Garden Salad with Lentils, Herb Salsa, Halloumi, Roquefort & Sugared Pecans
Garden Salad with Lentils, Herb Salsa, Halloumi, Roquefort & Sugared Pecans, quite a mouthful for such a simpel salad. This is an absolute winner for meal prep or a quick yet impressive lunch or dinner. The best part? All the elements can be prepared ahead of time, so when you’re ready to eat, all you need to do is pan-fry the halloumi and toss everything together. Easy, fresh, and packed with flavour!
The base of this salad is a mix of hearty lentils and crisp greens, making it both satisfying and nutritious. Then comes the magic: golden, pan-seared halloumi, crumbly Roquefort, and sweet, crunchy sugared pecans—a perfect balance of salty, tangy, and sweet. The herb salsa ties everything together, adding a fresh, zesty kick that brightens up every bite.
One of the best things about this dish? It’s super versatile—like any good salad should be. Swap the Roquefort for Brie if you prefer something milder, use spinach instead of mixed greens, or try walnuts or almonds instead of pecans. Whatever rocks your boat! (I even threw in some kale flowers I had left over for an extra pop of colour and flavour.)
Serve it as a light main course or a side dish, and enjoy a salad that’s anything but boring. Whether you’re making it for a crowd or just for yourself, this one’s a keeper!
Another great salad with candied nuts is Grilled Goats Cheese with Candied Pecans and Couscous Salad.
Garden Salad with Herb Salsa, Halloumi & Sugared Pecans
(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Loading...Ingredients
- Nuts:
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 handful nuts of choice
- Herb salsa:
- 2 - 3 kinds of leafy green herbs (a handful of each). I used dille, parsley and koriander
- 1 - 2 tbsp vinegar of choice
- 1 - 2 tbsp olive oil
- Pinch chili flakes
- 1 - 2 tsp honey or sugar
- Pepper & Salt
- Rest of the ingredients:
- 1 can of lentils, or cook 150 g dried lentils for ± 30 minutes in salted water
- Lettuce of choice, I used a mix of rucola, mustard seeds and oak leaf lettuce
- Handul cherry tomatoes, halved
- Squeeze of lemon juice
- Olive oil
- Pepper & Salt
- (I also still had some kale flowers left which I used as garnish)
- ± 100 g Roquefort, crumbled
- 1 halloumi piece, cut into 0.5 cm slices
Instructions
Nuts (5 minutes, make ahead):
Heat a heavy based pan and sprinkle in the sugar, when it just starts to caramelise add the nuts and continue to stir with a wooden spatula spoon so all the sugar coats the nuts. I like to have a few crunchy sugar granules sticking to the nuts, so don’t caramelise too long.
Pour into a plate lined with baking paper and spread it out. Let it cool before roughly chopping. Once completely cooled store in an airtight container.
Herb salsa (5 minutes, make ahead):
Add all the ingredients into a blender, only add half of the vinegar, olive oil and sugar for now. Blend into a smooth paste, add a drop of cold water if you need to help it along.
Taste and adjust the seasoning with any of the ingredients.
Finishing of the dish:
Is using dried lentils, rinse them and boil in salted water for ±35 minutes until al dente, no need to soak them in advance. Drain and let cool.
Roughly chop the salad leaves and squeeze in the juice of half a lemon, add some olive oil, pepper and salt, and mix well to coat. Mix through the cooled lentils and the cherry tomatoes and set aside.
Heat a frying pan and add some olive oil. Lay the halloumi in the pan and fry on both sides until nice and browned.
Now all you need to do is plate: Start with the lentil and lettuce mix, then the cheeses and nuts and the dollops of herb salsa. Enjoy!
