Dinner
Sindhi chicken curry
Vegetable samosas

Dessert
Cherry pie

Cocktails
Tangerine chapalas

Recipes:

SINDHI CHICKEN CURRY
1 Tbs. peanut oil
6 chicken legs, skin removed
1 Tbs. ground coriander
2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
1/2 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
1 tsp. salt, or to taste
4 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed to break the skin
1 1/2 Tbs. peeled minced fresh ginger
6 large cloves garlic, minced
large handful green onions, both white and green parts, chopped
2 large onions, finely chopped
4 large tomatoes, finely chopped
1 c. chopped cilantro
1/2 to 1 jalapeño, minced
1 c. nonfat plain yogurt, whisked until smooth

Heat the oil in a large saucepan or stockpot over medium-high heat and brown the chicken legs on all sides.
Add spices and vegetables and cook, stirring, about 5 minutes.
Add the yogurt a little at a time, stirring to prevent curdling. Cook over medium-high heat for 3 minutes, then cover and cook over medium-low heat for about 45 minutes. Halfway through the cooking time, pull some of the meat from the bones with a fork.

VEGETABLE SAMOSAS
I did something really brave/foolish after I made these: I took four of the best-looking ones down to the corner store and presented them to Michael, one of the Pakistani owners. He spotted them before I even got in the door. "What you got there?" he demanded, grinning.
He said they looked perfect, wanted to know where I learned to make them (that would be Neelam Batra's cookbook, as usual), and was thrilled when I knew that Pakistan had been partitioned out of northwestern India and therefore shared a lot of the same cuisine.
"You know our festival of Ramadan?" he asked me. "We eat samosas to break the fast." And with that, he took a bite of one. He pronounced it very good, although he urged me to make them spicier next time. Then he eyeballed me mock-suspiciously. "You sure you don't know somebody or something?"
I floated home. What a great compliment!

Spice mixture
1/4 c. ground coriander
1 Tbs. dried crumbled fenugreek leaves
1 Tbs. dried crumbled mint leaves
1 Tbs. ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp. minced fennel seeds
1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp. mango powder
1 1/2 tsp. minced dried pomegranate seeds
1 1/2 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. ground paprika
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

Mix together in a bowl. Makes a little more than 1/2 cup.

Filling
2 or 3 Tbs. spice mixture, above
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
as many minced chiles as you dare
1 Tbs. peeled and minced ginger
4 c. very finely chopped mixed vegetables (e.g., a potato, some cauliflower, some peas, half a green pepper, a carrot or two, and a bit of cabbage)
1/2 tsp. salt, or to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a large nonstick wok pan over medium-high heat. Add the spice mixture--it should sizzle upon contact with the oil. Quickly add the onion and stir-fry 2 minutes.
Add the remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat for the first 3 minutes. Then reduce the heat and continue cooking and stirring until the vegetables are soft. Remove from heat and let cool before using.

Dough
1 1/2 c. self-rising flour
3 Tbs. vegetable oil
1/2 tsp. minced ajwain seeds
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 c. water
all-purpose flour for rolling out

Place the flour, oil, ajwain seeds, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to mix. With the motor running, pour the water in in a slow stream. Process until the dough gathers into a semi-firm ball that pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Remove to a floured bowl and let rest at least 1 hour to allow the gluten to develop. If keeping for longer than a few hours, refrigerate.
To create "wrappers," lightly oil your clean hands. Divide the dough into 12 equal balls. Working with each ball separately, flatten it into a disc with your fingers and dredge it lightly in flour. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough with a rolling pin into a 6- or 7-inch circle. If the dough sticks to the counter, flour it again. Cut each circle in half so that you get 24 half-circle-shaped wrappers.

To assemble:
Brush half of the straight edge of the wrapper with water. Overlap it around the outside of the other half of the straight edge, forming a cone. Make sure the point of the cone is sealed.
Cup the cone in your fingers and fill with a couple tablespoons of filling. Brush the insides of the top of the cone with water and seal it shut. You should end up with a triangular pastry.
Repeat for the other 23 samosas.
Heat a couple inches of peanut oil in a cast-iron skillet until it ripples a little on top but does not smoke. Carefully drop several samosas at a time into the oil and fry a couple minutes on each side until golden, bubbly, and crispy. If the samosas brown too quickly or get dark spots, turn the heat down slightly. Transfer to paper towels to drain, then serve.

CHERRY PIE
pastry for a 9-inch double-crust pie
cherries*
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. cornstarch
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. cherry liquid
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
1 Tbs. butter
1/4 tsp. almond extract
milk and sugar for the top of the pie

Drain cherries and reserve 1 c. liquid.
Combine sugar, starch, and salt in a saucepan. Gradually add cherry liquid and lemon juice. Blend till smooth. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until thick and clear. Remove from heat.
Stir in butter, almond extract, and cherries. Pour into bottom pie crust and top with other crust. Cut a vent in the top. Brush top of crust with milk and sprinkle with sugar.
Bake at 450 degrees F for 10 minutes, then at 375 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden-brown and bubbling.

*I buy fresh tart cherries from a fruit farm in Ohio and freeze them in pie-sized packages (5 c. cherries + 1 c. sugar). Therefore, the amount of sugar called for in my cherry pie recipe assumes that the cherries are in a syrup. If you use canned tart cherries, you'll need two 1-lb. cans and you'll need to up the sugar by an additional half-cup.

TANGERINE CHAPALA
Per drink:
1 shot tequila
1/2 shot triple sec
1/2 shot maraschino cherry juice
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
1 Tbs. fresh tangerine juice
1 maraschino cherry

Combine tequila, triple sec, cherry juice, lemon juice, and tangerine juice in a shaker with ice. Shake vigorously. Strain into an ice-filled hurricane glass and garnish with cherry.