Stuff I Ate: Haloumi is a Gift from the Gods

Let me just start this whole thing out by saying, I love cheese, any kind of cheese.  While in Cyprus on vacation back in October, I discovered possibly the best cheese (maybe even the best food) I have ever tasted: Halloumi cheese.  

It's a mild and salty goat cheese with a texture similar to mozzarella.  It has a really high melting point, so it can be grilled or fried.  It is almost exclusively produced in Cyprus, but in recent years Middle Eastern countries have started to produce it.  In Cyprus is is sometimes served on pita bread with just tomato or lountza (some kind of ham I think).  It can also be served alone as an appetizer garnished with just mint or watermelon or some grilled vegetables.

Since coming back from vacation, I have been CRAVING halloumi.  This cheese is hard to find.  The only store that carries it near me is Wegman's.  And, of course, the Wegman's near me is a pain to get to and is comparable to the ninth circle of hell on the weekends.  Seriously, the parking lot is so crowded that it feels as though people are flinging themselves in front of your car.  Before even getting into the store you've probably already committed several vehicular crimes.  Once you are in the store, you might be driven to assault.  There are children hanging off of carts and parents just clinging to their sanity.  I think I knocked over an old lady just to escape the store.

  

So, a few weeks ago, I made the trek out to Wegman's ON A SATURDAY MORNING.  I may have run over a few soccer moms and their teams with my cart.  You know this cheese is good if I braved that jungle.  

Haloumi with roasted red peppers on pita.
Yes, I am using left over Happy Birthday napkins.

And it was all worth it.  That day for lunch I had grilled halloumi on pita with roasted red peppers.

I purchased the roasted red peppers from the salad bar and grilled the haloumi, peppers and pita on my Forman Grill.  It's a simple meal, once you obtain the halloumi.