Getting Back Into the Swing of Things and Looking Forward to Saturday

Whew! What a couple of weeks it has been! I hope everyone who stops by here has been doing well and that despite record temperatures, odd weather, current events and personal affairs that you've all been doing well.

I have become obsessed with my hats. I am fortunate to say they are doing well at retail in the shops I had prior to going into the summer and now, I've added a few more and really upped the ante. No sooner do I finish adding to the inventory when another order comes in and I practically wipe out my newly finished stock.

Sole proprietorship. Flying solo. CEO, VP, mail clerk, secretary, cleaning service... you name it and I wear the hat in this company. So needless to say, I'm pooped.

And I know... things could be worse.

To add to that, I have put out some extensive and exhausting posts recently: The Mirror Ball Dot Blog Hop and SHAG: A Tale of Mammoth Proportions give-away to name a few... so as I stated in the title of the post, I am Getting Back Into the Swing of Things by resuming with publishing mini-posts containing snippets and blurbs of my daily life.

Today, I am exploring sustainable cooking.

I recently made two new friends who are avid foodies and I have once again been bitten by the culinary bug. I have a renewed reason to explore food and be experimental, creative and daring or with less vernacular: I have an audience so I can be a show-off!

This Saturday we're doing something fun and going to a Pie TweetUp.

In a pie shell it's a social event:

July’s Pie Tweetup!

Photo by www.chefjana.com

Hosted By: @KulaFields @DaniaEdibleHi @KupuMaui

Hashtag:   #KupuMaui

You’re Invited to our 3rd Annual Pie Tweetup

Saturday July 20, 2013 10:00 am – 1:00 pm

• Free event and open to the public
• Make a pie to share made with a focus on local ingredients
• Remember we like both sweet and savory pies
• Invite family & friends to bake with you
• Use the hashtag #KupuMaui on facebook, twitter & instagram
• No store bought pies, please

If you want to attend and don’t bake or are on vacation, please come and bring: Eco-friendly Paper Plates (no styrofoam, please), Ecofriendly forks, napkins and eco-friendly cups. Please emailinfo@KupuMaui.com for a list of needs.

Today I told my mom about it and one of my ideas for a pie to bring. Her response was oozing with skepticism (in the best way), "You might want to make one before, just to make sure it works out...."

I have my concept, I did my research, I have my skills and taste buds, and no one has ever perished from my cooking. It's all gonna be good. I am not holding back on revealing my pie to be selfish; I am only doing so in case mom is proven right... =\

And then that evening I'll have my foodie friends over for dinner. I have a nice menu planned and again, I'm not not telling in case I change my mind a hundred-million times before then BUT as I stated above, I am going to explore sustainable food.

By sustainable I mean - today it hit me while looking at the thicket of elephant bamboo on the property that bamboo shoots are an edible. I equated sustainablewith bamboo because it has become one of the more prominent players in the discussion regarding sustainability. So I trotted on over to the tall, swaying poles, clacking together like rooted wind chimes in the gentle afternoon breezes and low-and-behold!

SHOOTS!(or as Gollum would say, "SHOOTSES!")

More shoots.

Shoots removed from the base of the plants. 

 The fibrous outer husk removed revealing the tender heart.

 The shoots cut in half. I don't know about you but I see 

the faces of one-eyed space creatures with open mouths shaped like lips...

The halves are now submerged under a small plate in a bowl of water to keep them hydrated while I do more research into preparing them for cooking. Instinctively I think they need to be poached or parboiled in a brine with salt or an acid like vinegar or lemon juice and since we're going to be grilling, to slice and oil them, grill quickly, julienne and toss with a vinaigrette. Lemongrass, mushrooms and even pineapple come to mind too... maybe something Thai inspired.

To be continued....