Mediterranean diet expert Elena Paravantes understands exactly what's involved in finding a good feta. We're talking bonafide Greek feta made with sheep's and goat's milk. Follow her six steps to find yourself a quality feta:

Look for feta made in Greece. Feta is on the register of Protected Designations of Origin (PDO) in the European Union. That means that only feta produced with traditional methods, in certain parts of Greece and with Greek milk can be labeled or sold as feta. Now if you live outside of Europe, the law does not apply and you will see "feta" made anywhere and from anything: cow's milk, buffalo milk, with additives such as vegetable fat or protein, marinated in oil or herbs, with non-natural drainage, with no maturation process. Nope, that cheese is not feta, doesn't matter what the package says. We have to remember that even if the cheese is produced with traditional methods, the environment affects the milk produced by the animals that is used in the production of cheese. In Greece, small native breeds of sheep and goats have become extremely tough and resistant so that they could survive in that particular environment with diversified flora, giving feta its unique flavor. This cannot be reproduced.

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