Sesame-crusted feta with black lime honey syrup

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"These impressive-looking peppers are deceptively easy to put together, and a sure way to put that bag of frozen corn to good use. Eat this alongside a fava bean and herb salad or some roasted potatoes, for a complete meal.

“Everything is betta with feta,” says Tara, voted the number one feta fan of all time, and, to be fair, she might be right. We try really hard notto show cheese favoritism (cheesism), but we’d be lying if we didn’t admit that feta makes a prominent appearance in the OTK fridge, its salty, tangy properties lending it well to multiple preparations.This dish is a little bit sweet, a lotta bit salty, a tiny bit bitter, and a whole bit crispy. It’s exactly what you’d serve for brunch (with bacon, if you like) and not much else as it really is quite rich."

To get Yotam and Noor's new cookbook 'Ottolenghi Test Kitchen', click here.

SERVES

30 Mins

Ingredients

2 blocks of Greek feta (12-3/4 oz/360g), each cut into 4 triangles (8 triangles in total)
1/4 cup/35g rice flour (or all-purpose flour if gluten-free flour not needed)
1 large egg, well beaten
2/3 cup/100g mixed black and white sesame seeds, lightly toasted
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tablespoon lemon thyme leaves, or regular thyme leaves

Syrup:

1/3 cup/120g honey
1 teaspoon ground black lime (p. 50) (optional)
3 lemons: 1 juiced to get 1 tablespoon and the other 2 left whole

Directions

Coat the feta thenight before, coverwell, and keep refrigerated.
Line a shallow baking dish (or baking sheet with a slight lip), about 12 x 8 inches/30 x 20 centimeters in size, with parchment paper.
Pat dry the feta pieces, then dip each piece in the flour, gently shaking offthe excess. Coat in the egg, followed by the sesame seeds, making sure the feta pieces are completely coated. Transfer each piece to the prepared dish and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight.
Preheat the oven to 450°F. Drizzle the coated feta pieces with the oil and bake from cold, for 18 minutes, very gently flipping the pieces over halfway, or until golden and warmed through.
While the feta is baking, put the honey and black lime, if using, into a small saucepan on medium-high heat. Once it starts to bubble, turn the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until it turns adeep amber caramel, about six to seven minutes. Take off the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Set aside to cool for five minutes.
Use a small, sharp knife to peel and segment the remaining two lemons and stir the segments into the cooled honey mixture.
When ready, pour the syrup directly over the feta in the baking dish, sprinkle with the thyme, and serve at once, straight from the dish.