This is the sort of meal I eat at the weekend – my version of a fry-up, if you will. But it also works as a WFH lunch because usually I prep a lot of these elements ahead of time (except the halloumi, egg and avocado, which take about 10 minutes to bring together) so I just have to reheat them and throw it all together on the day. It’s tasty, filling, high-fibre (20g) and high-protein (40g) – what’s not to love?
INGREDIENTS
Vegetables:
Courgette
Cherry tomatoes (baby plum tomatoes also work)
Sweet potato
Grain and greens:
Spelt (or any other whole grain)
Kale (spinach or chard also work)
Protein:
Halloumi
Chickpeas (pre-cooked e.g. canned or jarred)
Hummus (check out my recipe here)
Eggs
Garnishes:
Fresh dill
Pickled cabbage
Sumac (if this isn’t accessible to you, paprika or turmeric work)
Flavour:
Rose harissa paste (or normal harissa paste)
Ras el hanout spice mix (if this isn’t accessible to you, use cumin or paprika)
Za’atar (if this isn’t accessible to you, oregano and / or sesame seeds work)
TIPS & NOTES
Honestly, this isn’t meant to be super-prescriptive – feel free to use pickled red onions over pickled red cabbage or another bean instead or chickpeas, red pepper over courgette and so on. This is a base recipe and I swap elements for similar equivalents depending on what I have in all the time.
When it comes to the eggs; if you aren’t confident in poaching, you can easily fry or scramble them. But my poaching method is:
- Use eggs bought <5 days ago
- Crack the eggs individually into small bowls containing c.15-20ml of vinegar and leave to set for 15 mins
- Bring a large non-stick saucepan of water to the boil (ensure it’s filled up to 3/4s of its depth) and then reduce to a slight simmer – where you can see bubbles on the bottom of the pan but they’re not rising to the top
- Drop in the eggs and cook for around 3 mins before removing with a slotted spoon – the white should be firm but the yolk bouncy within it
Halloumi Brunch Bowl
A brunch bowl with Middle Eastern spices and a bit of everything
Ingredients
- 100g of halloumi (cut into 4 slices)
- 2 medium eggs
- 1 medium avocado
- 1 medium sweet potato (cut into chunks)
- 100g of cherry tomatoes
- 1 medium courgette (cut into asymmetrical chunks)
- 80g of kale (de-stemmed and roughly chopped)
- 80g of spelt (rinsed)
- 100g of chickpeas (drained, rinsed and patted dry)
- 100g of hummus
- 30g of pickled cabbage
- 1 tsp of Za’atar
- 1 tsp of Ras el Hanout
- 1 tbsp of rose harissa paste
- A pinch of sumac
- A small handful of dill (pulled off of stems)
- Olive oil for cooking
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 180C
- Toss the sweet potato in some olive oil, salt, pepper and the Ras el Hanout until coated and spread over a sheet pan – bake for 25 mins, tossing halfway through
- Toss the courgette and tomatoes in the rose harissa paste and add to a roasting tin or sheet pan, toss the chickpeas in the Za’atar with salt, pepper and olive oil and add to a sheet pan – add these to the oven when the sweet potato is 10 mins into its cooking time (toss both halfway through)
- In a small lidded saucepan, add a drizzle of olive oil and toast the spelt with salt and pepper for a minute or two before adding 120ml of water – cover and bring to the boil before reducing to a simmer (stir occasionally), it’s cooked when the water is completely absorbed
- Prepare the eggs as outlined in the Tips & Notes section
- Heat a frying pan over a medium heat – add the halloumi and fry until golden (3-5 mins on each side)
- When the spelt is 90% cooked, stir through the kale and cook for a further few mins
- Cut the avocado into slices
- Poach the eggs as outlined in the Tips & Notes section
- Spread some hummus on the bottom of the serving dish and add the spelt and kale mix, roasted vegetables, sweet potato and crispy chickpeas
- Add the halloumi, pickled cabbage, poached egg and avocado, sprinkle the sumac onto the eggs and sprinkle over the dill
Let me know if you try this brunch bowl!
But First, Food 
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