Fast Break: Feta

Crumbled on top of a Greek Salad or sprinkled on eggs benedict, feta is that salty, fresh burst of flavor that you know and love. Probably the Greek cheese most universally known, feta has made it into the hearts of Americans, but it’s even more loved by the Greek: 70% of the cheese they eat is feta! That’s a lot of cheese.
 
Feta literally means “slice” in Greek: the perfect name for a cheese. I’ll have a slice of that, please! Mythology says that the god Aristaios, son of Apollo, came down from Olympus to teach us humans the art of cheesemaking. Aristaios just became my most favorite Greek god. The cyclops in Homer’s The Odyssey is the first written account of feta. Odysseus awaited his potential death in the the cyclops’ cave, tied up right next to a barrel of feta. Not too bad of a fate, I’d say.
 


Protein and more protein: Black Beans


 
 
Fast forward 8,000 years and we have feta all over the world, being made by almost the same techniques used in Homer’s day. Feta is usually a mixture of goat and sheep’s milk, making the pickled curd cheese we love. Depending on how mature the cheese is, it can be very creamy or very crumbly and dry. To preserve it, it’s soaked in brine (salt water) to keep it fresh. But to be named “feta” it has to be made in Greece.
 
Come and try some ancient cheese: we sprinkle feta on our Sunny Street Benedict (poached eggs atop fresh spinach, served with hollandaise, diced tomato, and feta cheese) and on our Greek Salad (of course). Feta for breakfast, feta for lunch.

Anna Hetzel, Social Media Manager