Chickpea Salad in Parmesan Bowl by him :-)

Hope you all had a beautiful weekend! We had a lovely time over Diwali, had loads of good food and sweets and the icing on the cake was that my hubby made this recipe for me over the weekend. I really really loved this one. He is a cheese freak and I am turning into one too, well, trying to...I do not like all varieties yet, especially the strong and pungent ones, but have definitely developed a taste for many kinds of cheeses. 

This parmesan cheese bowl tastes absolutely fantastic, it's easy to make and looks great too. It's also always an eye-catcher when we invite people over for a meal. You can also shape it almost any way you want while its still hot. It needs to be eaten fresh, however - the same day is fine, overnight it becomes dry and hard.

The cheese bowls work very well with any kind of salad or pasta. We had some chickpeas and some greens lying aruond, so used these in the salad. Other types of hard cheeses generally also work (but not all, so be careful!) - but the unique taste of parmesan makes it unequalled.

Of course, the best part about this recipe was...He did all the cooking, I was pampered like a child, and I totally loved it !!! :-)

Ingredients for the salad

1 cup - chickpeas, boiled

100 gram - corn salad / lamb's lettuce (Feldsalat)

1 - yellow tomato, chopped

walnuts, roughly chopped

For the dressing

4 tbsp - balsamico vinegar

4 tbsp - chilli oil

1 tbsp - honey (more or less)

salt and pepper to taste

(to be mixed together)

For the cheese bowl

120 grams - parmiggiano reggiano (parmesan), grated

Method 

1. Mix the ingredients of the salad, except the walnuts in a bowl, toss in the dressing and let it stand for 15-20 mins.
2. Spread the grated cheese on a non stick pan in a rough circle, 15cm to 20cm in diameter, according to the size of the pan and the size of the bowl you want.
3. Place the pan on a medium flame and let the cheese cook for a minute to a minute and a half, until it turns slightly brownish and stops "sweating" oil. 
4. Carefully remove the cheese with a spatula. Immediately, while still hot, place the cheese "plate" onto the backside of a bowl (or any other shape you want). 
5. Press very gently into the shape of the bowl with a piece of tissue paper or a napkin.
6. Remove carefully and let the cheese bowl cool and harden for a few minutes.
7. Fill in the salad into the bowl, garnish with the walnuts, and serve!

Enjoy!