The Frenzy for Feta

The+Frenzy+for+Feta

Andrea Valdes-Sueiras, Managing Editor

Over the last month, TikTok has witnessed yet another cooking fad: baked feta pasta. Users have been quick to experiment in the kitchen with a few simple ingredients including cherry tomatoes, garlic, basil, rotini, and feta of course.

This trend comes after months of crafting variations of Gigi Hadid’s spicy pasta; it was about time we found a new recipe to attempt. Little did we all know that this bowl of carbs and dairy would sell out feta cheese in cities around the world. However, soon culinary titan Martha Stewart proved to TikTok that she was the reason for this feta frenzy.

Martha Stewart’s recipe, featured in a 2018 issue of Martha Stewart Living, is posted as a marinara-based dip using bread crisps instead of pasta noodles. However, for my meal, I fused both her’s and TikTok’s editions into the trendiest dish I’ve had since the notorious spicy pasta.

For the pasta, I used store bought marinara—instead of the recommended homemade alternative—piquillo peppers, a block of feta, basil leaves, red pepper flakes, olive oil and penne. The result was immaculate.

Among other recipes featured on TikTok, the baked feta pasta is a close second to a batch of thick chocolate chip cookies I baked in the summer. Besides the uneven proportion of marinara sauce to penne, the dish was worth the Internet hype. I fully recommend locking in that spirit of inspiration and putting your culinary talents to the test by baking this globally renowned—yet simple—pasta dish.