This salad is not only a great accompaniment to any meal, it’s delicious and hearty enough to eat on its own for lunch or a light dinner.
There is such a great contrast of flavours and textures in this salad with the sweetness of the cherry tomatoes and capsicum, saltiness of the halloumi, crispiness of the beans, creaminess of the chickpeas and pepperiness of the rocket, that it’s sure to please most palates.
What you need
- 1 red capsicum
- 200g green beans – trimmed
- 400g tinned chickpeas – drained
- 100g rocket – washed
- 1 punnet cherry tomatoes – sliced in half
- 1 small red onion – thinly sliced
- 250g Halloumi* cheese
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 40ml extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste (halloumi can be salty, so add less salt than you would usually)
What to do
Cut the capsicum in half lengthwise and place skin side up on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the skin starts to blacken. Place in a bowl and cover with cling wrap to allow to sweat for 10 minutes. This makes removing the skin easier.
Remove the skin and discard. Roughly chop the flesh – set aside.
Place the beans in boiling water for 2-3 minutes until they are bright green in colour and crisp to the bite. Drain then plunge into iced water to stop the cooking process. Drain well and set aside.
Place the capsicum, chickpeas, beans, rocket, cherry tomatoes and onion in a bowl.
In a separate small bowl, whisk the lemon juice, oil, salt and pepper together and drizzle over the salad. Mix gently with clean hands to combine. Turn salad out into a serving dish.
Just before serving, slice the halloumi in to 2cm thick slices and place in a frypan on medium heat. Cook on each side for about 1 minute or until it turns golden.
Arrange over the salad and serve immediately.
*Halloumi is a semi-hard cheese that originated in Cyprus made traditionally from a mixture of goat and sheep, but nowadays cows milk is sometimes added. Halloumi can be found in most delicatessens and supermarkets.
Serves 4-6
Meatballs and Muffins 