Sheet-Pan Halloumi With Avocado and Citrus Recipe

This feel-good dinner makes the most of your time. Because you’re busy. You don’t have all day. I hear you. That’s where multitasking comes in: While hunks of Halloumi cheese and pita shards toast in the oven, you’ll slice up juicy citrus (snag blood oranges if you can for their vibrant hue), kicky shallot, kickier jalapeño, and fresh dill (cilantro and parsley also work if that’s what you have). Then you’ll whip up a lime-and-honey dressing to wake everyone up. Inspired by fattoush, a Middle Eastern bread salad, the toasted pita happily soaks up the vinaigrette. Scoops of buttery avocado top it all off, yielding a one-dish supper or brunch I’d eat every week if I could. And maybe I will.

There’s no substitute for the Halloumi. When cooked, this Cypriot cheese develops a crispy-salty crust, not unlike a skin-on chicken thigh, while resisting melting at all costs. It’s often singed on a grill or seared in a pan, but the method here is more hands-off. Thrown on a hot baking sheet (just toss it in the oven as soon as you start preheating), the pieces effortlessly brown. And instead of having to slice pristine planks—something I’ve never been able to pull off—we’ll give in to the craggy shape, tearing the Halloumi into nuggets. Crunchy outside and bouncy inside, they’re exceedingly fun to eat.

This feel-good dinner makes the most of your time. Because you’re busy. You don’t have all day. I hear you. That’s where multitasking comes in: While hunks of Halloumi cheese and pita shards toast in the oven, you’ll slice up juicy citrus (snag blood oranges if you can for their vibrant hue), kicky shallot, kickier jalapeño, and fresh dill (cilantro and parsley also work if that’s what you have). Then you’ll whip up a lime-and-honey dressing to wake everyone up. Inspired by fattoush, a Middle Eastern bread salad, the toasted pita happily soaks up the vinaigrette. Scoops of buttery avocado top it all off, yielding a one-dish supper or brunch I’d eat every week if I could. And maybe I will.

There’s no substitute for the Halloumi. When cooked, this Cypriot cheese develops a crispy-salty crust, not unlike a skin-on chicken thigh, while resisting melting at all costs. It’s often singed on a grill or seared in a pan, but the method here is more hands-off. Thrown on a hot baking sheet (just toss it in the oven as soon as you start preheating), the pieces effortlessly brown. And instead of having to slice pristine planks—something I’ve never been able to pull off—we’ll give in to the craggy shape, tearing the Halloumi into nuggets. Crunchy outside and bouncy inside, they’re exceedingly fun to eat.