I always make sure I have Halloumi in the fridge, grilled or pan-fried brings out the best flavour of this cheese; I love its curious squeaky texture and its beautiful golden brown colour when fried, that’s why it is my favourite cheese of all time! And it makes a wonderful meat substitute for those who wants to cut down on their meat consumption. Apart from frying them as it is, I love to grate them and add them into a mixture of grated vegetable, egg and chickpea flour to make fritters or pancakes (it is a dish that is on our weekly meal plan rotation). My favourite veggie mix are courgette and potato, I used to fry the mixture like fritters, but since I was given a waffle maker last Christmas, plus it does make the cooking process a lot easier, I have been making them as waffles ever since! But you can definitely just fry them in a frying pan like pancakes or fritters, it will be just as tasty!
Notes:
1. I like these waffles less ‘battery’ with more veggies than flour, but if you want yours more like ‘waffles’ then add another one or two tablespoon of chickpea flour, and add some Greek yogurt to the mixture, a tablespoon at a time until you achieve the desired consistency. Adjust seasoning if needed.
2. We always serve them with tzatziki, but the day when I did this photoshoot, I didn’t have any yogurt, so I decided to serve it with tapenade, it was actually a really great combo too.
3. Turmeric is entirely optional, but I like that it gives the waffles a nice golden hue.
Ingredients:
makes 10-12 waffles
- 2 medium courgette, trim out both ends
- 450g waxy potato, peeled
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 block (250g) halloumi cheese
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- 3 tbsp. chickpea flour
- 2 medium eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric (optional)
- Freshly ground black pepper
To Serve:
Tzatziki (not picture)
- 1 cup (250ml) Greek yogurt (or other yogurt of choice)
- 1/2 cucumber, deseeded, grated and drained
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice (plus more if desire)
- A pinch of sea salt
Other suggestions:
- red pepper tapenade (recipe here or shop bought) (pictured)
- sweet chilli sauce
In a food processor (you can use box grater with the largest holes side) grate courgette, carrot and potatoes and then transfer them to a colander. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of sea salt to the mix and then toss them lightly with your hands. Place the colander on a plate to catch the excess liquid, let it sit for 30 minutes.
Rinse and dry the bowl of the food processor and then grate the halloumi, transfer it to a bowl and set aside.
Meanwhile, make the tzatziki (or red pepper tapenade) by mixing all ingredients in a bowl, taste and season it to your liking. Keep it in the fridge while you are making the waffles.
Prepare a large mixing bowl and lay out a clean tea towel on the kitchen counter. Take a large handful of courgette, carrot and potato mixture, squeeze out as much liquid as possible with both hands then transfer them to the tea towel, after 3 handfuls of hand-squeezed mixture, gather the edges of the tea towel then twist and squeeze as much liquid out one more time. Then transfer the content in the tea towel to the large mixing bowl. Repeat the procedure until all veggie mix is in the big mixing bowl.
Add Halloumi, chickpea flour, baking powder, turmeric (if use), black pepper and beaten egg into the bowl of veggies. Mix thoroughly. Let it rest for at least 15 minutes. The mixture won’t look like pancake batter, but it will work.
Preheat the oven to 120 degrees Celsius, place an oven-proof tray inside.
If use waffle maker, preheat it and when it is ready, add about 2 tablespoons worth of mixture onto each waffle iron. I cook my waffles for about 4-5 minutes in total, you can adjust the cooking time according to your waffle maker instructions.
Transfer the cooked waffles onto the oven tray in the oven to keep them warm while you are finishing the rest of the veggie mix.
Once all waffles are cooked, serve immediately with tzatziki or tapenade.
ginger & chorizo 