Greek Bouyourdi – Baked Cheese with Tomatoes and Peppers

Ingredients

• 350 g Lightly salted telemea cheese (Cut into slices approximately 1 cm thick; goat's cheese or cow's-milk cheese can also be used.)
• 1 Tomato (Diced.)
• 1 Kapya pepper (Cut into small pieces.)
• 1 tsp Dried oregano
• 3 tbsp Olive oil (For drizzling, generously.)
• Ground black pepper (To taste.)
• Hot pepper (Finely chopped; optional if you prefer spicy food. Amount to taste.)

Steps

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to approximately 200°C and prepare a clay dish or a heatproof glass baking dish.

2. 2

   Cut the telemea cheese into slices approximately 1 cm thick and arrange the slices in the dish, covering as much of the base as possible.

3. 3

   Sprinkle the diced tomato and kapya pepper over and between the cheese slices. Add the hot pepper, if using.

4. 4

   Sprinkle with oregano and pepper to taste, then drizzle generously with olive oil.

5. 5

   Cover the dish with aluminum foil and place it in the oven for 25–30 minutes, until the cheese is thoroughly melted and the vegetables have softened.

6. 6

   Remove the dish from the oven and carefully take off the foil, as hot steam will escape.

7. 7

   Mix the contents well with a fork until you obtain a thick, smooth cream with evenly distributed pieces of tomato and pepper.

8. 8

   Serve the bouyourdi immediately while hot, with toasted bread or flatbread.

Notes

The dish can be served as an appetizer or as a main course, as it is filling. Be careful with the amount of salt: telemea cheese is already salted, and the original recipe does not call for additional salt.

Nutrition per serving

• appetizer
• vegetarian
• Greek
• baked
• cheese
• quick
• meat-free
• served hot