By Chana Steiner

Prep by Shaindy Sturman

Styling and photography by Chay Berger

Protein, carb, vegetables—sometimes it can be hard to get all those components into a well-balanced meal. These recipes incorporate everything you need for a nourishing brunch, lunch, or light supper, all in one bowl. Think of the ingredient list as suggestions; you can also pick and choose salad components based on what you have available.

Mozzarella Salad with Pesto Dressing

You can just call this pizza salad for short! This is a fun and flavorful salad with its cheesy, crunchy homemade mozzarella cubes, sun-dried tomatoes, walnuts, and pesto dressing. Instead of the cubes, you can use feta, fresh mozzarella, or even parmesan as a shortcut.

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 6 oz. romaine lettuce
• ¾ cup sun-dried tomatoes
• 4 oz. mushrooms, sliced
• 1 cup bagel chips
• ½ cup walnuts (optional)

Mozzarella sticks

• 6 string cheese sticks, cut into four cubes each
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 egg
• ½ cup seasoned breadcrumbs
• Oil for frying

Pesto dressing

• 16 frozen basil cubes
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ cup olive oil

Directions:

Ahead of time, bread and freeze the mozzarella cubes. Dredge mozzarella cubes in flour, then dip in egg. Coat well with seasoned breadcrumbs. Freeze overnight.

Combine all pesto ingredients in a small bowl.

Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat (alternatively, you can do this step in a pizza maker). Fry mozzarella cubes until golden, 2–3 minutes per side.

To assemble the salad, place lettuce, tomatoes, and mushrooms on each of four plates. Top with mozzarella cubes, bagel chips, and walnuts. Drizzle with pesto.