Can I use a different fruit?

You can! This works well with any stone fruit - try peaches, nectarines or plums. You could also use tinned fruit - in this case, skip the pre-roasting and just cook the fruit with the halloumi.

I can't find harissa, what can I use instead?

You could use any other chilli sauce - sriracha is good, or use sweet chilli sauce or chilli jam (leave out the honey in this case and just go for 2 tablespoons of sweet chilli).

What can I serve with it?

I love this as a delicious appetiser - try piling the halloumi onto crackers , flatbreads or focaccia - it's like its own cheese board! You can also enjoy it as part of a mezze-style spread along with creamy, super smooth hummus and a chopped salad, or use it in sandwiches or wraps.

Baked Whole Halloumi with Apricots and Honey

Name: Baked Whole Halloumi with Apricots and Honey
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Cuisine: mediterranean
Ingredients: 1 block of halloumi (approximately 225g); 6 apricots (or use 1 small tin); 1.5 tablespoons olive oil; 1 tablespoon harissa paste; 1 tablespoon honey; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 1 spring onion, sliced thinly lengthways and popped into a glass of water (this will make them curl up); 1 tablespoon thyme leaves

Description

This baked whole halloumi with apricots and honey is easy, uses 5 ingredients and takes less than 20 minutes. It hits all the best sweet and salty flavour notes to make the perfect appetiser or light meal. It’s a bit of an all in one cheese board!

Ingredients

Scale

For the baked halloumi –

1 block of halloumi (approximately 225g)
6 apricots (or use 1 small tin)
1.5 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon harissa paste
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon lemon juice

To serve –

1 spring onion, sliced thinly lengthways and popped into a glass of water (this will make them curl up)
1 tablespoon thyme leaves

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Instructions

Roast the apricots. Heat your oven to 200C/390F fan. Slice your apricots in half, remove the stones, then cut them into thick slices. Arrange in a small oven dish, then drizzle with ½ tablespoon of olive oil and toss to coat them. Pop in the oven for 10 minutes. PRO TIP: If your apricots are super ripe and soft, you can skip this pre-baking step. I just find that if the apricots are a little hard they don’t cook down enough in the time it takes the halloumi to cook, so I like to give them a head start.
Prepare the halloumi. While the apricots are getting their head start, make diagonal cuts down your halloumi block, but don’t cut all the way through. Turn the block around and make cuts down the other side – this should mean you end up with criss-cross cuts along your halloumi. This will just help the halloumi cook evenly and collapse in the oven, and make it easier to cut into it when you’re serving.
Bake the halloumi. Remove the dish from the oven. Place the halloumi in the middle of the dish, then drizzle with another 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Massage the oil into the halloumi, making sure it gets in the little cuts you’ve made. Turn the oven to 250C/480F grill (broil). Grill for 10 minutes, until the halloumi is looking charred and golden on top, looking soft and gooey and starting to collapse into the apricots.
Make the honey harissa sauce. While the halloumi is cooking, mix together the harissa, honey and lemon juice in a small bowl, then set aside.
Garnish and serve. Once the halloumi is looking golden and charred and the apricots are soft, remove the dish from the oven. Drizzle the harissa, honey and lemon sauce all over the halloumi and apricots. Finish by scattering over the thyme and curly spring onions, then serve straight from the oven dish or divide between plates.

Notes

Switch out the apricots for another stone fruit – try using peaches, plums or nectarines.

If you can’t find harissa, use sriracha or another chilli sauce. You can also switch out the honey and harissa for sweet chilli sauce or chilli jam (use 2 tablespoons).

The halloumi is best served as it comes out of the oven – the longer halloumi sits the harder it becomes.

Prep Time: 5
Cook Time: 20
Category: snacks
Method: oven
Cuisine: mediterranean

Nutrition

Serving Size: 115g

Keywords: baked halloumi recipe, apricot halloumi recipe, honey halloumi recipe, grilled halloumi