This recipe was completely eyeballed, so all amounts are estimates; adjust to your tastes and preferences. If unsure, start with a little and add more if needed. Don’t be scared, it’s not that serious.
amount
ingredient
1 cup
strawberries, fresh, sliced
~15
mozzarella balls, fresh, small
2-3 T
basil pesto
to taste
salt
to taste
black pepper, fresh cracked
drizzle
olive oil
to taste
lemon juice, fresh
1 bag
spring mix
handful
arugula
2 T
balsamic vinaigrette
Process
Add all ingredients up through lemon juice into a bowl and mix thoroughly
In a separate bowl, mix the spring mix, arugula, and dress lightly with balsamic vinaigrette
To plate, fill individual salad bowls with salad greens and top with the strawberry caprese mix
Notes
toasted walnuts (or any other nut you prefer) would go great here
can pair with chicken breast as well for a protein boost
You can use any fresh mozzarella you want, I just had the little balls on hand, so that’s what I used; I tore them in half and squished them a bit
I pre-process most of my fresh ginger in the blender and freeze it for use in all my recipes, which makes this very simple. If you’re using fresh ginger, you can blend it with the water or grate it finely on a microplane.
Process
Ginger Water: mix ginger with water, set aside
Light Honey Simple Syrup: mix honey with water, stir until the honey is completely dissolved (a few minutes), set aside
in a tall glass, add ¼ cup each of the simple syrup and ginger water (strain if desired); add the lemon juice and swirl to mix
top up the glass with sparkling water
if desired, sprinkle a smidge of sea salt for added flavor
the salt will make the drink froth and bubble up, so make sure the glass isn’t so full that it will overflow, if adding the salt
Variation: Ginger POW
WARNING: Ginger can be a very strong spice, especially this variation which brings out more of the spiciness. Each individual has varying tolerances and health profiles, so proceed at your own risk. If you have any concerns, research the properties of ginger, and start with less of the ginger water. You can always add more later if you like.
Ginger water
to a small sauce pot, add the ginger and water and set it over a medium high flame
if you have an exhaust fan, turn it on as the spice from the ginger will aerate from the steam and can cause coughing or irritation
cook until the water reduces by about half, stirring occasionally (it won’t be half in overall volume because of the ginger)
once the water has reduced significantly, let cool
add the mixture to a high powered blender and blend until smooth, ~1 minute
strain the mixture (optional, sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t)
making the drink
Light Honey Simple Syrup: mix honey with water, stir until the honey is completely dissolved (a few minutes), set aside
in a tall glass, add ¼ cup of the simple syrup, the juice of 1 lemon, and 2 tablespoons of the ginger water
top up the glass with sparkling water, taste, and adjust the amount of ginger water to your preference
if desired, sprinkle a smidge of sea salt for added flavor
the salt will make the drink froth and bubble up, so make sure the glass isn’t so full that it will overflow, if adding the salt
Notes
Ginger Water
Store the ginger water (either version) in a glass jar in the fridge.
Use your best judgement regarding how long it will stay good for. If the taste, smell, or texture is off, feel free to toss it. If you don’t think you’ll be able to get through all of it before it goes off, freeze it in an ice cube tray for use later.
Remember that it is just a ginger and water concentrate, so feel free to repurpose it for other drinks, like tea, kava, meat marinades, dressings, etc. You can even toss it in your salans and curries.
Light Honey Simple Syrup
I typically make the simple syrup in a glass measuring cup and then just store it in the same vessel in the fridge (uncovered). You could put it into a squeeze bottle, mason jar, whatever you have on hand.
If in an airtight container, it supposedly can last up to a month in the fridge. Again, use your best judgement.
Sugar syrups are a great way to make many different drinks, so remember to stay flexible. Use it in teas, coffees, marinades, vinaigrettes, sauces, as a soak for a sponge cake, etc.
cover and chill for at least 1 hour before serving
Notes
The covering and chilling is actual pretty vital to this recipe, although it’s tempting to skip the step. If you eat it right away, the flavors will feel off and disjointed, maybe too sweet or too tart. But once it’s had a chance to meld together in the fridge, everything becomes much more cohesive.
score potatoes (for easy-peel) and set to boil in salted water
OR set on trivet in Instant Pot with a cup of water for (8-10 minutes)
can also cover with water in Instant Pot (without trivet)
OR pierce with a knife and microwave until cooked through (5-10 minutes)
mix the yogurt with milk to thin out until desired consistency is reached (keep it thinner than you want the final dish to be since the pallay will soak up the liquid and thicken the overall mixture, as will refrigeration)
add spices, chickpeas; whisk and set aside in fridge
prepare the pallay batter by adding all the ingredients to a bowl and mixing until there are no lumps; you may need to scrape some lumps against the bottom and sides of the bowl to crush them. use as much water as needed to get a runny consistency, something like crepe batter.
heat frying oil in wok, sauce pot, or something deeper than a frying pan, preferably
drain potatoes, peel, and refrigerate until they’re easy to handle; cubing hot potatoes is a hassle and causes crumbling/smushing
when the oil is ready, dollop blobs and strings of batter in and fry in batches until light or golden brown. vary the shapes so you have some dumpling shapes and some thinner strings or dots. dump fried pallay into large mixing bowl. repeat until all batter is used up.
cover fried pallay in water for 1-2 minutes; check to see that even the hard pieces have softened up, then drain completely and add to yogurt mixture
cube chilled potatoes, add to yogurt mixture
mix until everything is thoroughly coated; refrigerate and serve once fully chilled
Notes
recipe as written is a bare-bones base to build off of; but I often like it just like this
mix-ins & toppings
tomatoes
thin-sliced onions
some like to sweeten this dish with a little sugar (to taste)
a drizzle of tamarind chutney adds sour / tangy notes
dahi palla are often served with chaat masala sprinkled on top as a garnish and to add color
I use 2 T to be on the safe side, you can get away with using less than that.
Process
Instant Pot
Pour 1 cup of water in the instant pot, set in the trivet and then place 1 glass jar into the pot.
Fill jar with 3 cups of milk (you can skip step 1 and pour the milk directly into the pot).
Cover jar with foil or some other loose-fitting, heat-proof cover
Steam: 1 minute
After cycle completes and pot is safe to open, let milk cool to room temp and add yogurt; mix to incorporate.
Shut the lid (no need to seal) and press yogurt button; let incubate for 8 hours (it should begin counting down from 8:00).
Refrigerate
Stovetop
Bring 3 cups of milk to a rolling boil in a medium sauce pot, then turn off the heat and let it cool to room temp.
Pour milk into whatever container it’s meant to set in (old yogurt container, glass jar, etc.). Add 2 T yogurt, mix, and set to incubate in a warm environment (such as the oven with the oven light turned on or a warm area near the stove) for 8 hours.
Refrigerate
Notes
If yogurt is still a bit runny after 8 hours, let it incubate for longer, up to or exceeding an additional 8 hours. It’ll be fine.
Yogurt will set up further while refrigerated.
Sugar or some flavorings can be added during incubation, though I’ve never tried this.
Yogurt can be used any way store-bought plain yogurt would be.
Strain for thicker consistency (“Greek style”).
Can add milk powder as a thickener, or heavy cream though I’ve never tried either.
A cup of balsamic vinegar can be cooked down as-is into a thick, syrupy glaze. This is my preferred method, which I find sweet enough. If you must add sugar, use the recipe below.
Ingredients
Amount
Ingredient
1 cup
balsamic vinegar
1 T
sugar
Any kind of sugar should work here (cane, raw, brown, granulated,). I would avoid powdered, as I haven’t tested that and it tends to behave in sometimes unexpected ways.
Process
Add all ingredients in a small sauce pot set on medium high heat.
Boil until reduced by half or desired consistency is reached.
Cool to room temp before using (optional)
Notes
Extra reduction can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container, preferably glass.
Pairs great with caprese salad, bruschetta, caprese appetizers, drizzled on artisanal pizzas, in paninis, etc. Some rave about drizzling it over vanilla ice cream.
