Vicar's Kitchen - The Mighty Halloumi Burger

I don't know about you but I am really trying to eke out the rest of the summer. I'm still convinced that we have a good view barbecuing days to go before autumn sets in and its down with the boots and on with the coats. Meanwhile, I'm entertaining myself with a recipe that doesn't require a barbecue (though would taste pretty darn amazing cooked on one!) and that has been universally loved by everyone I have cooked it for.

The mighty Halloumi burger!

I'm all over halloumi at the moment because we have just moved near to a Lidl so Greek cheese and massive pots of yogurt have become somewhat of a household staple. All credit for this particular recipe, however, has to go to Bills, a gorgeous chain of restaurants that I'm sure many of you UK based peeps have now come across. If you are a bit further afield, however, then you can sample all the Bill's goodness for yourself by getting a copy of the Bill's Cookbook.

 

Bill's Cookbook, with bonus foot!!

The book is gorgeously vintage with many lovely illustrations.

 

 

Recipe wise, the Halloumi burger is a definite favourite as is the Hot Chorizo sandwich and Blondies made with gingernut biscuits. The book is arranged seasonally and makes use of all the freshest fruit and veg from around that time. I tend to dip into all the different sections throughout the year but it is lovely to greet a new season with a flick through the relevant section to remind yourself of all the goodies you have in store!

 

As a little taster here's the delicious halloumi burger recipe to try as I make it:

Halloumi and Red Pepper Burgers – for 2 burgers

2 burger buns or soft rolls
4 strips of Halloumi about half a cm thick
1 Red Pepper, deseeded and chopped into 4
A couple of tablespoons of Red Pepper Houmous
Sweet Chilli Sauce
A handful of rocket

• Preheat the oven to 200 C. Toss the peppers in a little olive oil, pop them on a baking tray into the oven for 20 minutes or until they are a little charred and soft
• Meanwhile slice the buns and spread the houmous on one side.
• Heat up a non stick frying pan (it really does need to be non stick or you will have a cheesy disaster on your hands!) until it is nice and hot. Then lay in the halloumi lifting gently with a fork after about thirty seconds to see if the underside is brown. You want it to look like this so that it will taste gooey not squeaky! Flip over and cook the other side too.

from www.just-eat.co.uk

• Layer up the burger with the halloumi on top of the houmous, topped with the peppers, a little swirl of sweet chilli sauce and some rocket. Top with the other half of the bun and ta da! Easy peasy and very yummy halloumi burgers!