If there’s one recipe I come back to again and again in my own kitchen, it’s a traybake. Everything goes in one tin, the oven does the hard work, and the washing-up is next to nothing — exactly what you want on a busy weeknight. This summer vegetable and halloumi version is a favourite of mine, colourful, filling, and endlessly adaptable. It’s the sort of dish I teach my students early on, because once you’ve got the method, you can swap the vegetables for whatever’s in season or needs using up.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
It’s vegetarian without anyone missing the meat, thanks to the salty, satisfying halloumi. It’s ready in well under an hour, mostly hands-off. And it’s genuinely flexible — a true “anything goes” traybake that makes the most of summer produce at its cheapest and best.
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 1 courgette, cut into chunky half-moons
- 1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into chunks
- 1 yellow pepper, deseeded and cut into chunks
- 1 red onion, cut into wedges
- 250g cherry tomatoes, left whole
- 2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
- 250g halloumi, cut into 1cm slices
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- A handful of fresh basil, to serve
- Lemon wedges, to serve
Method
1. Heat the oven. Preheat to 200°C (180°C fan / gas mark 6). Pull out your largest roasting tin — you want the vegetables in a single layer so they roast rather than steam.
2. Prepare the vegetables. Tip the courgette, peppers, red onion, and garlic into the tin. Drizzle over 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, scatter on the oregano and smoked paprika, and season well with salt and pepper. Toss everything together with your hands until evenly coated.
3. First roast. Roast for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are starting to soften and catch a little colour at the edges. Give the tin a shake halfway through.
4. Add the tomatoes and halloumi. Take the tin out and scatter over the cherry tomatoes. Nestle the slices of halloumi in among the vegetables and brush them with the remaining tablespoon of oil.
5. Finish roasting. Return to the oven for a further 10 minutes, until the halloumi is golden and the tomatoes have begun to burst and turn jammy.
6. Serve. Scatter over the fresh basil and finish with a good squeeze of lemon. Serve straight from the tin while everything’s hot.
Serving Suggestions
This is lovely on its own as a light supper, but it stretches further with a few simple additions. Pile it onto warm flatbreads, spoon it over couscous or rice, or serve with crusty bread to mop up the lovely roasting juices. A dollop of garlicky yoghurt on the side never goes amiss either.
Make It Your Own
The beauty of a traybake is that nothing is set in stone. Swap in aubergine, mushrooms, or asparagus depending on the season. Add a tin of chickpeas with the vegetables for extra protein and bulk. Like a bit of heat? A pinch of chilli flakes works beautifully. This is exactly the kind of recipe I encourage everyone to play with — treat it as a method rather than strict rules.
A Few Teacher’s Tips
Cut your vegetables a similar size so they cook evenly. Don’t overcrowd the tin, or they’ll steam and go soggy rather than caramelising — use two tins if you need to. And pat the halloumi dry before adding it, so it browns nicely instead of releasing water.
This is honest, fuss-free home cooking at its best — a proper restaurant-quality plate made right in your own kitchen. Once it’s part of your repertoire, I promise it’ll earn its place on your weekly menu.
