We had a beautiful roast pork on Easter Sunday, with the best crackling I've ever had! I love roast pork with lots of vegies and gravy, but it can leave you needing a nap afterwards!
Tonight's dinner is a nice light vegetarian meal with lots of vegetable goodness. I've added my favourite haloumi as well, for some salty, cheesyness. I know that the fried haloumi doesn't really make this overly healthy, but it still tastes pretty good!
When you cook the broccoli, make sure that it is slightly under cooked, so that there is still a bit of crunch. There is nothing worse than soggy vegetables.
Adding a bit of extra texture to the dish are the toasted macadamia nuts. I love macadamias, but when they are toasted or roasted, they just have so much more flavour. I always have to roast more than I need, otherwise there don't end up being any left over to cook with! If you didn't want to turn on the oven just to toast a few nuts, you can easily do it in a dry frying pan on the stove. You won't get quite the same flavour and the nuts won't brown evenly, but it can be quicker and easier to do it this way. Just keep tossing the nuts in the pan so that they don't burn on one side.
Pickled radishes have become a bit of a staple in our house since I made them a few months ago and absolutely fell in love with them. I've never been much of a radish fan, as I find them too hot. Pickling them changes all that and makes them sweet and vinegary at the same time. They are really easy and quick to pickle too, so you can whip up a batch in the morning to eat that night or the next day. As long as you store them in the fridge in a sterilised jar, they should keep for a week or so. I make up a solution of 1/2 cup white vinegar, 1/2 cup caster sugar and 1 tsp salt, stirred to dissolve. Pour this into the sterilised jars which are packed to the top with thinly sliced radishes. Seal, tip a few times to ensure the air bubbles are out and put into the fridge. The radishes are great as an accompaniment to roast pork or chicken, in sandwiches, salads or just on their own. Give them a try, especially if you're not normally a radish person!
Broccoli, Haloumi and Toasted Macadamia Salad
1/2 cup macadamia nuts
350g brocoli, cut into florets
180g packet of haloumi, sliced into 5mm slices
2 spring onions, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 Tbs pickled radishes
1 Tbs pickling solution
1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground pepper to taste
A few sprigs of parsley, to serve
Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees.
Place macadamias on an oven tray and toast for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil. Add broccoli florets and boil for about 2 minutes or until just cooked.
Drain and transfer to a large bowl.
Add nuts, spring onions, radishes, pickling solution and oil to the bowl and toss to coat. Season with pepper to taste. You shouldn't need any salt, as there is some in the pickling solution and the haloumi is salty.
Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a fry pan over medium heat.
Add haloumi slices that have been patted dry with kitchen paper, and fry for a couple of minutes each side, or until a beautiful golden brown.
To serve, toss the haloumi through the salad and pile on to plates. Top with a couple of extra macadamias and fresh parsley.
Enjoy!
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