　　

Step 1

Slice the block of feta into 1/4-inch slabs and then into wide strips. Place on a plate or in a shallow serving bowl.

　　

Step 2

Crush the peppercorns. Place them on a cutting board and press down hard on them with a flat-bottomed pan (a pie plate works well), rocking the pan back and forth. You can use a peppermill or already cracked black pepper, but the freshly crushed peppercorns are really nice. Lightly grate the lemon peel (see page 290) and then juice the lemon.

　　

Step 3

To make the marinade, mix 2 teaspoons of the zest and 2 teaspoons of the juice with the olive oil and the crushed peppercorns. Drizzle the marinade over the feta and toss gently. You can eat the feta right away, but it’s even better when marinated at room temperature for 30 minutes or more.

　　

Serving & menu ideas

Step 4

To tide you over until supper is ready, serve marinated feta with crackers, wedges of toasted pita or bread, and fresh fruit. Marinated feta is a good topping for Pasta with Olives Piquant (page 19) or fish with Sauce Niçoise (page 246). Make a Mediterranean-style summer meal of marinated feta and Sicilian Chickpea Spread (page 254) with crusty bread and olives and tomato and cucumber slices. And, of course, it’s delicious on tossed green salads, too.

　　From Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers: Fresh Ideas for the Weeknight Table. Copyright © 2017 by Moosewood Collective. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC. Buy the full book from ThriftBooks or Amazon.