You’re working from home, the clock ticks around to lunchtime, and once again you think, “What am I going to have today?!” It’s hard to constantly think of hearty, warming and nutritious meals you can throw together easily. That’s when this lunchtime bowl steps in. A salad of warm vegetables, lentils and halloumi made with veg you have in the fridge is the perfect solution. Filling, healthy, nutritious, and it’ll keep you full until dinner time – plus there will be leftovers.
Roasting vegetables
Roasting vegetables is a great way to bring out their flavour. Keeping it simple with some herbs and seasoning is best. This way, you can batch cook a big tray, and then use the vegetables again for another lunch, or blitz them into a soup. And what’s great is the vegetables don’t need to be in their prime. This is a great way to use up a bunch of vegetables you might have lurking in the back of the fridge.
Upping your fibre and protein count
In this recipe, I’m using tinned lentils (for speed) and some halloumi. We’re coating the cheese in sumac and cumin to bring additional warmth and a touch of Morocco to our grey winter lunchtime. Other suggestions for topping your vegetables could be:
- chickpeas – either a tin or why not try my dried chickpea (no soak) recipe
- feta cheese – simply crumbled on top or baked in the oven drizzled with hot honey
- leftover roast chicken
Related recipes on the blog
For other lunchtime ideas and related recipes on the blog, check out the list below:
Ideas for different vegetables you could use include: butternut squash, turnip, swede, celeriac, and broccoli. These are all good additions. If you want to add some cherry tomatoes, you can do this halfway through the cooking time.
If you prefer to use reduced-fat halloumi, this would also work. Or simply use less halloumi.
You can certainly try out different flavours. Perhaps try smoked paprika (likely by itself), or some dried coriander alongside the cumin would be a good one.
Salad of Warm Vegetables, Lentils and Halloumi
Equipment
- Large baking dish
- medium non-stick frying pan
Ingredients
Roasted Vegetables
- 2 carrots
- 2 red onions
- 1 sweet potato
- 3 beetroots
- 1 courgette
- 1/2 cauliflower
- 3 garlic cloves finely sliced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh rosemary finely chopped
- 250 g halloumi
- 1 tsp sumac
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 235 g lentils 1 can drained and rinsed
Vinaigrette
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 garlic clove crushed
- 20 ml balsamic vinegar
- 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 200 °C
- Take all your vegetables and chop them into small pieces. The cauliflower into florets no bigger than 2cm, the root veg diced into 1.5cm cubes, and the red onion into thin wedges. Place everything into a large baking tray.
- Add in the sliced garlic and the finely chopped rosemary. Season the dish well with salt and pepper, and then mix everything thoroughly.
- Put the tray in the upper half of your oven for 40 minutes. You want to give everything a good turn after 20 minutes and then 30 minutes. The vegetables, especially the cauliflower, should take on a roasted tinge.
- In the meantime, slice your block of halloumi into slices about 1/2 cm thick. Not so thin that they fall apart.
- Take a medium plate and dust it with the sumac and the cumin. Push your halloumi slices into the spices, ensuring that each side gets a good coating. Put to one side.
- Next, add all your vinaigrette ingredients to a jar or a dressing bottle, and give everything a good shake. You will likely have more than you need, but this will keep in the fridge for a few days.
- Drain and rinse your can of lentils and set aside.
- 10 minutes before the vegetables have finished cooking, add 1 tbsp of olive oil to a medium non-stick frying pan and place over a medium-high heat. Fry your halloumi slices. They will release liquid to start with, but once this has evaporated, they will turn a lovely golden colour. Flip a few times to ensure they are evenly cooked.
- When the vegetables are cooked, and the halloumi has browned, you are ready to plate up. Serve a good portion of the roasted vegetables in a bowl, sprinkle on the lentils and then top with the chunks of halloumi. Finally drizzle on your vinaigrette just before serving the salad still warm.
Notes
- Ideas for different vegetables you could use include: Butternut squash, turnip, swede, celeriac, broccoli, these are all good additions. If you want to add some cherry tomatoes, you can do this halfway through the cooking time.
- If you don’t have sumac, then you could use dried coriander alongside the cumin, or alternatively just use smoked paprika for a different vibe.
- Reduced-fat halloumi would work as well, or you could simply use less halloumi or crumble over a little feta.
