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What Is Halloumi? A Protein-Rich Grilling Cheese You Must Try

The AHA! Team — Mon, 25 Aug 2025 05:35:22 +0000

Christine Ruggeri, CHHC via Dr. Axe – If you’ve browsed the cheese aisle of Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods lately, or any other grocery store that carries the latest food trends, you may have noticed halloumi cheese — or grilling cheese. This unique cheese may be trending in the U.S. these days, but it’s been consumed in Greece for hundreds of years. When cooked, it becomes crispy on the outside and gooey on the inside — and it offers a delicious salty taste, too. It’s versatile enough to add to many recipes you’re already preparing at home. But how healthy is it? How does it match up against other cheeses, including protein and calcium content? Let’s dig in. What is halloumi cheese? Halloumi cheese is a semi-hard, unripened and brined cheese that’s traditionally made from sheep’s milk in the Greek island of Cyprus. In the U.S. (and at Trader Joe’s), grilling halloumi cheese is also made from cow and goat milk. Halloumi is free from rennet, an enzyme that’s commonly used in cheesemaking. Because rennet is often derived from the stomach of calf, lamb and goat, people on a vegetarian diet typically won’t eat cheeses made with the enzyme. Halloumi has a unique taste and texture. It’s firm and salty and has been compared to a thick feta, although halloumi has a smoother texture. It’s when the cheese is grilled, pan-fried or baked that it’s true delicious flavor emerges. It becomes a savory treat that’s crispy on the outside and gooey on the inside. The texture and taste of this grilling cheese are what make it so versatile and explain its growing popularity. It can be added to salads, wraps, tacos, burgers and more. Nutrition facts One slice (roughly 25 grams) of halloumi nutrition contains about: Calories: 74 Total Fat: 6 g Saturated Fat: 4 g Protein: 5 g Sodium: 300 mg (8%–13% DV*) Calcium: 180 mg (18% DV) *Daily Value: Percentages are based on a diet of 2,000 calories a day. Potential benefits 1. High in protein Just one thin slice, or 25 grams, of halloumi cheese contains five grams of protein. Consuming enough high-protein foods regularly is important for many body functions, including providing energy, helping build muscle, supporting the absorption of nutrients and stabilizing blood sugar levels. Research published in Nutrients suggests that individuals may benefit from increasing their intake and frequency of consumption of protein. Halloumi wouldn’t necessarily be considered the highest quality protein because of its salt and saturated fat content, but consuming it in moderation can be beneficial. 2. Good source of calcium Halloumi cheese also serves as a good source of calcium. According to researchers in Greece, the calcium content in the grilling cheese depends on the brining process, but 80 percent of the calcium found in the cheese comes from the casein molecules. We know that calcium is a key nutrient in our bodies and maintaining adequate levels is important. Consuming high-calcium foods like halloumi can help support heart and bone health. 3. Doesn’t contain lactose Lactose intolerance is a spectrum, as some people who deal with this allergy may be able to eat many cheeses while others can suffer stomach issues after just one bite of ice cream. Halloumi is made from sheep and goat milk, both of which contain less lactose than milk and generally cause fewer allergy issues. 4. Vegetarian-friendly (but check first) Many halloumi products aren’t made with rennet, so they are considered vegetarian. That said, you’ll want to double-check the product label to ensure that it’s not made with animal-derived rennet. Research published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition suggests that the typical vegetarian diet tends to be high in carbohydrates and low in protein. Adding halloumi to some meals throughout the month can be helpful in maintaining proper nutrient levels. Potential downsides Halloumi is a salty cheese, with up to 13 percent of your daily value in just one slice. Therefore, when eaten in excess, it’s easy to go overboard on your daily sodium intake. This frying cheese is also high in saturated fat, with one slice accounting for a good portion of your daily value. While saturated fat remains vilified, research recently has shown that saturated fat may not cause the health problems it was long suspected of. In fact, a 2022 study declared that “saturated fats have no effect on cardiovascular disease, cardiovascular mortality or total mortality.” The fat that undoubtedly does cause health issues is trans fat, and halloumi cheese doesn’t contain any of this fat. Regardless, because of its sodium level and being somewhat high in calories like all cheeses, moderation is recommended. How to use You’ll be able to find halloumi cheese in many specialty grocers, including places like Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. Natural food stores commonly carry grilling cheese, and cheese shops will likely carry halloumi as well. Although halloumi is traditionally made in Greece, there are other versions of grilling or frying cheese that are prepared by dairy and goat farmers in the United States and Canada. Like most other cheeses, halloumi can be enjoyed by itself or added to a range of recipes to add texture and flavor. It’s very easy to cook halloumi, as it can be pan-fried, grilled and baked. Halloumi has a high fat content, so it doesn’t require adding oil when cooking. Here are some simple ideas for cooking this grilling cheese: Pan fry: Cut the cheese into slices that are about a half-inch thick. Some products already come precut and packaged. Cook each side in a nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Let each side dry-fry for about 1–2 minutes, until it becomes brown and crispy. Bake: Add half-inch slices to an ovenproof dish or baking sheet, and drizzle them with olive oil. Bake at 390 degrees Fahrenheit for 10–15 minutes until the cheese begins to brown on edges. Grill: Coat half-inch cheese slices with olive oil, and grill over high heat. You’ll want to turn the cheese slices occasionally and grill for about 2–5 minutes, until it begins to crisp. You can also cut the cheese into cubes and grill it on skewers. Now that you’ve learned how to cook halloumi cheese, you’ll probably need some ideas about how to use it in your everyday recipes. Here are a few: Add it to any salad Add it to a grass-fed burger Add it to a vegetarian wrap Use it to make vegetarian-friendly tacos Add it to this Carne Asada Tacos Recipe Swap out the beef, and make a vegetarian-friendly burger Use it to make grilled cheese on sourdough bread Use it to make a Caprese salad or panini — swap out the mozzarella Put it into strips to bake cheese fries Substitutes It’s difficult to find a cheese that can be grilled and have the same taste and consistency as halloumi. You may be able to use tofu or paneer as a substitute for some halloumi recipes. When it comes to swapping out meats or other cheeses for halloumi, there are a lot of possibilities. This grilling cheese can take the place of mozzarella in salads and paninis. It can also replace meats used for burgers, wraps and baked dishes. Precautions For people who are avoiding foods high in sodium and excessive salt intake, it’s best to limit or even avoid salty cheeses like grilling cheese. Final thoughts Halloumi cheese, also called grilling cheese, is a unique type of cheese that was originally consumed in Greece. Rich in protein and calcium, grilling cheese offers important nutrients and is considered vegetarian-friendly when made without animal rennet. It’s easy to prepare grilling cheese by dry pan-frying, baking or grilling it. It has a crispy crust and becomes soft and gooey on the inside when cooked. Add grilling cheese to your favorite salad, burger, wrap, taco and panini recipes. To read the original article click here.

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Crustless Spinach Quiche Recipe

AHA Publisher — Thu, 19 Aug 2021 07:00:29 +0000

Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CN via Dr. Axe – This crustless spinach quiche recipe keeps things simple yet delicious with only five key ingredients. It’s loaded with impressive spinach nutrition, eggs and healthy raw cheese. Get ready to make a healthy crustless spinach quiche recipe so loaded with flavor you’ll easily end up eating it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. That’s really one of the best things about a quiche — that it makes a perfect snack or meal any time of the day. This crustless spinach quiche recipe is delicious, so easy to make and high in protein. Plus, it’s gluten-free, vegetarian and ketogenic diet-approved. History of Quiches Where are quiches from? Most people think of quiches as a classic part of French cuisine … and they are, but some sources say quiches actually got their start in a different European country: Germany. In fact, the word “quiche” comes from the German word kuchen, which means cake. Italian and English cuisines were also known for using eggs and cream in pastries dating back to the 13th and 14th centuries. Quiche didn’t become popular in the United States until the 1950s. Throughout history and to this day, there have been many variations on quiche. If you’re looking for some ways to change this recipe up, you can also try: crustless spinach mushroom quiche (add about one cup of sliced mushrooms) crustless spinach feta quiche (opt for feta as your cheese of choice) crustless bacon spinach quiche (include a couple of chopped-up strips of high-quality turkey or beef bacon) crustless fresh spinach quiche (simply use fresh spinach rather than frozen — a typical 10-ounce package of frozen spinach is equivalent to one pound of fresh spinach sautéed down to about one and half cups of spinach after draining) crustless spinach quiche with cottage cheese (cottage cheese is another healthy cheese option to use in quiche recipes) Key Ingredients The main players in this keto crustless spinach quiche recipe provide a variety of healthy nutrients. Here are the stars of the show: Eggs: As we all know, eggs are chock-full of protein and collagen, and they also contain several vital minerals and B vitamins. As such, they’re tremendous for heart, eye, brain, liver and skin health. Spinach: Loaded with vitamins K, A and C, spinach is considered one of the top potential cancer-fighting foods, and like eggs, it supports healthy immunity, vision, bone health, skin and more. There are few better choices in combatting disease than spinach. Raw cheese: For a dose of healthy fat, cheese made from raw milk does that more. The best part? You can choose your own version. As you can see, this healthy spinach quiche is truly loaded with so many key nutrients you get in your diet on a daily basis. It’s also low in carbs yet high in energizing protein and fat. This just may end up being the best crustless quiche recipe you’ve ever tasted. How to Make Crustless Spinach Quiche How do you make a crustless quiche? You simply combine all of your ingredients in a well-greased pie pan and bake. The eggs help hold all of the ingredients together really nicely, and you won’t miss the crust at all. How do you make the filling for a quiche? You simply combine the cooked and raw ingredients with cheese and eggs. So simple! You can easily use this recipe to create crustless mini spinach quiches simply by choosing a few pieces of smaller bakeware rather than one large pie pan. Be sure to slightly reduce the cook time if you choose this option. Don’t forget that it’s easy to put your own twist on this recipe and create a crustless spinach and feta quiche, crustless spinach and mushroom quiche, spinach bacon quiche (turkey or beef bacon, of course), or a fresh spinach quiche. To get started creating this easy spinach quiche, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and grease a nine-inch pie pan with coconut oil. Next, add the onion to a pot. Add in the coconut oil. Heat the coconut oil and onions over medium heat in the saucepan until onions are soft. Stir in spinach. Cook until the excess moisture evaporates. Set that pan aside for now. Next, put the raw cheese into a bowl. Add eggs. Add salt and pepper. Mix these ingredients together. Now, add the spinach mixture to the egg and cheese mixture. Blend. Scoop into greased pie pan. Bake this quick crustless quiche for just 30 minutes. And you’re done! I hope you enjoy this dish … any time of the day. Crustless Spinach Quiche Recipe DESCRIPTION This crustless spinach quiche recipe is delicious, easy to make and high in protein. It’s also gluten-free and a great way to start your day. INGREDIENTS 8 eggs, beaten 1 package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained 1½ cups shredded raw cheese 1 onion, chopped 1 tablespoon coconut oil + extra for greasing ¼ teaspoon sea salt ⅛ teaspoon black pepper INSTRUCTIONS Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9-inch pie pan with coconut oil. Heat coconut oil and onions over medium heat in saucepan until onions are soft. Stir in spinach and cook until excess moisture has evaporated. In a bowl, combine eggs, cheese, salt and pepper. Stir. Add spinach mixture and blend together. Scoop into pan and bake for 30 minutes. NOTES You can vary the cheese, opting for feta, American, cottage cheese, etc. Customize the recipe with your favorite add-ons, whether that means mushrooms, bacon or another quiche variation. To read the original article click here.

The post Crustless Spinach Quiche Recipe appeared first on Amazing Health Advances.

Crustless Spinach Quiche Recipe

AHA Publisher — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 07:00:30 +0000

Dr. Axe – This crustless spinach quiche recipe is keeping things simple yet delicious with only five key ingredients. It’s loaded with impressive spinach nutrition, eggs and healthy raw cheese. Get ready to make a healthy crustless spinach quiche recipe so loaded with flavor you’ll easily end up eating it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. And that’s really one of the best things about a quiche — that it makes a perfect snack or meal any time of the day. This crustless spinach quiche recipe is delicious, so easy to make and high in protein. Plus, it’s gluten-free, vegetarian and ketogenic diet-approved. The History of Quiches Where are quiches from? Most people think of quiches as a classic part of French cuisine … and they are, but some sources say quiches actually got their start in a different European country — Germany. In fact, the word “quiche” comes from the German word kuchen, which means cake. Italian and English cuisines were also known for using eggs and cream in pastries dating back to the 13th and 14th centuries. (1) Quiche didn’t become popular in the United States until the 1950s. Throughout history and to this day, there have been many variations on quiche. If you’re looking for some ways to change this recipe up, you can also try: crustless spinach mushroom quiche (add about one cup of sliced mushrooms) crustless spinach feta quiche (opt for feta as your cheese of choice) crustless bacon spinach quiche (include a couple of chopped up strips of high-quality turkey or beef bacon) crustless fresh spinach quiche (simply use fresh spinach rather than frozen — a typical 10-ounce package of frozen spinach is equivalent to one pound of fresh spinach sautéed down to about one and half cups of spinach after draining) crustless spinach quiche with cottage cheese (cottage cheese is another healthy cheese option to use in quiche recipes) Crustless Spinach Quiche Nutrition Facts How many calories are in a slice of spinach quiche? One serving of this amazing spinach crustless quiche contains about: (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9) 200 calories 13.7 grams protein 13.9 grams fat 3 grams carbohydrates 1.3 grams fiber 1.7 grams sugar 27 milligrams cholesterol 253 milligrams sodium 132 micrograms vitamin K (110 percent DV) 4,641 IUs vitamin A (93 percent DV) 293 milligrams calcium (23 percent DV) 52 micrograms folate (13 percent DV) 1.4 milligrams iron (7.8 percent DV) 0.1 milligrams riboflavin (7.7 percent DV) 1 milligram vitamin E (6.7 percent DV) 27 milligrams magnesium (6.4 percent DV) 0.1 milligrams vitamin B6 (5.9 percent DV) 3.1 milligrams vitamin C (3.4 percent DV) 145 milligrams potassium (3.1 percent DV) 0.2 milligrams zinc (1.8 percent DV) As you can see, this healthy spinach quiche is truly loaded with so many key nutrients you should be getting in your diet on a daily basis. It’s also low in carbs yet high in energizing protein and fat. This just may end up being the best crustless quiche recipe you’ve ever tasted. How to Make Crustless Spinach Quiche How do you make a crustless quiche? You simply combine all of your ingredients in a well greased pie pan and bake. The eggshelp to hold all of the ingredients together really nicely and you won’t miss the crust at all. How do you make the filling for a quiche? You simply combine the cooked and raw ingredients with cheese and eggs. So simple! You can easily use this recipe to create crustless mini spinach quiches simply by choosing a few pieces of smaller bakeware rather than one large pie pan. Be sure to slightly reduce the cook time if you choose this option. And don’t forget that it’s easy to put your own twist on this recipe and create a crustless spinach and feta quiche, crustless spinach and mushroom quiche, spinach bacon quiche (turkey or beef bacon, of course) or a fresh spinach quiche. INGREDIENTS: 8 eggs, beaten 1 package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained 1½ cups shredded raw cheese 1 onion, chopped 1 tablespoon coconut oil + extra for greasing ¼ teaspoon sea salt ⅛ teaspoon black pepper DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9-inch pie pan with coconut oil. Heat coconut oil and onions over medium heat in sauce pan until onions are soft. Stir in spinach and cook until excess moisture has evaporated. In a bowl, combine eggs, cheese, salt and pepper. Stir. Add spinach mixture and blend together. Scoop into pan and bake for 30 minutes. I hope you enjoy this dish … any time of the day. This article has been modified. To read the original article click here. For more articles from Dr. Axe click here.

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