Roasted pumpkin, beetroot, pearl barley and haloumi salad recipe

 

This is a hearty, vegetarian Autumnal salad, celebrating the in-season vegetables, jap (Kent) pumpkin and beetroot, which are in plentiful supply at the Australian markets and retail supermarkets right now. Photos can't fully portray the delicious flavours contained in this salad, with pops of maple syrup sweetness accentuating the warm crispy haloumi, and a refreshing mint pesto combining with all the ingredients.

What do I love about this salad beside the flavours? Everything. It can be served as a complete meal in itself for 4 people, or halve it for 2, with the pearl barley providing vital carbohydrates and substance to the meal. However, you could substitute quinoa for barley if that is your preferred grain, personally I love the nutty flavours of barley.  This salad can also be served as a side salad to feed 6-8 people. It's perfect for a dinner party. This is a large salad. 

There are a few steps involved with the preparation as with most vegetarian salads, peeling, chopping and roasting the pumpkin and beetroot, then adding the tomatoes to bake, processing the mint pesto, cooking the haloumi, and the final assembly. However, all of these steps can be prepared the day before and stored separately in the refrigerator, except I like eating the haloumi cheese warm so I would always do that just before serving. The benefit from eating the haloumi cold though, is that I found when eating the leftovers, the unique maple syrup flavours were more pronounced than when we ate the haloumi warm. So delicious!

This is the perfect meal if you aspire to a Meat Free Monday. 

I also love the versatility and cost effectiveness of this salad. I am always wary of posting recipes that contain too many ingredients. The recipe could stand on its own without the mint pesto and still be thoroughly enjoyed, however the pesto takes it to the next level. if you don't have enough mint on hand, the green factor can be increased by using parsley, basil or even coriander. They will also increase how green the pesto looks. Ask your friends if they are growing any of these herbs, herbs are expensive to buy.

Rather than using lots of expensive olive oil during the baking process, the vegetables could also be spritzed or sprayed with olive oil from a can. However, I would suggest you still drizzle them with lovely pure honey.

If you enjoy eating crunchy nuts and seeds, you could add some toasted pumpkin kernels or pine nuts, and toasted walnuts or whatever nut you might have on hand. There are so many options to bring more crunch, flavour and interest to this salad. However, as it stands in this recipe, it is delicious. Mr. HRK was asking for leftovers again the next day.

This recipe is based on one by Sarah Pound, from her recipe book titled "Wholesome" published by Plum/Pan Macmillan.  I saw the recipe in my latest copy of the Australian Women's Weekly, May 2024, and knew that I must make this salad. There are some other delicious recipes in there as well.

Serves 4 as a main meal, or 6-8 as a side salad.

Cooking time: 40 minutes, Prep. time 20 minutes

I realise that whole pumpkins or sliced pumpkins are not always easy to obtain in the United States and some European countries. If Sweet Potatoes are in season, they would make a good substitute for pumpkin, or hopefully any of the other squashes available.

Ingredients:

750 g jap or Kent pumpkin, cut into 3 cm cubes

2 beetroots, cut into wedges

3 tablespoons extra virgin oil or spray on olive oil

1 teaspoon honey

250 g cherry tomatoes

220 g (1 cup) pearl barley, rinsed well

1 teaspoon vegetable stock powder

200g haloumi, cut into 2 cm cubes

1 teaspoon maple syrup

90 g (2 cups) baby spinach leaves or rocket or both

MINT PESTO ingredients

100g (2 cups, tightly packed) mint leaves

50g (1/3 cup) whole almonds or cashew nuts toasted, plus extra to serve

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice plus extra to serve

125 ml (1/2 cup) extra virgin oil

METHOD:

Preheat the oven to 200 deg. C (fan-forced) and line a large baking tray with baking paper.

Tip your chopped pumpkin and beetroot into a medium sized bowl. Drizzle on 2 tablespoons olive oil, with the honey and spread these through the vegetables, toss them gently and spread on the baking tray.

Season the pumpkin and beetroot with a good pinch of salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes, remove the tray and add the cherry tomatoes. Return the tray to the oven to roast for 15 minutes until the vegetables have tenderised and have been slightly caramelised.

While the vegetables are cooking, place a saucepan of water on the stove to boil. Add the pearl barley and vegetable stock powder, and when boiling reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 20-25 minutes. The barley should be tender but still chewy. Drain the barley well and rinse with cold water.

Roasting the delicious pumpkin and beetroot

Cherry tomatoes added for roasting

MINT PESTO

Set up your food processor, and combine the mint, almonds or cashews, garlic and lemon juice in the food processor bowl. Process the mixture while slowly pouring in the olive oil until the pesto reaches the desired consistency for you. It needs to be a consistency that can be drizzled over your salad. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Cooking the HALOUMI

Heat the remaining olive oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium high heat. Tip in the chopped haloumi, add the maple syrup by drizzling it over the haloumi, and cook for 2-3 minutes on both sides. the haloumi should be golden brown and slightly crisp on the outside.

Assembling your salad:

Select a large fairly shallow serving platter or a large bowl.

Place the rocket or spinach, roasted vegetables and pearl barley in the large bowl or platter.

Gently toss.

Add the warm haloumi pieces, drizzle the mint pesto over your salad, and toss again to coat everything. Or alternatively you can just place spoonfuls of the mint pesto throughout the salad if you prefer. It will become mixed with the salad anyway. 

Squeeze on some extra lemon juice and spread a sprinkle of extra chopped almonds, cashews or even pistachios over the salad if you have them.

Serve alone as a warm salad with some delicious bread, or as a side salad with cooked meat of your choice.

Cook's tips:

• Pumpkin pieces or a whole pumpkin can be very difficult to slice and chop up for some people, especially those in the more mature category. It requires quite a bit of strength and a large knife.  I often ask Mr. HRK now to chop up a whole pumpkin for me, much safer. However, prechopped pumpkin pieces can be obtained at most supermarkets now, perhaps even some markets and that is an option. 
• Spray on olive oil could be used instead of coating the vegetables in liquid olive oil. 
• I placed the barley onto boil before I started baking the pumpkin and beetroot to save time.
• If you are short on mint, top this up with other green herbs such as parsley, basil or coriander, it will still taste delicious and might be even greener.
• Add a couple of quartered red onions with the pumpkin and beetroot, for even more colour and flavour. (Definitely not essential though, so please don't buy them especially.)
• This salad is delicious served warm or cold. 
• For the purposes of the photos, I left all of the components separate, however the whole salad could be tossed so that everything is coated with the pesto and the grains are spread throughout.
• The barley could also be served separately.

Warmest wishes,

Pauline