Warm Halum and Potato Salad

  

One of the things I like most about food blogging is that I am often given the opportunity to try new things.  I am an adventurous soul and this aspect of food blogging really appeals to me.  I was recently sent some Halum Cheese.

I am sure you are all familiar with Halloumi Cheese, which is a cheese of Greek origins, made from sheep and goats milk, and sometimes cow milk.  Well this is a very similar cheese.   Milky's Halum is a British Halloumi-style cheese.  I like that!  It makes me happy to use home grown and produced ingredients.  If I could buy everything British, I would be ecstatic!



 Produced in Britain, from 100% fresh British cows and goats milk using a traditional family recipe, Milky's Halum is hand-folded and sprinkled with dried mint by expert cheese makers to create a gorgeous springy (& squeaky) texture.



It's texture and high melting temperature makes it the perfect cheese for grilling.  It browns beautifully and holds it shape, just like Halloumi cheese, except it's not . . . it's Halum and it's made right here in the UK.

 

It has a mild salty flavour, with just the merest hint of mint, which makes it the perfect salad cheese as well.  I chose to make a warm salad for our lunch today using this cheese and it was just gorgeous.



I found this Halum to be less salty than the traditional Halloumi cheese, which I really liked.  It wasn't over powering in the least, and yet it wasn't bland either.  It took on a lovely golden brown colour which looked gorgeous in the salad and added some extra texture.



The dressing for this salad is slightly sweet and tangy, with a hint of Dijon mustard, and herby dill.  I used lemon rapeseed oil, but you could use just plain olive oil.  I, personally, liked the addition of the lemon, which you could get by using lemon juice instead of vinegar I suppose . . .

 

The warm cooked potatoes marinate in the dressing while you grill the cheese.  It's a beautiful mix of soft rich potatoes, sweet and ripe baby plum tomatoes, crisp and bitey radishes . . . and then there is that slightly chewy rich golden salty cheese.   In short . . . the perfect salad for a cold autumn day!  (I got some really tiny radishes in my veggie box this week that were just perfect!)

*Warm Halum and Potato Salad*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Simple and delicious.   You get the saltiness from the cheese the sweetness from the potatoes and tomatoes, and a delicious mustard and dill dressing.  Gorgeous.  If you keep your tomatoes out on the counter for a few days they will be lovely and sweet.

For the salad:

100g of small to medium new potatoes, washed well (about 8)

(about the size of a small child's fist)

75g of small radishes (a generous handful)

50g of baby plum tomatoes, halved

(about 1 cup)

1/2 TBS olive oil, cooking grade

100g Halum cheese, sliced ( scant 1/2 pound)

(you can use Halloumi if you can't get the Halum)

a small handful of fresh flat leaf parsley leaves

For the Dressing:

4 TBS extra virgin olive oil, or lemon rapeseed oil

1 TBS white wine vinegar

1 tsp caster sugar

1 tsp Dijon mustard

a small handful of dill, chopped

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bring a pot of lightly salted water to the boil  Drop in the potatoes and cook until tender, about 15 minutes.   While the potatoes are cooking, whisk all of the ingredients for the dressing together in a medium bowl.  Once the potatoes are done drain them well, allow them to cool slightly and then quarter them and drop them into the dressing while they are still quite hot.  

Halve the radishes and tomatoes.   Drop them into the bowl as well.   Heat the olive oil in a skillet. Once it is hot cook the sliced cheese on both sides for about one minute per side until golden brown.   Add to the salad and mix all together gently, adding the flat leaf parsley leaves.  Serve immediately.

I have to say I adored the flavour of Milky's Halum Cheese.  Uncooked, it was mild with a nice texture, slightly squeaky like cheese curds.  Grilled simply in some olive oil, it took on an almost buttery flavour which was incredibly moreish.  I could have eaten it on it's own without any salad or other accompaniments.  In fact . . . the bits that I didn't use in the salad, quickly disappeared as Todd and I couldn't stop picking at them.

Reasons why people love Halum:

• Fantastic flavour
• Versatile and simple to cook with
• Excellent shelf life
• Made in Britain using all British ingredients
• Low food miles
• Made with fresh milk
• Less salt than Cypriot alternative
• Hand-folded from a traditional family recipe

Milky's is a family owned Lebanese and Mediterranean dairy run by Nabil & Youssef Assi in Wembley, London.  It produces fresh Mediterranean cheeses and yoghurts on a daily basis using fresh cow's milk from farm supplier Harefield using non-animal renet making our products suitable for vegetarians.  Established over five years ago, Milky's is the leading supplier of dairy products to Arabic restaurants and delicatessens in the UK.  Fresh milk, a touch of fine sea salt, citric acid make its Great Taste Award winning white soft cheese. Milky's only use non-animal Renet in their cheeses which makes them ideal for vegetarians.

Milky's Halum Cheese is available at Waitrose.

Many thanks to the Milky people for sending me this gorgeous cheese to try.   We here in The English Kitchen just loved it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gardener's Pie

 

 Back during the war years there wasn't a lot of meat to go around and so families often dined on such favourites as Woolton Pie, which  was an adaptable dish of vegetables, created at the Savoy Hotel in London by its then Maitre Chef de Cuisine, Francis Latry.



It was one of a number of recipes commended to the British public by the Ministry of Food during the Second World War to enable a nutritional diet to be maintained despite shortages and rationing of many types of food, especially meat.  



It wasn't named after the chef, but after the 1st Lord Woolton, Frederick Marquis, who became the Minster of Food here in the UK in 1940.  It was a simple  recipe which involved dicing and cooking potatoes (or parsnips), cauliflower, swede, carrots and, possibly, turnip.



Rolled oats and chopped spring onions were added to the thickened vegetable water which was poured over the vegetables themselves. The dish was topped with potato pastry and grated cheese and served with vegetable gravy. The recipe could be adapted to reflect the availability and seasonality of ingredients.  And most people had Victory Gardens in the back yard and grew a lot of their own veg, so it was quite practical and filling as well.

 

This isn't a Woolton Pie per se which I am showing you here today, however loosely based upon it, but a sort of Veggie Shepherd's pie.  There is no oats involved.  There is no pastry.  Just lots of tasty vegetables and a nice hot topping of cheesey mash.  



It's so tasty, I guarantee you won't miss the meat, but if you have any die hard carnivores in the family, you could always offer this in smaller portions and serve a few chops on the side.  Myself, I could quite happily sit down to a plate of this and nothing else.

*Gardener's Pie*

Serves 6

Printable Recipe  


This all vegetable pie might be filled with humble ingredients, but there’s nothing humble about the taste. This makes a delicious lunch or supper dish. It’s also a great accompaniment to roast beef or lamb if you really must have some meat, but trust me when I say that it is truly satisfying on it’s own.  

For the filling:

1kg of assorted mixed vegetables (2.2 pounds)

(I used a peeled onion, a celery stick, a large carrot, a large piece of Swede,

1/2 a cauliflower, a couple jerusalem artichokes, a leek,a small celeriac, a sweet potato)

2 TBS olive oil

vegetable stock

1/2 tsp summer savory

salt and pepper to taste

For the Topping:
2 pounds of floury potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
(use a King Edward, Maris Piper, or good Idaho potato)
2 ounces butter
¼ cup of sour cream
1 TBS finely grated onion
Salt and pepper to taste
4 ounces grated strong cheddar cheese
A little warmed milk if necessary

Pre-heat the oven to 220*C/450*F/gas mark 7.

Peel and chop the onion. Peel and dice all the other vegetables into a uniform dice. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and vegetables and cook them over medium high heat, stirring from time to time until they just start to colour. Add enough stock to just barely keep them from sticking to the pan and reduce the heat to medium low and cook, stirring occasionally until all the liquid has evaporated and the vegetables are still crispy tender. Season them to taste with some salt and a good grinding of pepper. Stir in the herbs, and then pop the whole mixture into a pie dish. It may seem a bit dry, but not to worry, the final baking in the oven will release all those delicious vegetable juices.

For the topping put the potatoes into a pan of salted boiling water and cook them until they are fork tender. Drain well and return the potatoes to the pan. Give them a good shake over the still warm burner to dry them out a bit and then mash them well along with the butter and sour cream. Stir in the cheese and grated onion. Add only enough milk to make them nice and fluffy. You don’t want the mixture to be too loose. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Pile the fluffy mash on top of the cooked vegetables and bang the pie dish into the heated oven. Cook for about 15 to 20 minutes until the topping is nicely browned. Serve hot.

Herbed Mushroom Mac & Cheese

   

 We have been trying to eat less meat in this house lately, and much more in the way of vegetables.   Partly for economics and partly for other reasons.  You may have noticed . . .

 

I had some chestnut mushrooms that needed using up the other day and so I thought to corporate them into a macaroni and cheese casserole.    It ended up being really, really delicious!



I did an herbed cheese sauce, using two types of cheese along with some tarragon.  I love the flavour of tarragon.  It goes really well with cheeses and mushrooms actually . . .



I also added some chives and thyme.  Both for flavour and colour.  You could use fresh herbs, but I think when they are being incorporated into a sauce like this, it doesn't really matter.  I always use the Bart Freeze Dried Herbs though . . . they hydrate really well, so it's almost like fresh herbs.  Change your herbs often.   I change mine at least twice a year.

 

The Toddster always says he doesn't like pasta, but then he has two helpings of whatever it is I make.  Methinks he doth protest too much!  In any case, I hope you'll make this.  It's really, really, really good!

*Herbed Mushroom Mac & Cheese*

Serves 6

Printable Recipe  

A deliciously different kind of macaroni and cheese, using a combination of herbs, shallots, fried mushrooms and two kind of cheese!  Not exactly diet food however, but very tasty.

For the sauce:

4 TBS butter

4 TBS plain flour

675ml of whole milk (3 cups), warmed

1 tsp freeze dried chives

1 tsp freeze dried tarragon

1 tsp dried thyme
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/2 pound of grated gruyere cheese, divided

1/2 pound grated strong white cheddar cheese, divided

For the mushrooms:

3 TBS butter

1 shallot peeled and minced

1 pound chestnut mushrooms, trimmed and sliced

2 TBS good white wine vinegar

You will also need:

1 pound of macaroni, uncooked

2 sliced of bread made into crumbs

(Or the equivalent in cracker crumbs)

1 TBS butter, melted

First cook the mushrooms.   Melt the butter in a large skillet.  Add the mushrooms and shallots.  Cook, stirring occasionally over medium high heat until the mushrooms are golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes.  Season to taste with salt and black pepper.  Add the vinegar all at once and cook, stirring until it has evaporated.   Remove from the burner and set aside.

To make the cheese sauce, melt the butter in a large saucepan.   Whisk in the flour and cook for one minute.  Slowly whisk in the warm milk whisking constantly, Continue to whisk until the mixture bubbles and begins to thicken.  Turn out the heat and stir in the herbs and 3/4 of each amount of cheese.  Stir to melt the cheese.   Season to taste with some salt and black pepper.  Stir in the mushroom mixture.   Set aside and keep warm.



Cook the macaroni according to the package directions until al dente.  Drain well and then stir this into the mushroom cheese sauce.  Spread into a shallow buttered casserole dish.



Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. 

Combine the bread or cracker crumbs and melted butter.  Sprinkle the remainder of the cheeses over top of the macaroni mixture then top with the buttered crumbs.  Bake in the heated oven for 15 to 20 minutes.   Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.  Delicious!

Roasted Root Vegetable Pizza

Since I was ill in September I haven't been able to look at a pizza.  Pizza was always one of my favourite things . . . it makes me sad that it isn't any longer.   I can't get enthused for Chicken Parm either.  I had made Chicken Parm Enchiladas that day and well, you know.   I haven't even been able to look at the photographs since!   It may be a while before you get to see those!



I don't know if it is the combination of the sauce and the cheese and meat or what, but it's been a no go for about a month now . . . until today.  Today I decided to create a delicious roasted root vegetable pizza, with a whole wheat crust!



All I can say is wowsa!  You get a nice thick crust, not unlike a foccacia . . . and then all of those sweetly caramlized root vegetables nestled amongst not one, not two, but THREE cheeses!

 

Just look at all of that delicious scrumminess . . . butternut squash, parsnips, carrots, red onions . . . roasted until sticky sweet with some salt, pepper and olive oil . . . nestled on top of that crisp and nutty flavoured crust . . . beneath a blanket of cheese.



A sprinkle of fresh thyme leaves lends an herby touch, which altogether made for a very tasty pizza if I don't say so myself!  I do hope you will give it a try!  I don't think anyone will be disappointed!  Even the Toddster loved this and he's not a pizza fan at all!

*Roasted Root Veggie Pizza*

Serves 4

Printable Recipe 

A deliciously different pizza with a thick wholewheat crust, topped by sweetly caramelized roasted root veggies and cheese.  Fabulous!

For the crust:

280g of plain flour

70g of whole wheat flour

1 tsp salt

1 TBS rapid rise or bread machine yeast

225ml of hot water (1 cup)

2 TBS olive oil

For the toppings:

1 small butternut squash

1 medium parsnip

1 medium carrot

2 small red onions

fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
olive oil

120g of grated emmenthal cheese (1 cup)

120g grated strong cheddar cheese (1 cup)

65g of grated mozzarella cheese (1/2 cup)

45g of finely grated Parmesan cheese (1/4 cup)

1 1/2 TBS fresh thyme leaves

Preheat the oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7.  Have ready a large baking tray.

Peel the butternut squash.  Cut in half and remove the seeds.  Slice the bulbous end into wedges and cut the remainder into 1/2 inch cubes.  Peel the parsnip and cut into wedges.  Peel the carrot and cut into wedges.  Peel the onions and cut each one ito six wedges.  Place them onto the baking tray.  Toss with a bit of olive oil and season with some salt and pepper.   Roast in the oven until cooked through and beginning to caramelize, 20 to 25 minutes.



While you are roasting the vegetables make the crust.   Mix all of the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl  Add the hot water and olive oil.  Stir togerher well, then tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for five minutes.  Turn the bowl over top and allow to stand for 10 minutes.   At the end of that time, pop your pizza stone if you are using one into the oven.   

I roll the dough out onto a piece of baking parchment to a large circle the circumfrance of my pizza stone.  Prick it all over with a fork.  (If you don't have a pizza stone you can use a preheated large baking sheet.)  Slip the piece of parchment wih the rolled out dough onto the heated pizza stone, baking tray.  Mix together all the cheeses.  Sprinkle half onto the crust.  Top with the roasted vegetables and cover with the remaining cheese.  Sprinkle with the thyme.   Bake in the heated oven until the crust is well risen, browned, crisp on the bottom and the cheese has melted nicely.   Cut into wedges to serve.

Pumpkin Escalloped Potatoes

I promised to show you something delicious to do with the leftover pumpkin from the fritters yesterday and it here it!  Pumpkin Escalloped Potatoes!  These may be the tastiest escalloped potatoes you will ever eat!   Seriously!



Layers of thinly sliced sweet potatoes and white potatoes, baked in a lucious cream and pumpkin sauce . . . a sauce that is so easy to make even a child could do it.   You simply heat the cream and pumpkin together with a bit of garlic and some seasoning.



You just pour the sauce between the layers as you are creating them.  I like to alternate the potato slices for looks.   You also sprinkle a mix of cheeses between the layers . . .

 

It's so very simple and so very delicious.  People will think you have slaved all day, but it takes merely minutes to put it together.   I like recipes like that.  Very little effort, but mega results!  It's win/win all round!  It would make an excellent side dish for the holidays!

*Pumpkin Escalloped Potatoes*

Serves 8

Printable Recipe  

A deliciously different potato dish.   Goes well with any types of roasted or grilled meats.

375ml of double cream (1 1/2 cups)

90g of pumpkin puree (1/2 cup)

1/2 tsp dried thyme

2 cloves of garlic peeled and bashed

1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 pounds floury potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/8 inch thick slices

2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/8 inch thick slices

2 ounces grated Emmenthal cheese

2 ounces grated strong cheddar cheese

3 ounces finely grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5.  Butter a 2 litre gratin dish.   Set aside.

Mix all the cheeses together.  Set aside. 

Whisk the cream, pumpkin puree, garlic, nutmeg and some seasoning together in a saucepan.   Heat gently to warm.  Allow to sit for 10 minutes to infuse.   Remove and discard the garlic.

Begin to layer the potatoes in the prepared dish, overlapping slightly and alternating the two different kinds, and using about 1/3 of the potatoes.   Season lightly with salt and pepper.  Drizzle with 1/3 of the cream mixture. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the cheese.  Repeat the layers ending with the sauce and reserving the last third of the cheese for later on. 

Bake the potatoes, uncovered, in the heated oven for about 50 minutes.  Sprinkle the remaining third of the cheese over top and bake for 10 to 15 minutes longer, until the vegetables are tender and the cheese is golden brown and bubbly.   Serve hot.