Sweet Garlic Basil Sausage and Halloumi Kebabs

This dish might sound fancy, but in actuality it is super-easy! I love making kebabs, because they are easy prep and easy cleanup. These kebabs are different than any I have made before, because I included sausage, apple, eggplant and CHEESE! I had not heard of halloumi cheese until recently. It is the only cheese that can be grilled because it doesn't melt! It is made from sheep's milk, and it holds its shape and consistency, even at high temperatures. It tastes a little like mozzarella, and the texture is unique. However, Thing 2 loved it, so I conclude that it is kid-friendly!

This is perfect for a weeknight meal, especially if you cut the sausage and cheese the night before. You can also make the dressing ahead of time.  This dressing prep was even more of a snap because I used Gourmet Garden garlic and basil pastes. I received some tubes to try when I attended Big Summer Potluck in July. They have many different varieties, including lemongrass, Italian herb, cilantro, ginger, dill, parsley, and chili pepper.

They are actual herbs that are mashed up and made into a paste, and as such they need to be refrigerated, but they last longer than store-bought bunches of herbs and they taste better than the dried versions, so they are really handy to have around! They make weeknight cooking quick and easy. I loved not having to peel and chop cloves of garlic for this dressing. All I had to do was squeeze a tube and and, voila!, I had fresh garlic in my dressing.

I decided to use eggplant in this recipe, but you could skip it or substitute zucchini if you don't like eggplant. I usually cut produce right before preparing the skewers when possible, so that it is still nice and fresh when it goes on the grill. It only takes a few minutes to cut the eggplant and apple into chunks. One trick you can use is to place the apple chunks in a bowl of cold water with some lemon juice added until you are ready to use them. That will keep the chunks juicy and fresh for grilling and keep them from turning brown.

The apple butter dressing with garlic and basil tasted so good everything! I was glad I reserved some for dipping.

Disclosure:  I was provided with Gourmet Garden samples as a function of participating in Big Summer Potluck 2013, and subsequently used them in this recipe which will be entered in a recipe contest sponsored by Gourmet Garden. I was not compensated for writing this post and all opinions are my own.

📋 Recipe Card

Sweet Garlic Basil Sausage and Halloumi Kebabs

Recipe Author: Kristin

Sweet and savory come together on skewers with sausage, halloumi cheese, apples, and eggplant coated with a mouthwatering garlic basil apple butter dressing!

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Course Entree

Cuisine American

Servings 6

Calories 197 kcal

Ingredients

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ ⅔ cup apple butter
• ▢ 2 tablespoons canola oil
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Gourmet Garden Garlic Paste
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Gourmet Garden Basil Paste
• ▢ 2 tablespoons water
• ▢ 1 red delicious apple (cut into chunks)
• ▢ 1 eggplant (cut into chunks)
• ▢ 1 package pre-cooked chicken Italian sausage (cut into chunks)
• ▢ 1 package Halloumi cheese (cut into chunks)

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Instructions

 

• Whisk together apple butter, canola oil, garlic paste, basil paste, and water. Add salt to taste. Set aside.
  ⅔ cup apple butter, 2 tablespoons canola oil, 1 tablespoon Gourmet Garden Garlic Paste, 1 tablespoon Gourmet Garden Basil Paste, 2 tablespoons water
• Place the chunks of apple, eggplant, chicken sausage, and halloumi cheese in a large bowl.
  1 red delicious apple, 1 eggplant, 1 package pre-cooked chicken Italian sausage, 1 package Halloumi cheese
• Pour about ¾ of the dressing in the bowl and toss to coat.
• Preheat grill to medium-high.
• Thread the chunks of apple, eggplant, sausage, and cheese on skewers, in any order desired.
• Place on the grill and cook, about 3 minutes per side, until the apple and eggplant begin to soften.
• Serve with the remainder of the dressing on the side for dipping. Enjoy!

Notes

Nutrition information approximate. Your results may be different due to different brands/products and measuring differences.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 197kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 145mg | Potassium: 283mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 50IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 0.5mg

Nutritional information is an estimate. The nutritional values for your final dish may vary based on measuring differences and products used.

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Enjoy!