When I saw this recipe at Choosy Beggars, I knew I would like it, since halloumi is a cheese indigenous to Cyprus, where I come from and which I adore and anything with halloumi in it would definitely be great.
Halloumi is made from a mixture of goat’s and sheep milk, and it has a high melting point, and so it can easily be fried or grilled. Although Wikipedia says that halloumi resembles to mozarella, I totally disagree, as the two cheeses cannot compare.
When I saw Tina’s recipe it reminded me of a similar recipe we make in Cyprus, called halloumopita but which however, does not have any garlic in it and we do not add the olive oil on the dough but we add either shortening or margarine in the dough. We make these as big or small individual breads especially during Easter when we make flaounes. When grating the cheeses there are always some leftover bits and pieces of cheese which we mix into the dough. I still have a lot of recipes from Easter which I have not posted and hope to do this soon, so for the time being here is a glimpse of halloumopita.
Back to Tina’s recipe. I did not follow Tina’s recipe exactly so instead of adding halloumi and mozarella, I preferred another Greek cheese, called graviera of Crete. Graviera of Crete is a traditional Greek cheese which is exclusively manufactured in Crete from ewe’s milk or mixtures with small quantities of goat’s milk. It is ripened for at least for 5 months and it has a slightly sweet taste and is harder than Graviera of Naxos.
Also, instead of adding parsley, I preferred to pair it with mint, as halloumi and mint pair perfectly together and did not use too much garlic. I did not have any nigella seeds so I sprinkled some fennel seeds and sesame seeds on top.
Although I was reluctant to use the garlic, they turned out really good and we loved them.
Halloumi pull=aparts – Recipe adapted from Choosy Beggars
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 30 minutes
Yields: 20 – 25
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Ingredients: |
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3 1/2 |
Cups |
All purpose flour |
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8 |
Grams |
Active dry yeast |
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1 |
Tsp |
sugar |
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½ |
Tsp |
salt |
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1 1/2 |
Cups |
Lukewarm water |
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2 |
Tbsp |
Olive oil |
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¼ |
Cup |
Olive oil |
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Filling |
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300 |
Grams |
Halloumi, grated |
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300 |
Grams |
Graviera, grated |
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2 |
Tbsp |
Dried mint or ½ cup fresh mint, finely chopped |
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1 |
Clove |
Garlic, grated |
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For topping: |
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1 |
Tsp |
Crushed fennel seeds |
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2 |
Tbsp |
Sesame seeds |
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Olive oil |
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Directions |
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1. |
Preheat oven at 180 degrees C. |
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2. |
In a medium sized bowl combine the flour, yeast, sugar, salt, olive oil and add water and knead until the dough does not stick on your hands or the bowl. |
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3. |
When the dough is ready, add the ¼ cup of olive oil and make sure it goes everywhere. Cover with cling film and a towel and allow to rise for about half an hour. |
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4. |
In the meantime grate both cheeses and add the mint and garlic and mix. |
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5. |
Remove the dough from the bowl, knead and divide it into 20 – 25 equal parts, depending on how big you want them to be. There will be some oil left in the bowl, which do not discard. |
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6. |
Using your fingers make each piece into a round phyllo about 10 cm. |
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7. |
Add a generous spoonful of cheese mixture |
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8. |
Gather up the sides of your dough circle, and pinch the top together to enclose the filling. |
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9. |
Brush a baking tin with olive oil and invert the filled dough in the pan, closely next to each other. |
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10. |
Brush with the remaining olive oil and sprinkle some fennel and sesame seeds on top. |
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11. |
Cover with cling film and a clean towel and allow to rise again (about half an hour). |
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12. |
Bake for about 30 minutes until golden brown on top. |
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Notes: Instead of graviera you may also use feta. |
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I am send this recipe to Cinzia of Cindystar, who is hosting this months Bread Baking Day #19, Spring Country Breads.
Tags: bread rolls, Breads, Cheese, Cypriot
Wikipedia actually said that (mozzarella and Halloumi akin)?
I remember Mike & Tina posting this…another fine use for Halloumi…an under-rated cheese but so delish.
What a great idea! These pull-aparts look so delicious! I love halloumi, but have problems finding any here…
Cheers,
Rosa
Ivy, these sound fabulous. I really like halloumi and enjoy seeing new ways to use it. And I agree, it is not at all like Mozzarella.
Hallelujah for halloumi! Talk about good eats. This bread wouldn’t last 2 seconds.
The only way homemade bread can be any better is if it’s filled with cheese! Yum yum yum.
I can just imagine how soft and delicious these are Ivy! Beautiful!
As a child, I lived in Cyprus with my parents, my father was in the RAF. So, I always remembered having halloumi, then I returned to Cyprus several times as an adult.
I always gave my children different things to eat so they were used to halloumi too and they always called it squeeky cheese. We still have it on a regular basis because it’s so delicious especially when its melted on the bbq. I shall be trying this recipe very soon…….
Hi Ivy,tThanks so much for participating!
Your buns look wonderful and I have learned a lot about different cheese I had never heard before!
Have a nice w.e.!
Wow, Ivy! Those breads look so good! And I agree, having had, loved and enjoyed both mozzarella and halloumi, they are nothing alike, although I love them both!
i love cheesy bread – these look delicious
i’m thinking of trying them
maria v’s last blog post..May Day at Hiliomoudou (Πρωτομαγιά στη Χιλιομουδού)
Ivy, I am absolutely delighted that our recipe could be some inspiration for you! Your bread rolls look absolutely scrumptilicious, and I wish that I could have tried some of this incarnation!! What a good idea to use fennel and sesame seeds on top. I adore fennel seeds, and I never would have thought of that. See? Mutual inspirations are happening all around
These look fantastic Ivy, I am sitting at my desk with a very bare salad (whatever was left in the fridge), but I am mouthwatering over this recipe
Trish Lathourakis’s last blog post..A night in Lebanon
I love this recipe! It holds special meaning for me because when I was evacuated from Lebanon during the summer of 2007 (that was during the Israeli war on the country) I boarded an Egyptian cargo ship and we landed in Larnaca and the trip took 18 hours (instead of 6) and the first thing we were handed by the Cypriot authorities was water and some of that bread. Besides I love halloum cheese , it is super popular in Lebanon