Halloumi with garlic and rosemary fermented honey Halloumi with garlic and rosemary fermented honey

Halloumi with garlic and rosemary fermented honeym

Have you ever tried fermented honey? Adding garlic and herbs to raw honey introduces just enough moisture to activate fermentation, which leaves you with a slightly tangy, flavour-packed drizzly honey. It’s wonderful with lightly charred halloumi, as the sweetness balances the salty cheese.

Honey is such a versatile ingredient. Try our ‘nduja risotto with burnt lemon honey.

Ingredients

  • 1 garlic bulb, cloves peeled and finely sliced
  • 2 rosemary sprigs, leaves picked
  • 200g raw honey (see Know-how)
  • 2 x 225g halloumi blocks
  • Finely grated zest 1 lemon
  • 1 tbsp pine nuts
  • 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Specialist kit

  • Sterilised 300g jar (see our guide to sterilising jars)

Method

  1. Put the garlic and rosemary in the sterilised jar, then pour over the raw honey and stir to combine. Make sure the honey covers the garlic and rosemary completely and that there’s some space at the top of the jar.
  2. Cover the jar with a lid but don’t tighten it (or use a clip top jar without locking it shut). Sit the jar on a plate in a cool, dark place at room temperature for 2 weeks to ferment. Every few days, seal the lid, turn the jar upside-down, leave it for a few minutes, then turn back upright and loosen the lid again.
  3. After 2 weeks the honey will be runnier and the garlic will be soft. Heat the grill to medium. Score a crosshatch into each halloumi block, being careful to cut only halfway through so the blocks stay whole. Put in an oven dish and season. Scatter with the lemon zest and pine nuts, pushing some into the cuts. Drizzle with the oil and 2 tbsp of the honey.
  4. Grill for 7-8 minutes, basting every few minutes with the juices. Serve with more of the fermented honey spooned over.

delicious. tips

  1. Don’t waste it Any leftover honey can be kept in the fridge and eaten within a month. It’s great in salad dressings, or drizzled over roast veg or yogurt.
  2. It’s important to use raw honey here as it contains the wild yeasts necessary for fermentation.
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