Halloumi with tomato sauce, roasted garlic and peppers

Some of you may remember that I promised to make my grandmother her first dish of couscous. Well, she'd never had it before, and at age 100, I thought it was time she tried out this quick and versatile staple.

But what to serve with the couscous? Tomato sauce and roasted vegetables has long been a favourite of mine with couscous, especially if you make the sauce a bit spicy. But I thought the dish might want a bit more of a focal point.

Halloumi is a cheese that I usually only buy for barbecuing, but after enjoying it in a couple of cafes recently, it's occurred to me that I should be more open-minded. Now my grandmother loves cheese, but has never had halloumi - so it would be a double whammy of new experiences.

The trick with halloumi, I think, is to brown it, so you get all those magic Maillard-reaction flavours. It's a cheese that needs cooking, otherwise it simply tastes bland and salty. A little heat improves the texture - unlike nearly all other cheeses, it holds its shape when cooking - but it's the browning that gets the tastebuds going.

I was making a batch of brownies at the same time and thus managed to burn some of my peppers, but otherwise it turned out quite well. I flavoured the couscous with lemon juice, but next time I might add some chopped coriander, or perhaps basil or parsley, for added flavour.

So what was the verdict from my grandmother? "Whatever it is, it's very nice," she said, which I took as a seal of approval. And there wasn't anything left on her plate afterwards.

Ingredients

Serves 2

150g halloumi
2 yellow or orange peppers (I used about 8 baby peppers)
1 medium onion
2-4 garlic cloves, depending on size, unpeeled
1 tsp olive oil
1 tin chopped tomatoes
100g couscous, or the quantity you like for 2 people
Half a lemon, squeezed
2 tbsp chopped coriander (optional)
Pinch chilli powder or chilli flakes (optional)

Method

Cut the peppers into chunks, or halves if you are using baby peppers, and cut the onion into 8 wedges. Put into a baking tray with the garlic cloves and drizzle the oil over - give everything a stir to spread the oil around. Roast in the oven until soft.

Meanwhile, simmer the tinned tomatoes with the chilli, if using, until thickened. When the garlic cloves are cooked, peel them and chop them, then stir into the tinned tomatoes. Season to taste.

Slice the halloumi and cook in a dry frying pan over a fairly high heat. Turn after a couple of minutes or when it is golden brown on the underside.

While this is happening, cook the halloumi according to packet instructions (ie, pour some boiling water over it and leave for a couple of minutes). Add the lemon juice and coriander and fluff up with a fork.

To serve, pour the tomato sauce over the couscous, arrange the roasted vegetables on top, then finish with the cooked halloumi.