Grilled Halloumi with a Citrus Salad

Quick and easy, halloumi should be cooked and eaten while warm. It has a lovely saltiness that works well with the fresh sweetness of the watermelon. Inspired by Diana Henry’s recipe and tailored here to cook on the AGA. Serves 2 - 3 as a substantial salad, or more as part of a selection.

Ingredients

1 shallot or small red onion

1-2 blocks of Halloumi cheese

50ml extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp cider vinegar or white wine vinegar

50g sourdough bread, it can be a little stale, roughly chopped or whizzed into coarse crumbs.

1 clove of garlic, peeled and chopped

1/4 red chilli, seeds removed and chopped - (optional - goes well with mango!)

30g almond flakes or whole blanched almonds, roughly chopped

100g pomegranate seeds

60g of rocket leaves

1 pink grapefruit or orange- cut into segments

A handful of fresh mint

Half a lemon, just for the juice

How to make it...

1. First toast the almonds if needed, just on a piece of bake-o-glide on the simmering plate for 5 mins or so. Set aside.
2. Next put 2 tbsp of the olive oil and 2 tsp vinegar into a bowl with the shallots and season with freshly ground black pepper. Add the finely sliced onion or shallot. Stir to combine then chill while you make the rest of the dish and for up 24 hours.
3. Heat the remaining oil in a frying pan on the AGA boiling plate.
4. Fry the breadcrumbs until golden, then add the garlic and chilli then finally the toasted almonds. (The crumbs can be cooled and frozen at this point until needed. To use, ‘re-toast’ briefly in a hot pan on the AGA boiling plate).
5. Remove from the heat and add half the mint, roughly chopping the leaves first.
6. To finish and serve, place a piece of bake o glide on the AGA simmering plate and cook the slices of halloumi for a few minutes each side until golden. Toss the grapefruit or orange with the remaining mint and add a little salt.
7. Put your rocket leaves, onion and citrus segments on plates or a platter, add the cooked halloumi on top, squeeze the juice of the lemon half over and finish with the toasted crumbs and pomegranate seeds.

Variations

• Halloumi goes extremely well with fresh fruits. Consider swapping out the grapefruit/orange for watermelon, mango, peaches or even other citrus fruits like blood oranges to cut through the saltiness of the cheese. It also adds a nice zing to your salad!
• Not a fan of halloumi? Feta is a great alternative as it has the same salty taste as halloumi and you don't need to grill it. Simply chop up your feta block into 1cm cube bite size pieces and add them to your summer salad.