Baked Feta with Chickpeas and Spinach
Baked feta in a rich and spicy tomato sauce with chickpeas and spinach. Warming and filling this is great for lunch or supper.
Servings 3 people
Calories 470kcal
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tablespoon olive oil + more for drizzling
- 1 onion (150g) finely chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 ½ tablespoon harissa
- 2 x 400g can of chopped tomatoes
- 1 x 400g can of chickpeas drained and rinsed under the cold tap
- 1 x 200g block of feta cut into 3 thick strips
- 60 g baby leaf spinach any thick stems removed
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- A small handful of flat leaf parsley leaves picked and chopped
- The juice of half a lemon
- ¼ teaspoon of cracked black pepper + more for the feta
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Lemon wedges to serve
- Crusty bread to serve
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C / 392F.
- In a cast iron skillet heat 1 and a half tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until the onion is soft, for about 10 minutes. Stir the onion often so it doesn't catch.
- Stir in the dried oregano and the garlic and cook for a minute, until you can smell the garlic. Now add the harissa and stir that into the onion. Pour the chopped tomatoes into the skillet and stir well. Add the salt and pepper then turn up the heat, bring the sauce to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for about ten minutes. Or until the sauce is nice and thick.
- Once the sauce is nice and thick, add the chickpeas and stir in the spinach. Place the feta in the sauce, add some thyme onto the feta along with a sprinkling of black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.Carefully place the skillet in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.
- Once the feta is soft and a little browned take the skillet out of the oven, squeeze half a lemon over everything and sprinkle over the parsley.Serve hot with some good crusty bread and lemon wedges.
Notes
- Calories are approximate and are based on a serving of 3.
- This recipe was roughly adapted from this recipe here
- I used a 23cm cast iron skillet.
- My cast iron skillet is well seasoned, if you use a cast iron skillet please make sure it is well seasoned. The acid in the tomatoes may damage the cast iron if it is not well seasoned.
- If you don't have a cast iron skillet then any stove to oven pan will do.
- If you can, use a firm block of feta, if the feta is too crumbly it may break up in the sauce.
- The sauce is on the spicy side, my 12-year-old loved it, however, younger kids may find it too much. For younger taste buds I would reduce the harissa to 1 or half a tablespoon. Start with a half tablespoon then test the sauce and add more if you need it.
Nutrition
Calories: 470kcal