Think 'Snacking Dinners' for simple holiday meals

Even people who like to cook don’t always have time to whip up gourmet meals during the busy holiday season.

Here & Now‘s Indira Lakshmanan has some inspiration for snacks that feel special and can feed a crowd with Georgia Freedman, author of the book “Snacking Dinners: 50+ Recipes for Low-Lift, High-Reward Dinners that Delight.”

Book excerpt: ‘Snacking Dinners’

By Georgia Freedman

Broiled feta & tomatoes with crusty bread

20 minutes

A couple of years ago, when a viral pasta recipe for broiled feta and tomato pasta started showing up all over the internet, I noticed something strange. The videos started out beautifully, with a square of broiled cheese surrounded by bright, glistening tomatoes, but then cooks dumped pasta into the pan and mixed everything up, ruining the pretty presentation. Instead of following the internet’s lead, I stop at that gorgeous in-between step and serve it with crusty bread instead of pasta. I also add some olives for a briny kick, and spice the whole thing with a touch of gochujang. The result is as pretty as it is delicious.

/

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (165 g) cherry tomatoes
• 1 sweet mini pepper or part of a slightly spicy pepper, like a Jimmy Nardello or an Italian frying pepper, stemmed and seeded
• 4 Castelvetrano olives
• 2 big pinches of fresh oregano leaves
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon gochujang
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• One 4-ounce (115 g) block of feta
• ½ of a baguette
• 2 or 3 basil leaves

Preparation:

1. Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise (or in quarters, if large) and roughly chop the pepper and the olives.
2. Put the vegetables and the oregano in a small baking dish, toss them with the olive oil and gochujang, and season with a big pinch of salt and some pepper.
3. Nestle the feta into the center of the vegetable mix.
4. Cook everything under the broiler until the tomatoes have split and the top of the cheese is browned (the timing will vary depending on your oven).
5. Cut the baguette into thin slices and toast them lightly.
6. Chiffonade the basil.
7. When the tomatoes and feta are done, sprinkle the basil on top.
8. To eat, spread some cheese on a piece of baguette and pile on some of the vegetables.

Excerpted with permission from “Snacking Dinner” by Georgia Freedman.
Published by Hardie Grant Publishing, April 2025. All rights reserved.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

Copyright 2025 WBUR