Potato Cutlet Recipe (Indian Snack)

Aloo cutlets are pancake-shaped snacks made of potato (aloo means "potato" in Urdu). Indian cooking rarely uses eggs as a binder so to make sure the patties don't break, soaked bread is added to the potato mixture. It's an easy vegetarian snack that satisfies my family's cravings. To make the cutlets a more complete meal, I added protein-packed chana dal (garbanzo lentils). I flavored these appetizers with a little ginger, turmeric and amchur (mango powder) to balance the flavor of the cutlets.

We often make a huge batch of cutlets on Saturday mornings with the girls. They’ve gotten so good that they pretty much do it on their own. Once they’re done cooking, we usually just serve them with a bowl of sour cream. Yum!

Paneer Masala Pizza (Indian Style Pizza Recipe)

I ventured into the world of fusion and decided to break the rules by making pizza with Indian toppings. I prepared a traditional paneer butter masala with a mixture of flavorful, bold spices. I used the spicy sauce as the primary flavor for the pizza. In addition, I sprinkled a little Parmesan cheese to hold everything together and finished it with fresh cilantro.

The trick to coming up with your own fusion dishes is to use one recipe as the “base” and then replace a key ingredient with something from another culture. The sauce and cheese used on pizza are perfect targets and paneer butter masala takes care of both. If you wanted to make it even more Indian, you could replace the pizza crust with a naan. It’s a great way to introduce new foods to kids in a way that’s familiar but fresh.

Doogh Recipe (Persian Yogurt Drink)

If you're familiar with Persian food, you might have already tasted doogh, which is the traditional yogurt  (or curdled milk) drink that accompanies Iranian dishes. It's one of my husband's favorite drinks.

Unlike Indian sweet lassi, the taste of this yogurt drink is unique; it's more savory and tart rather than sweet. The preparation is fairly simple. Just combine, plain yogurt, carbonated water (you could also use still filtered water), dried mint and a few other flavorings. This cold drink is not only refreshing for hot summer days but also can be used as an all-natural nausea remedy, thanks to the properties of the mint.

Toor Dal with Drumstick Vegetables (Indian Lentil Recipe)

If you're not familiar with drumsticks, they are long, thin, green pods commonly used in Indian cuisine. They are often used in sambar soup but they can also be a substitute for spinach or green beans in dal dishes.

I prepared toor dal, which is the most common lentil paired with drumsticks, although I've seen this dish prepared with mung beans and chana dal (garbanzo) as well. To guarantee optimum tenderness, I choose immature drumsticks at the market; otherwise they become a little too fibrous. When the lentils are soft and gravy-like, drumsticks are added. The drumsticks are chewed until all the artichoke-like texture is eaten, then the outer skin is discarded. If you can get your hands on some, give them a try. They're definitely out of the ordinary.

Korma Curry Recipe: Goat Meat with Okra

Goat korma with okra is a spicy Indian curry dish. We usually serve it when my husband Lulu's family comes over for dinner as the rest of his family isn't vegetarian. To the Western palate, goat meat and okra wouldn't be an obvious choice of ingredients but they're very complementary.

To certain people, goat meat can have a strong taste, but I find that the meat at my local Indian market tastes wonderful and is very tender. Okra has a bad reputation as well due to its texture once boiled. I personally love this dish and could eat it by the pound, dipping rotis (Indian flat bread) in the spicy gravy sauce. At the very least, it’s a dish that will broaden your horizons.