Food Photo of the Day ~ Breezy Capri Salad

 

A classic Caprese or Capri salad consists of fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, basil leaves, salt and olive oil. Instead, I had tomatoes, cucumber, purple onion, pan-fried herbed halloumi, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and pepper. So in short it became a loose round about version of a Capri salad using ingredients I had on hand. Unsure what to call this salad, I decided to name it in short a breezy Capri from which the inspiration came from; in hopes that it's refreshing flavour transports one to the coast and Italian island it is named after. Still tasty and gladly welcomed; an easy breezy change to rival any leafy green salad.

Leftovers #56 ~ Lentil Dal and Halloumi Wrap

 

Made another lentil dal and had leftovers this time. Found herbed halloumi cheese and lettuce in the refrigerator, saw the spinach wraps on the counter and decided that was it! It was enough to create a quick bite sized lunch. I quickly fried the halloumi cheese, warmed up the lentil dal and washed the lettuce Layered it all into a spinach wrap with some lovely apple chutney on top before folding. Delicious and spot on!  

After a few days of extremely hot temperatures, rain and thunderstorms are the way. Have a lovely weekend everyone! - JD 

Easy Pasta Salad

 

When purchasing a salad dressing that is deeply discounted and soon to expire in a few weeks; there is one dish that comes to mind... pasta salad. It is presumptuous to think that salads of any kind can only be enjoyed during the warmer months, I think that's not true. Salads, depending on ingredients whether they are seasonal or what ingredients are available, make for a meal and may be enjoyed anytime regardless of the weather. 

Easy Pasta Salad

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1 package (500g) fusilli or pasta of your choice

1 green pepper, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped  

1 yellow pepper, chopped

4 green onions, sliced

200g package of organic cremini mushrooms, sliced and sautéd

herbed halloumi cheese, sliced and panfried

475ml Catalina salad dressing 

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and allow to cool slightly.

Chop and slice the vegetables and prepare the mushrooms and cheese as stated in the recipe. 

Place the cooked pasta into a large bowl. Add all the prepared vegetables, including mushrooms, and toss together. Pour the entire bottle of Kraft's Catalina dressing over the pasta and vegetables. Toss to coat. Add the halloumi cheese and toss again. Serve with chopped green or black olives.

Food Photo of the Day ~ ELT (Egg, Lettuce and Tomato)

Instead of a BLT, bacon lettuce and tomato, why not an egg, lettuce and tomato. What makes this ELT more complete is the addition of grilled halloumi cheese. This is the best sandwich one can make and devour!

Hope everyone had a nice weekend. - JD 

Leftovers #36 ~ Open Pulled Pork Sandwich with Herbed Halloumi Cheese

Leftover pork means pulled pork sandwiches in our house. These open faced sandwiches are easy. Make whatever pulled pork recipe you like. I made mine with chopped spinach and served over a toasted crusty roll and placed a slice of grilled herbed halloumi cheese over top. Serve with whatever side you like, ours was a mixed green salad.  

Leftovers #33 ~ Pasta Salad

As fridge forage salads go this one had everything but the kitchen sink. For those times when one cooks a bit more pasta than required and doesn't want it to go to waste, this salad was quick and easy. Cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, diced red onion, ribbon carrots, chopped red and green peppers, pan-fried veggie bacon and pan-fried halloumi cheese tossed in a herb lime avocado oil dressing. Very filling and delicious.

  

My Big Greek Salad

I know it is Thursday and I can hardly say this is a throwback Thursday because I always eat salads. This was my dinner last night, my version of a greek salad. Mixed herbed greens with chunks of cucumber, red onion, crisp green peppers, slices of radishes and quartered juicy hothouse tomatoes. Topped with fried Halloumi cheese and a homemade herb dressing. I chopped a reasonable amount of veggies which means there are leftovers for lunch today.  I do have some avocados kicking around so I will have my salad with additional slices of buttery avocados.  Hope your Thursday isn't too much of a throwback! - JW   

Tomato and Halloumi Cheese

This salad was or is in part inspired by a very good friend who showed me many years ago when I was visiting her that she would fry Halloumi cheese and eat it as a snack. I know fried cheese isn't the most healthiest ingredient to add to a salad. However it is quite lovely. It is saltier than feta and has a cheese curd like consistency. 

I sliced yellow and red tomatoes arranging them on a plate. Then I thinly sliced some red onions and then some radishes. Arranging them with the tomatoes. Then topped the salad with three pieces of Halloumi cheese. I had already made a dressing of basic oil and vinegar with herbs which was drizzled over the top. Very simple. Very fast. Easy and delicious. Enjoy! -JW  

Garlic Linguine with Tomatoes, Chicken, Halloumi Cheese and Parsley

I was determined to get back into the kitchen and try to push the jet lag aside. Donning my apron brought great pleasure. I decided to make something quick and comforting. linguine with garlic, cherry tomatoes, leftover chicken, fresh parsley and cubed halloumi cheese. I made so much of it that tonights dinner will be much of the same.   

In a saucepan add 1/2 cup of olive oil and three cloves of garlic that have been crushed. Set aside. 

In another saucepan fill with water and add a pinch of salt. Turn on high heat and bring water to the boil then add 450 grams of dried linguine and cook according to package. 

As the pasta is cooking chop the tomatoes in half, dice the chicken, cube the halloumi cheese and mince the fresh parsley. Set aside. No exact measurements needed for these ingredients. Depends on how much of each you would like to have in the dish. You may also want to use different cheese, veggies or meat.  

When the pasta looks just about done place the saucepan with the crushed garlic in it on the stove and turn on medium/low heat. You want to gently heat the oil and brown the garlic. When the garlic turns golden brown remove from heat. By this time the pasta should be ready to drain.

Drain the linguine well. Transfer to a large serving dish. Pour the oil and garlic mixture over the pasta. Toss to coat. Add the tomatoes, chicken, halloumi cheese and fresh parsley. Toss to coat, again. Add a pinch of salt and ground pepper, if you like, to taste. Serve immediately. Enjoy! -JW