To make an unforgettable salad, add haloumi croutons

Original Article

In her first cookbook, Peas, Love and Carrots, author Danielle Renov (of the popular blog of the same name) says that in Israel, where she lives, this salad is so popular that it can be found in just about every Kosher dairy restaurant. Now that I know this exists, I’m pretty upset that we here in America have willingly accepted half-assed Caesars as our unofficial national salad, when we could be eating a whole-assed salad like this one. Why settle for stale croutons when we could be having cubes of fried cheese?

Haloumi and Sweet Potato Salad with Blueberry Vinaigrette

Reprinted from Peas, Love and Carrots: The Cookbook (2020) with permissionfrom ArtScroll Mesorah Publications

For the dressing:

• ½ cup dried blueberries
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 shallot, finely diced
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp pure maple syrup
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp coarse black pepper
• ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil

For the salad:

• 2 large sweet potatoes (about 2.2 lb/1 kilo total), peeled and cut into ¼-inch-thick sticks
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ½ tsp coarse black pepper
• 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 3 cups baby spinach
• 3 cups arugula
• 1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 1 (1lb/400g) block haloumi cheese, cut into ½ inch cubes

Combine blueberries and vinegars in a bowl or jar. Using a spoon, smush blueberries a bit to help them open up and release their flavor into the vinegars. Add remaining dressing ingredients to the bowl or jar; whisk well or shake to combine. Refrigerate until 15 minutes before you want to dress your salad.