Heirloom Tomato, Avocado and Grilled Halloumi Caprese Salad
Is it OK to call this a Caprese salad? Â I’m pretty sure (or at least Wikipedia says) a true Caprese salad, or Insalata Caprese, as they call it on the island of Capri, features slices of ripe of tomatoes, layered with fresh mozzarella and basil. Â Mine does not, but that’s no reason to get nitpicky about the name. Â I’m still celebrating those gorgeous end of summer ripe tomatoes – heirloom in this case, but instead of mozzarella, I’m using sliced grilled Haloumi cheese. Â And instead of fresh basil, I’m going with slices of avocado. Â Drizzle a bit of balsamic reduction over the whole thing, and WHAT’S NOT TO LOVE?
This is my perfect ultra-fast, late summer, dinner for one. Â Or maybe two, but this night it was just me and my tomatoes. Â Poured a nice glass of wine, opened up the Pottery Barn catalog – or was it J Crew, or Boden… and enjoyed my peace and quiet while I imagined my house all decked out with new fanciness. Â Or make that me in a new fall wardrobe.
Please buy the freshest, ripest (most ripe?) tomatoes you can find for this dish. Â They will make you happy. Â One large or two small ones will probably do. Â And if you’ve never had Halloumi… RUN and get it. Â I can’t get enough of its squeaky texture and salty, smoky flavor. Â It really will hold up on the grill.
No real recipe here folks. Â Just layer the tomatoes with the cheese and the avocado. Â Oh yeah, you do have to simmer about 1/2 cup of good balsamic vinegar until it looks like chocolate syrup and reduces to just a few tablespoons. Â So good.
Are you tomato-ed out yet? Â If not, try my Summer Roasted Tomato Tart! Â Get ’em while you can, because it’s just about pumpkin season!
Eat well!
I’m a huge Halloumi fan; love the sound of this!
ME too! Thanks for stopping by Kalyn! Hope all is well 🙂
This salad looks delicious, Anne! I’ve never paired sliced tomatoes with grilled halloumi before! It was great meeting you at Blog Brulee!
Thanks so much Lisa! I love helium with anything 🙂 It was such a pleasure to meet you too – wish we had more time to chat!