Mediterranean Halloumi Bake
This healthy Mediterranean halloumi bake makes an extremely delicious vegetarian dinner. It perfectly combines fresh vegetables with the salty flavour and chewy texture of the halloumi cheese. Even though, I have eaten halloumi before I had never attempted cooking with it. It turned out to be really easy and absolutely delicious.
So, if you are a halloumi virgin like I was, simply go to the nearest shop, buy a packet and give it a go.
Since I prefer having my main meal at lunchtime, 3/4 of it was already gone by the time my partner got home, oops. Although my diet can be described as pretty good, portion control can still be a bit problematic at times.
Other favourites of mine are these delicious Zucchini Noodles with Tomato Vegetable Sauce and these Grilled Zucchini Boats, you should definitely give them a try.
What is Halloumi Cheese?
Halloumi cheese originated in Cyprus and has been traditionally prepared with cow, goat or sheep milk. Other typical ingredients used are salt, mint and rennet.
How to cook Halloumi Cheese?
This cheese is very versatile and doesn’t melt when heated. For this reason, it can be grilled, fried, eaten raw with fruits or vegetables, or simply be grated on pasta.
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Halloumi Cheese Nutrition
Halloumi cheese contains
- calcium
- protein
- phosphorus
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin B
- many minerals such as zinc
Cheese is generally a good source of protein, and halloumi cheese is no exception. There are 6 g of protein in 1 oz. of regular halloumi cheese and slightly more, 8.1 g, in reduced-fat halloumi cheese.
Halloumi Cheese Benefits
Personally, I prefer goat’s milk cheese over cow’s milk cheese because the fat globules are easier to digest and non-mucous forming. I also consider the goat’s milk variant superior because it contains less lactose than the cow’s milk cheese.
All milk contains tryptophan, which is an essential amino acid that can’t be manufactured by the body. The body needs tryptophan to produce serotonin– one of the chemical neurotransmitters responsible for well-being, positive mood enhancement and healthy sleep.
If you aren’t a fan of dairy products or are even intolerant try making my Homemade Coconut Milk Yoghurt.
Your turn
I would be interested in finding out what your dairy preferences are, I’m looking forward to reading your comments.
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Mediterranean Halloumi Bake
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 2 courgettes diced
- 15 cherry tomatoes quartered
- 3 tablespoons tomato puree
- 1 tablespoon turmeric
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 small fresh chilli finely chopped and deseeded
- salt
- pepper
- water or passata optional
- 7 oz halloumi sliced
- 1 handful fresh basil chopped
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425°F/ 220°C in grill mode.
- Heat the olive oil in an ovenproof, medium-large pan and saute the onions for two minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook for another minute, then add the courgettes, tomatoes, tomato puree and spices, cover with a lid and simmer for about 20 minutes. The tomatoes and courgettes will release water and turn into a sauce. In case they don't release enough juice, you can add a little bit of water or passata to adjust the consistency to your liking.
- Cover the dish with the halloumi slices and place it under the grill until the halloumi slices turn golden brown.
- Sprinkle with fresh basil and enjoy.
This looks so good, I live Haloumi but never really know what to put it with. Will definitely try this!
Thank you so much, I know that feeling that’s why I avoided cooking with it for so long but now I can’t stop. Hope you will enjoy it as much as I do. Happy cooking, Eva.
I love halloumi, this is my kind of food! I’m afraid there would have been none left if I got a hold of it 😉
Hi Donna, thank you for your kind comment. If I wouldn’t have forced myself to leave some for my boyfriend he wouldn’t have gotten any. Have a great day 😉
We had friends for lunch and I tried this recipe to have as part of a group of dishes including salads bread chicken etc. It worked really well! Everyone loved it and asked for the recipe. I actually made the base up in the morning so the flavours had a few hours to develop which had the added bonus of making this a super quick and effortless dish to prepare while our guests where here. I will be making this again soon.
Hi Rosie,
I am delighted to hear that everyone enjoyed it. It is one of my favourite recipes too 🙂