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The Undercover Cook
Full-time mom & marketing manager in search of interesting food choices, smarter eating and the latest food trends even when time is in precious short supply.
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Category Archives: small plates
Grilled Halloumi Cheese and Mango Salad
I have been totally all about my grill lately, so image my delight when I read that you can grill Halloumi cheese. That is right – you can put this cheese right on the grill grates to cook it! How awesome is that?
If you are not familiar with Halloumi cheese, it is a Middle Eastern white cheese with a salty mild flavor. It has a very high melt point so unlike other types of cheese it doesn’t go all gooey when it gets hot. You can cut it into slabs, sprinkle with a little olive oil and then sear it in a pan or cook it on the grill.
For my first grilled Halloumi cheese recipe I decided on a delicious salad with mango slices, pistachios and a fresh Strawberry Vinaigrette. It was absolutely delicious and so easy to pull together.
For other ideas of things to do with Halloumi Cheese you may also want to check out this recipe for Crispy Cheese Salad with Strawberries on Flat Bread or this one for Crispy Cheese Salad with Pancetta and Pine Nuts.
Grilled Halloumi Cheese and Mango Salad
Prep time: 8 minutes - Cook time: 6 minutes - Makes: 2 dinner salads or 4 side salads
- 1 (8.8 0z) package Halloumi Cheese
- olive oil
- 1 (5 oz) package of romaine lettuce or salad greens
- 1 mango, pealed and sliced
- 1/4 cup roasted pistachios
- Strawberry Vinaigrette Dressing
Cut Halloumi cheese into 4 slabs. Sprinkle slabs with olive oil on both sides. Place slab directly on pre-heated medium-high grill. Grill until seared on one side (approximately 2-3 minutes). Flip once. Grill until seared on second side (approximately 2-3 minutes). Remove from grill.
Portion lettuce into serving dishes. Top with slabs of grilled Halloumi Cheese, mango slices and pistachios. Sprinkle with Strawberry Vinaigrette Dressing and serve immediately.
Other Recipes You Might Enjoy!
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Posted in cheese, dinner, grilling, meatless Monday, salad, small plates
Tagged grilling cheese, Halloumi Cheese, summer salads
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Parmesan Prosciutto Melts
If you are looking for a last minute quick and easy appetizer for your New Year’s Eve celebration I have a great one for you – Parmesan Prosciutto Melts. These delicious little creations are mixture of parmesan cheese and prosciutto melted onto a crostini. They make a great accompaniment to the typical New Year’s bubbly.
One of the great things about this appetizer is you can do the prep work ahead of time. I like to make the crostinis the morning of my event. Simply toast the bread, let it cool completely and then store in an airtight container until you are ready to use. Next make the prosciutto parmesan mixture but don’t actually put it on the bread or melt it. Just chop the prosciutto and mix it with the parmesan, parsley and olive oil. Cover the bowl with the mixture then store in the refrigerator until you are ready to assemble and cook the Parmesan Prosciutto Melts. How easy is that?
Hope you have a wonderful New Year’s Eve everyone! See you in the new year when I will be serving up lots of great healthy delicious recipes I have been working on to help you kick off the New Year right!
Parmesan Prosciutto Melts
Prep time: 5 minutes - Cook time: 10-12 minutes - Makes: 20 appetizers
20 french bread rounds (use white or whole grain)- 2 Tablespoons olive oil + extra for brushing on the bread
- 3 oz thinly sliced prosciutto
- 1 1/2 cups shredded parmesan
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
- Garlic salt
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Place french bread rounds on a baking sheet. Brush the tops with olive oil. Place into oven for 5-6 minutes or until lightly toasted.
While bread is toasting, chop prosciutto and place in a bowl with shredded parmesan, fresh parsley and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Stir until well mixed.
After bread is toasted, top each piece with a generous mound of the prosciutto parmesan mixture. (It melts down, so don’t be afraid to really pile it on.)
Return bread to the oven for 5-6 minutes or until the cheese is fully melted. Serve and enjoy!
Other Recipes You Might Enjoy!
Fig, Blue Cheese and Honey Crostinis
Roasted Roma Tomato and Feta Costini
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North African Roasted Chicken and Potato Cakes
On Sunday I made Honey Orange Roasted Chicken and it was absolutely delightful. The next night I used the left over roasted chicken to make North African Roasted Chicken and Potato Cakes. I love roasting chicken on Sundays because the cooked chicken can be made into so many different recipes quickly during the week.
I found the original recipe on Baltic Maid. If you are into diverse ethnic recipes, this is a great blog to check out. I changed the original recipe a bit by starting with roasted chicken instead of raw. I also changed the spice mixture and added some garlic salt at the very end to finish the cakes.
I know these fried cakes are not strictly speaking “a health food” and I am not pretending that they are. However they do have some healthy spices mixed in there, including turmeric. Turmeric, which many people associate with Indian cuisine because it used in curry spice mixes, adds a distinctive yellow color to foods. It is a pleasant spice that works well in lots of dishes. (You might even want to try a dash in your scrambled eggs in the morning.) It is also an anti-inflamatory and an antioxidant making it an excellent spice to add to your spice cabinet!
My one tip for making these cakes is just about boiling the potatoes. I have known a lot of people who like to get the water boiling and then add the potatoes to cook. I recommend against that practice. Instead, try adding the potatoes to the broth or water before you start to heat it. That way the inside and the outside of the potatoes cook at the same rate and you end up with better texture and taste.
These North African Roasted Chicken and Potato Cakes are pretty easy to make but they take a little bit of time to get from start to finish. You may want to save them for a weekend meal, especially the first time you give them a try.
I made these cakes as an entree but they would also make great tapas if you make the patties smaller appetizer portions! Feel free to play around with the spice mixture to personalize them to your taste if you like. If you give them a try, definitely check back and let me know what you think. My family and guest gave them 2 thumbs up.
North African Roasted Chicken and Potato Cakes
North African Roasted Chicken and Potato Cakes
Prep Time: 10 minutes - Cook Time: 35 minutes – Makes: 10 cakes
- 2 lb red potatoes
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 lb roasted chicken, shredded and chopped (no skin)
- 1 small yellow onion, minced (about 1 cup)
- 3 cloves of garlic, pushed through a garlic pressed
2 eggs, wisked- 2-3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- salt and pepper
- flour (only if needed)
- oil
- garlic salt
Peel potatoes if desired (I didn’t peel mine) then cut potatoes into cubes (about 1 inch square). Place potato chunks into a pot with room temperature vegetable broth.
Put pot with potatoes on medium-high heat and bring mixture to a slow boil. Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are fully cooked (roughly 25 minutes for potatoes cut into 1 inch cubes).
When potatoes are fully cooked use a slotted spoon to remove the potatoes. Put them into a bowl. Save the broth in case you need it later to moisten the potatoes.
Mash potatoes with a potato masher or a fork. Add chicken, minced onion, pressed garlic, egg parsley, cinnamon, turmeric, cumin and chili powder and stir until well combined. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Use your hands to form potato and chicken mixture into cakes. You should get 9-10 cakes. If the potato and chicken mixture seems to moist to form cakes you can add a little flour. If the mixture seems too dry add a little bit of the reserved vegetable broth. If the mixture seems to be the right consistency then you will not need to use the flour or the reserved vegetable broth.
Heat oil in a large frying pan on medium to medium-high heat. Fry the cakes until golden brown on both sides (approximately 4 minutes per side). Work in batches and do not over crowd the pan so that you can easily and gently flip the cakes. Remove cakes from oil once they are golden brown on both sides and set on paper towels to drain. Sprinkle with garlic salt. Serve and enjoy!
Some other recipes you might enjoy!
Pearl Couscous with Brown Butter, Sizzled Sage and Walnuts
Lebanese Lamb, Rice and Lentils dinner
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