This 10-ingredient baked feta recipe is simple, healthy, and delicious. Cooked in a cumin-spiced tomato sauce, it's a fantastic appetizer or meal!
This baked feta recipe is the definition of a low-effort, high-reward dish. It calls for 10 simple ingredients. It comes together in one pan. And it’s ready in under 30 minutes.
But it’s still packed with restaurant-worthy flavor. Tangy planks of feta cheese bake in a cumin-spiced tomato sauce filled with chickpeas and kale. Just add some warm pita for scooping it all up, and you have a perfect weeknight dinner or easy appetizer.
I think pretty much all of us tried the baked feta pasta with cherry tomatoes that went viral a few years back, but personally, I like this baked feta skillet even more. It’s inspired by a recipe from the book Cook90 by David Tamarkin, the editor and digital director of Epicurious. It’s a great book that’s full of accessible, easy-to-prepare dishes. I was drawn to this recipe because I am a huge fan of feta cheese. I also love chickpeas and kale, so I couldn’t resist trying it out. It quickly became a favorite in our house. I hope you love it too!
Baked Feta Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this baked feta recipe:
- Feta cheese, of course! When you’re at the grocery store, look for a big block of feta cheese, one that you can slice into 3-4 (1/2-inch) planks. Cow and sheep milk feta are both excellent here!
- Tomato sauce – Make homemade marinara sauce, or buy canned or jarred sauce to make this recipe extra quick and easy!
- Cumin seeds – If you can’t find cumin seeds, feel free to substitute 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin. However, cumin seeds are really worth seeking out for this recipe. They infuse the sauce with delicious aromatic flavor.
- Chickpeas – They make this dish hearty enough to be a meal on its own! I love their flaky texture in the warm sauce.
- Kale – For extra veggie power!
- Extra-virgin olive oil – For sautéing the kale and drizzling on top of the finished dish.
- Crushed red pepper flakes – They add a touch of heat. Feel free to skip them if you’re sensitive to spice.
- Fresh lemon juice – For brightness.
- And parsley – For a fresh finishing touch.
Season to taste with plenty of freshly ground black pepper and serve with pita or no-knead bread!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Baked Feta
This recipe comes together in 3 simple steps:
- Toast the cumin seeds in the olive oil until fragrant, then add the kale and sauté until wilted.
- Simmer the sauce. Add the tomato sauce, chickpeas, lemon juice, and water to the skillet with the kale and bring to a simmer.
- Bake. Nestle the feta into the sauce and bake at 350°F for about 15 minutes, or until the cheese is soft and melty.
Top with red pepper flakes and parsley, drizzle with olive oil, and serve!
Recipe Tips
- Brined feta is best. Any block of feta that you can slice into planks will work here, but I especially recommend looking for high-quality feta in brine. I find that it has a superior flavor and texture to feta not packed in brine. Plus, if you have leftover cheese, it will keep much longer in your fridge.
- Get ahead. This dish is best served warm from the oven, but if you like, you can prep the tomato, kale, and chickpea mixture ahead. Cover the skillet and store it in the fridge for up to 2 days. Add the feta and bake just before serving.
- Make it your own. This recipe is delicious as written, but so many swaps or add-ins would work here. Use white beans instead of chickpeas or spinach or Swiss chard instead of kale. Add a red bell pepper or olives to the sauce, or garnish the dish with herbs like fresh thyme, basil, or dill. Let me know what variations you try!
More Favorite Dinner Recipes
If you love this baked feta cheese, try one of these hearty vegetarian dinners next:
- Eggplant Parmesan
- Vegetarian Lasagna
- Easy Baked Ziti
- Best Shakshuka
- Fettuccine Alfredo
- Or any of these 60 Easy Dinner Ideas!
And if you can’t get enough feta, try my whipped feta dip recipe!
Baked Feta
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
- 1 bunch lacinato kale, stemmed, leaves torn
- 2 cups tomato sauce, or Marinara Sauce
- 1½ cups cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, plus wedges for serving
- 1 (12-ounce) block feta cheese, cut into ½-inch planks
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- Fresh parsley, for garnish
- Warm pita or baguette, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Heat the olive oil in a 10 or 12-inch oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and let them sizzle gently for 1 to 2 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the kale in batches, letting each handful shrink and wilt before adding the next.
- When the last of the kale has wilted, add the tomato sauce, chickpeas, lemon juice, and ½ cup water. Stir and let it come to a simmer.
- Nestle the feta slices into the sauce and sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper. Slide the skillet into the oven and bake until the feta has softened, about 15 minutes. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with the red pepper flakes. Garnish with parsley and serve with pita and lemon wedges.
Adapted from Cook90 by David Tamarkin
I like the style of writing on your blog.
Do you have nutrition information for your recipes?
So simple. So delicious. I made it with the 3 cups of sauce, because we like it saucy, and it was delicious!
Made this tonight and loved it! Wouldn’t change a thing, so delicious!
Hi Jeanine Donofrio. i am a big lover of food specially this type of food. when i read this blog i loved it and i told it friends of pho restaurant they told me thanks for giving this information. So any body can visit this website. thank you.
Hi Jeanine Donofrio. i am a big lover of food specially this type of food. when i read this blog i loved it and it try friends of pho restaurant they told me thanks for giving this information. So any body can visit this website. thank you.
One of your most inspiring posts, thank you! I made this tonight, using just 6 0z of cheese. My entire family loved it! The kids liked that they could choose to eat the dish as a sandwich or do “dippies”.
Hi Sarah, I’m so glad everyone loved it so much!
This was really good! I’m a non-vegetarian (I am actually a butcher by profession) with a meat-and-potatoes-and-pizza boyfriend and we both just gobbled this up. All I had was a can of plain crushed tomatoes, so sauteed some onion and garlic before adding the kale, and I used little half-inch cubes of feta instead of feta steaks because that’s what I had in my fridge, but otherwise made the recipe as is. It’s really, really good. Hearty and tangy and inexpensive. Will add this to my dinner rotation for sure, especially if I keep getting lacinato kale in my veggie CSA. Even my chihuahua ate a few chickpeCD!
This is so delicious! I didn’t have a lemon so I used balsamic vinegar, and I love tomato so I used 3 cups of the homemade sauce. My whole family (OK, not the 4-year-old) loved it! Thank you.
How necessary is the lemon juice? I’m allergic to citrus. I’m hoping it’ll be okay to just leave it out. I’ve also had trouble digesting lot of chickpeas in the past so I thought I’d dilute them down a bit with some caramelized mushrooms and onions. Hopefully I’m on the right track here – am trying it later this week.
Hi Cyleste, you can leave out the lemon juice, it’ll be fine with out it. I think your idea of onions and mushrooms sounds delicious, let me know how it goes!
We made this last night with several changes; partly because I have a lot of food issues, and partly just for fun.
Let me begin by saying it was VERY GOOD!! We’re definitely going to do it again. Now in case anyone wants to know, here’s what we did…
For starters, we didn’t use any lemon juice (allergy). Then I misunderstood the recipe and we used marinara sauce instead of tomato sauce. I’ll use tomato sauce next time. We started with some caramelized mushrooms and onions. Normally I can eat that stuff like candy, but I really don’t think it was necessary. The dish has so much natural umami on its own – it really didnt need it. We also used half kale and half spinach – it was perfect for me, though hubby wants more spinach next time because he doesn’t like kale. Finally we used 2/3 chickpeas and 1/3 white beans. I loved that addition so much!
Hi Cyleste, I’m so glad you had fun with the recipe! Sounds delicious!
I mixed spinach & kale,substituted fava beans (because I didn’t have garbanzos)& it came out great
Hi Brian, I’m so glad you loved it!
Could I sub ground cumin for the cumin seeds? This looks so great, can’t wait to try it!
Yes and how much ground cumin? I just bought some and want to try it!
I would try 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, but I’d stir it in with the tomatoes so it doesn’t burn to the pan while the kale cooks. Let me know if that helps!
Thank you Jeanine!
Just made this tonight for book group. It was a hit! I used 1 1/2 teaspoons of ground cumin but be careful it doesn’t burn. I also put in a 2 inch piece of kombu to take the gas out of the chickpeas while simmering. I removed the kombu after about 15 min. I only had crumbled organic low fat feta and sprinkled that on top of the dish and it was delish.
Love kale. I am going try the feta kale chickpeas. Sounds good and different.
Awesome recipes!!!!! Just what I have been looking for
thank you! Welcome!
Substituting with white beans and spinach for dinner on Sunday.
Sounds like a good combo, I hope you enjoyed it!
Do you have any nutritional values on any of these recipes?
This sounds wonderful! Kale, chickpeas, and feta- all three things I love and keep stocked at home. The only thing I need to grab is some fresh cumin. Can’t wait try it out!
We think alike, those 3 things speak to my heart too 🙂
What else do you suggest to serve with this entree if you were having guest over?
Hi Ellana, I’d serve it with warm naan or crusty bread and a hearty salad (for a pretty casual but yummy dinner)
any of these salads would compliment it well:
https://strong-nights.today/roasted-cauliflower-tahini-lentil-salad/https://www.loveandlemons.com/spiced-fall-squash-salad/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr%3E https://strong-nights.today/arugula-salad-quinoa-apricot-avocado/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EHope that helps!
Do you have a good naan recipe? Thanks
I don’t, I usually buy it – but maybe I should work on one? Homemade naan might be really fun, thanks for the idea 🙂
Check the King Arthur bread website, they have lots of great flatbread recipes – https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/pizza-and-flatbread/flatbreads-and-focaccia
thank you, I will!
When I read the ingredients my mine went immediately to the block of sheeps’ milk feta in my freezer… Fortunately my husband will eat lacinato kale (he hates the curly kind). I’ll definitely have to try making this.
Hi Susan, I hope you and your husband enjoy it!
Can I substitute tofu for the feta to make it vegan?
You could, it won’t have the same salty quality so I would season the whole dish a with a bit more salt and pepper than what’s written here. And I’d put 6 planks in the skillet to serve 3 people since tofu is lighter and less rich than feta. (so 2 tofu planks per person). I hope that helps!