Serving a fresh Mediterranean-inspired salad on top of a thick swirl of creamy hummus is a fabulous meal. It’s even better with some halloumi, piping hot from the pan. Make sure you get a good bit of browning on the halloumi slices. It’s the best.
Hummus & Halloumi Salad
Serves 4
gluten free | nut free | vegetarian
- 1 corn cob
- 100g mixed greens or rocket leaves
- 150g cherry tomatoes
- 2 radishes, very thinly sliced
- 10cm piece cucumber, sliced
- ¼ red onion, very thinly sliced
- 20 kalamata olives
- 1 avocado, sliced
- extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
- 2 lemons for drizzling
- 150g halloumi cheese
- sea salt and cracked black pepper
- oil for frying
HUMMUS
- 1 x 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed well
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 3 tbsp tahini
- 3 tbsp water (or more as needed)
- juice of 1 lemon
- to garnish: thinly sliced spring onion, handful fresh basil leaves
Combine all the hummus ingredients and use a food processor or a stick blender (my preference) to blitz until smooth and creamy. Add additional water if needed to make it spreadable. Season very generously. Set aside until ready to use.
Bring a saucepan of water to a boil. Cook the corn cob for 3 minutes before draining and rinsing with cold water to cool. Pat dry with a tea towel and use a knife to make vertical slices down the cob. This will make sure the kernels come off in attractive chunks.
Spread 2 large spoonfuls of hummus on one half of each plate (you’ll need one plate per person). Scatter the salad greens on the other side. Top with the corn, cherry tomatoes, radishes, cucumber, red onion, olives and avocado.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a sauté pan over a medium heat. Cut 1cm slices of halloumi and fry until golden brown on each side. Remove from the pan.
Drizzle each salad with extra virgin olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper.
Add the hot halloumi slices to each salad. Scatter generously with the fresh herbs. Serve immediately.
Green Risotto
A zingy, bright bowl of comfort. The pea purée that is stirred through at the end, and herbs used in the recipe, make for a simple but quite wonderful dish.
Serves 4
gluten free | nut free | vegetarian
- olive oil for sautéing
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, finely diced
- 1 tsp dried tarragon
- 1½ cups Arborio rice
- ¾ cup white wine
- zest of 1 lemon
- 5 cups vegetable stock
- 100g finely grated Parmesan cheese
- handful fresh mint, roughly chopped
PEA & PARSLEY PURÉE
- 1 cup frozen peas, left to defrost for 30 minutes, then drained well
- large handful fresh parsley, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup olive oil
- to serve: fresh herbs, drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
Place all the pea purée ingredients into a food processor and blitz until it has the texture of a rough pesto. Alternatively, use a stick blender. Set aside until ready to use.
Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over a medium-low heat. Cook the onion and garlic gently, without browning, until translucent and tender. Add the tarragon and the rice. Ensure the rice is evenly coated in the oil. Cook for a minute, tossing constantly.
Add the wine and the lemon zest and stir. Cook until the wine has been completely absorbed by the rice.
Bring the stock to a boil in a separate pot. Add the hot stock to the rice a half-cup at a time, allowing a few minutes between each addition for it to absorb.
Keep the rice over a medium heat during this time and stir often. Keep doing this until you’ve used all the stock. Your risotto should be creamy but not gluggy or mushy. A little soupy is good, as it will keep absorbing liquid as it cools. Add the pea purée.
Heat through. Remove from the heat. Stir through the Parmesan and fresh mint. Season to taste.
Serve immediately with a little Parmesan sprinkled on top and a scattering of additional fresh herbs (if desired). I also like to drizzle with a little good quality olive oil.
Roasted Vine Tomatoes, Sourdough, Fresh Mozzarella & Green Olives
This tray-baked warm salad is an absolute delight of textures and temperature. The mozzarella is added to the hot pan right at the end to rest in the wonderful cooking juice from the tomatoes.
Tomatoes with mozzarella: it’s hard to beat.
Serves 4
nut free | vegetarian
- 3 thick slices sourdough, torn into chunks
- ½ cup chicken or vegetable stock
- extra virgin olive oil
- sea salt and cracked black pepper
- 1 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves, plus 2 additional short stems
- 2 trays vine tomatoes (approx 16 tomatoes)
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 6 unpeeled garlic cloves
- 250g good-quality fresh mozzarella
- ½ cup Sicilian green olives (could also use Kalamata olives)
- large handful fresh basil leaves
Preheat oven to 170°C.
Place the sourdough chunks in a large bowl. Drizzle with the stock and a very generous glug of olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, cracked black pepper and the rosemary leaves. Toss to coat evenly.
Place the tomatoes on a shallow, oven-proof dish. Drizzle generously with olive oil, the balsamic vinegar and agood seasoning of salt and cracked black pepper. Scatter the sourdough chunks, leaving gaps for where the mozzarella will go at the end. Place the garlic and rosemary stems around the tray.
Bake for around 40 minutes until the sourdough has browned and the tomatoes have burst their skins a little and shrivelled slightly. Scatter the olives over the top in the last few minutes of cooking.
Remove the tray from the oven, break the mozzarella into chunks and tuck all around the dish. Finish with the fresh basil on top and serve.
Fancy Kiwi Onion Dip
I find a chip and dip situation quite hard to resist. This homemade version of our iconic New Zealand dip is easy to make and tastes fantastic. Onions are sautéed low and slow until they are tender and lightly caramelised. I love this on a platter with my favourite potato chips and a bunch of raw veges for variety and colour.
Serves 4-6 as a snack
gluten free | nut free
- olive oil for sautéing
- 3 medium onions, thinly sliced
- salt and cracked black pepper
- 1 small garlic clove, finely diced
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- 250g crème fraîche
- juice of 1 lemon (as needed)
- to garnish: finely chopped chives or spring onions (optional)
Heat a generous glug of olive oil in a sauté pan over a low-medium heat. Add the onion along with a good pinch of salt and cook gently for 20 minutes or more, stirring regularly until the onion is very tender and lightly browned. Lower the heat if they are cooking too quickly. Add the garlic and sauté for a few minutes. Add the Worcestershire sauce and vinegar and cook for one last minute.
Remove from the pan and place in the fridge to cool completely.
Roughly chop the cooked onion. Mix through the crème fraîche along with a good squeeze of lemon. Season well with salt and cracked pepper. Garnish with chopped chives or spring onion before serving.
An edited extract from ENJOY: Food Worth Sharing with the People You Love, by Kelly Gibney, (RRP $59.99)
