Rosemary & Garlic Marinated Almond Feta
Lashings of feta on freshly baked French stick is one of those things I really missed when I became vegan, but not anymore.
I have played with this a number of times, replacing vinegar for the lemon juice, using part lemon juice and part vinegar for the acidity, using varying amounts of oil and salt, baking it and so forth but finally found the balance of flavours, texture and shape I was looking for. And for me feta is perfect when marinated. Olive oil, garlic and rosemary are a gastronomic match made in heaven.
You need (for the feta)
1 cup of blanched almonds
½ cup of water
¼ cup of fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 teaspoon of salt
You need (for the marinade)
1.5 cups of good quality extra virgin olive oil
1-2 large cloves of fresh garlic peeled and minced.
4 tablespoons of roughly chopped rosemary leaves
salt to taste
You Do
Simply blend all the feta ingredients together in a high powered food blender or food processor, for a few minutes until they are smooth. This takes about 5 minutes.
Then place the mixture into a nut bag. Place your hands at the top of the nut bag, above the mixture, squeeze it tightly and secure it with an elastic band. Place the nut bag into a colander and place the colander over a bowl so that any excess liquid can drain into the bowl. Refrigerate overnight.
The next day carefully remove the feta from the nut bag. Discard the draining water. Put the feta into a small square container. Press it down so that it takes on the square shape and place it back into the fridge.
Make the marinade by mixing all the marinade ingredients really well. Pour it into a shallow container. Carefully turn the feta out onto a chopping board and cut it into small squares. It is super soft like Perisian feta so breaks easily. Place the squares into the marinade and serve.
I love serving it with marinated olives, roasted nuts and fresh crusty bread.
Time: 10 minutes, plus the draining time over night.
Notes: You can soak the almonds for a few hours before you blend them to soften them too, if you like.
If you don’t have a nut bag (which I didn’t until recently) just line a colander with a clean chux, place the feta mixture into the middle of the chux. Bring the sides of the chux up around the mixture and tie it firmly with an elastic band. Place the colander over a bowl and also place it into the fridge to drain over night.
I like to serve it the same day I make it, only because once refrigerated the marinade turns solid because of the olive oil.
