Spiced Lemon Quinoa

The South India original: Kavita Aiyar's mother made the region's traditional lemon rice scattered with channa dal (a yellow, lentil-like legume).

The Silicon Valley remake: Kavita cooks quinoa instead of rice (she likes the color of red quinoa especially) and adds spinach and other greens, "basically California-izing it," she says. She suggests split peas because they're easier to find than channa dal.

Recipe: Spiced Lemon Quinoa