Well, the big game is coming up… you know the one I mean… Junior Women’s Etobicoke Dolphins versus the Mississauga Chiefs… what? There’s another big game? … sure, there’s football, hockey AND basketball soon to be moving toward playoffs and/or championships and having game snacks on hand is, for me anyways, a huge part of enjoying the game.

Elsewhere in this blog you can find my take on guacamole, the big game staple. Well, here’s another favourite I urge you to try. It’s great with sliced pita or naan bread, is just as good with nacho chips and is full of yummy stuff: cream cheese, feta, tomato, cucumber, dill…

Let’s not kid ourselves here. This is snack food after all and so should be eaten in moderation. As a cheese, feta is high in sodium and has a high cholesterol content but, it also offers surprising benefits not a lot of people think about!

Feta is usually made from sheep’s or goat’s milk so is easier on people who have trouble or can’t digest cow dairy. It’s a dairy product and so is high in calcium which is good for bone health. It’s also high in Vitamin A which is important for immune function. Also, the combination of vitamin B6 and the amino acid histidine in feta creates small amounts of histamine which can be beneficial for your body if it’s dealing with fatigue, injury or illness. Feta also as an animal milk product is high in protein which has particularly beneficial effects on glucose control, insulin sensitivity, and insulin secretion so help combat development of type 2 Diabetes.