June 8 2017 recipe by Anne Aobadia![Anne Aobadia]()
, photo by Emma Shevtzoff![Emma Shevtzoff]()
, nutritional review by Franziska Spritzler, RD, CDE![Franziska Spritzler, RD, CDE]()
in Recipes, Dinner, Meal
, photo by Emma Shevtzoff
, nutritional review by Franziska Spritzler, RD, CDE
in Recipes, Dinner, Meal Low carb vegetarian cheeseburger
A cheeseburger, quite literally... the cheese is your burger! But with yummy eggplant dip and plenty of veggies, you'll love this innovative and satisfying low carb stack. Open wide!
USMetric
servingservings
Ingredients
- 4 oz. (2½ cups) 110 g (550 ml) Romaine lettuce
- 14 oz. 400 g halloumi cheese
- 1 (4 oz.) 1 (110 g) red onion, slicedred onions, sliced
- 3 oz. 85 g dill pickledill pickles
- 7 oz. 200 g green asparagus
- 2 tbsp 2 tbsp olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Eggplant dip
- ½ lb 220 g eggplant
- 1 tsp 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 1 garlic clove, pressedgarlic cloves, pressed
- ½ tsp ½ tsp pepper
- ¼ tsp ¼ tsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp 1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
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Making low carb simple
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Cut the eggplant in half, lengthwise. Sprinkle with salt and place the halves with the salted side up in an oven-proof dish lined with parchment paper.
- Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until the eggplant feels soft. Take out and let cool. Scoop out the skin and roughly chop the eggplant.
- Place eggplant in a bowl together with oil, lemon juice, garlic, pepper, and cumin. Mash with a fork until smooth. Season to taste and set aside.
- Slice the cheese into portion pieces and pat dry using a paper towel.
- Add a little bit of oil to a frying pan and fry the cheese over medium heat, 3-4 minutes on each side until golden and starts to melt in the middle. Flip carefully.
- Trim the asparagus and cut away the lower part if it feels tough. Cut each spear into 3-4" pieces (10cm).
- Place the asparagus on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with oil and add a little salt and pepper.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C), or set your broiler to high. Roast the asparagus for about 10 minutes, taking care not to burn them under the broiler. You can also cook the asparagus in a frying pan.
- Now it's time to assemble the cheeseburger. Place a lettuce leaf on each plate. Distribute the asparagus.
- Add the fried cheese "patty," a generous serving of the eggplant dip, and top with sliced red onion and pickled cucumber. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve immediately.
Tips
Pick up some Baba Ganoush at the supermarket. It is a nice stand-in for homemade eggplant dip — without the fuss.
It's easy to toast sesame seeds in a dry nonstick skillet. Just add the sesame seeds and cook over medium heat for a minute or two until golden.
But I find that the descriptions and directions for each recipe are too often frustratingly imprecise. For instance, in this recipe, I see no instructions for how to prepare the halloumi cheese for each serving. Should it be sliced? How thick? Dried off? Or should it be grated and shaped into the "patties" mentioned in the description? Should it be fried in a dry pan? Or does it need a little oil or butter for the frying?
Halloumi is a fairly uncommon ingredient for many of us and a little more guidance would be appreciated.
Thanks.
I am double checking with the Recipe Team. Thanks for asking!
Like Ruby, I would appreciate guidance on how much lemon juice to add as it is still not listed in the ingredients. I'm really looking forward to trying this recipe.
Thanks.
I am checking with our recipe team :)