Halloumi Caesar salad
A veggie version of a classic, with golden halloumi and the crunchiest ciabatta olive oil croutons
Another recipe for my halloumi series! One of the things I miss since I stopped eating meat is a really good Caesar salad. I’ve tried to recreate it with some of the chicken/bacon vegetarian alternatives but it’s just not that tasty. However, with halloumi, it’s a winner.
Good croutons are an essential part of a Caesar salad, and making your own couldn’t be easier, and they taste so much better than most of the shop bought options. I used ciabatta bread but foccacia would be equally as good, and sourdough croutons are also delicious.
You’ll need Worcestershire sauce for the dressing, especially as this version doesn’t have anchovies in it. Lee and Perrins is the obvious choice, but it does have fish in, so if you are a vegetarian, you’ll need to source a vegetarian version (Biona do one).
You’ll need (serves 2 as a main):
2 ciabatta rolls (or around 200g)
Olive oil
1 block halloumi, sliced
2 little gem lettuces, or one romaine, leaves cut away from base
10 cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 red onion, finely sliced
For the dressing:
4 tbsp mayonnaise
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove (or 1/2 if you aren't a fan of strong garlic), peeled & grated/minced
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp water
If cooking the croutons in an oven rather than an air fryer, preheat to 200C. Tear the ciabatta into bite-sized chunks. Drizzle over a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and mix well with your hands. Season with salt and plenty of pepper. Transfer to your air fryer or oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden and crunchy (air fryer temperature should also be 200C).
Make the dressing by mixing all of the ingredients in a bowl.
Fry the halloumi slices until golden on both sides.
In a large mixing bowl, toss the lettuce, tomatoes and red onion with the Caesar dressing.
Divide between 2 plates and finish with the halloumi and croutons. Dig in.