Pickles and Sandwiches

Not both at the same time. The "pizza" stood alone...

Pickled Kula Carrots and Keiki Cucumbers; Oil Poached Mahimahi Salad, Organic Bitter greens tossed in Garlic-Wasabi Aioli, Applewood Smoked Bacon on toasted Organic bread

"Pizza" of Organic bread, marinara sauce, mozzarella and shrimp; red pepper flakes

Snippets of a Birthday Dinner 12/18/14

Entree: Macadamia Nut Wood Smoked NY Strip steak

Lilikoi-Nasturtium Flower-Bay Shrimp Butter

Ensalada: Mixed greens, bacon, goat cheese, edamame, vine-ripened tomato, macadama nut-parmesan crumbs

Tarte: Hazelnuts and Walnuts, Fresh Cranberries, Fresh Blackberries

Hawaiian Influence

Some fun and wonderfully simple foods for the summer 
- prepared indoors and finished on the BBQ

Kalua Pork Nachos

Slow roasted Kalua pork with Australian cheddar and Asiago cheeses before being baked on the BBQ. Below, garnished with scallion curls and chive flowers. This was served with freshly made Roasted Pineapple and Mango salsa with cilantro, mint and lime juice.

Mango-Balsamic Wings 

marinated for days and then baked to a gooey perfection!

Mango-Balsamic Marinade

For every 2 pounds of chicken: 

1 C mango nectar (I used frozen chunks from Trader Joe's, thawed, to measure 1 C)

1/3 C balsamic vinegar

2T olive oil

1-1/2 T fresh thyme, minced

S&P to taste 

If using chunks, puree in blender with remaining ingredients. If using nectar, combine all ingredients.

In my version of the recipe pictured, the wings were marinated for approximately 3 days and then cooked in a 400 degree oven (or BBQ) for 45 minutes, until the wing meat pulls easily from bone, falls apart or, they can be grilled until cooked through.

Cold, Damp and Raining

When a Saturday is nothing by a long day of cold, damp and rain, I think about warm, yummy meals. Yesterday was no exception.

We're all joking here about building an ark. The rains come in waves. You can hear them as they approach because the thunderous drumming of the heavy rain drops beat loudly on the leaves and it sounds like something frying on the stove. The burgeoning rainfall creates rivulets of brown water flowing rapidly, displacing anything in its way. The strong winds don't help much either, as they blow the wetness under the eaves on the overhanging roof and onto the floor, making it slick underfoot and this is where I work, outside on the lanai. And a telltale sign that it's miserable out is that I am wearing my black Ugg slippers...

If you think I am exaggerating, then come and visit. Welcome to Paradise.

I've been cleaning my studio by producing. After filling orders over the past weeks, and preparing for an event the day before Mother's Day the numerous hats and especially the large blankets that are cut and sewn leave smaller bits and pieces that can be utilized in other hat pieces and bibs. After spending the day fussy cutting and manipulating fabric to eke out every last usable - cuttable - sewable item that could be made it was my reward to play in the kitchen. 

I daren't run out in this mess - there are cautionary advisories on the radio about flash flooding and deep puddles, so I just stayed put and cleaned out the freezer. What follows is what I managed to put together for dinner - with leftovers for Sunday, of course!

So what I found was a duo of steaks: NY Strip steaks (you know, from the humgo pack from Costco), and a calamari steak. For myself I only need a couple or three potatoes, and steamed then sauteed spinach (again from the jumbo bag from Costco) and a gastronomical feast was slapped together.

 Oven roasted Yukon Gold and Red Bliss Potatoes. Nothing exceptionally fancy: Organic Virgin olive oil and Hawaiian Sea Salt

 Remember "Call Me Mr. Pickles blog?" here is the grilled calamari steak with a dressing of the Bread-and-Butter pickles, capers, garlic, olive oil, a shake of red pepper flakes and backyard lemon juice. I was skeptical of this brain-fart idea but it turned out salty-sweet-sour and a perfect compliment to the delicate flesh of the squid.

 New York Strip Steaks with a Kona Coffee-Spice rub, buttermilk bleu cheese and a web of garden chives. 

Steamed and sauteed spinach. Simple preparation again: garlic toasted in olive oil, kosher salt and a grind of black pepper.

The fabric in the background is Siren Song in color Earth.

I always neglect dessert. That being said, today I have decided to make a blackberry-lilikoi sorbet (hey, it's got to get warm and sunny sometime next week!) ;)

Call me Mr. Pickles

Bread and Butter pickles. Made from scratch. Crisp, green Keiki (baby) cukes. Organic raw sugar. Unfiltered cider vinegar and lots of spices: yellow mustard, celery and coriander seeds, whole allspice and cloves, fresh garlic, red and black pepper, and turmeric for color.

Washed and cut, packed into a wide mouth jar.

The sweetly spiced brine poured in for brining.

Next batch: Sour Kosher Dill

Like the Phoenix to Start Anew

I don't know about you but I always get this sense of renewal at the beginning of a new year. I'm full of hope and new ideas, and feel chuff that I can tackle anything, beliving that all things are possible. At the buffet of promised accomplishments and short-term goals, I fill my plate. And if not by the second day, then definitely the third, I am stuffed and now looking down at that helping with a keen and judicious eye. Goals, dreams and aspirations are one thing; sensible reality and honesty make it possible to see what it is that I am actually capable of accomplishing. 

So what it is that I am looking forward to achieving this year? Many things, all of which will be shared with you over the coming year. Keep checking back to see what I'm going to be up to in 2014...

For Christmas 2012 I made my mother a suite of linens for the dining table for the holidays. I used the designs from my GINGERBREADTOWN collection. This year when I arrived at my parents' house the table had been set with the table cloth, table runner and place mats. I did a bit of rearranging for the photo shoot to stylize it as it would be set for dinner.

For Christmas this year I made breakfast. Simple, decadent and completely satisfying.

Mom and I have been talking about savory waffles for some time now so I decided to follow through with this idea... that morning we had a BLT on Dubliner Irish cheddar cheese waffles with a fried egg on top, and for a sweet tooth, a trifle of plain greek yogurt drizzled with honey and layered with fresh blueberries, mango and pears.

Cheddar waffle batter in the waffle iron and crispy, cheese waffles

The early morning sun shining on the sunny side up egg, BLT and waffle, and with a dollop of what else? Hellman's mayonnaise.

Plain greek yogurt, honey, blueberries, mango and pears; crushed graham cracker

I travelled home with a bottle of PAU Maui Hawaiian pineapple vodka for dad. 

Poinsettias I fashioned from pastillage or gum paste for my birthday cake (I had a disaster with the sponge cake I made and rolled in a powder sugar-coated towel for the Yule log). Mom and dad came to the rescue and ran out and bought a Napoleon cake. I really like how the "black-and-white" geometric icing design juxtaposes the organic and realistic shapes and form of the flowers. BTW, the flowers are completely edible, save the wire and centers made of wire and yellow sewing thread.

One day of my stay I had hands-on training making perogies.

The dough was so springy and had such stretch and memory it was difficult to roll it out in a rectangular shape and it was even more challenging trying to cut rounds to shape and work around the fillings, which included (shown below) potato, farmer cheese and onion and my whacky concept of  kielbasi and shrimp egg roll filling. Mom also did sweet cabbage and I, sour cherries.

Potato and cheese, above, and egg roll, below.

Onions bubbling happily in butter to coat the cooked perogies.

Mom making perogies and as I have learned, taking photos with the iPhone camera isn't the same as shooting motion with the 35mm digital.

Assorted perogies laid out on floured towels drying a bit before being poached.

Sour cherry perogies cooking and after, drained.

Egg Roll perogies after cooking.

We calls these "worms" and are made of just the dough and are similar to cavatelli or spaetzle - these are my sister's favorite.

Cooked potato and cheese smothered in onions, and then pan fried to a crispy, delicious golden brown. YUM!!!

I cooked New Year's Eve dinner:

Chicken Costoletta, Wasabi-Roasted Garlic Mashed Pototoes, Haricot Vert Almondine, Mark's Waldorf Salad (celery root, granny smith and macintosh apples, golden raisins)

The return home: riding around my first day back with the top down I got a bit of sunburn (got pasty in NJ, LOL) and the next morning woke up with Frodo hair!

HAPPY 2014 EVERYONE!

One of MY Best Meals Ever!

Cooking, for me, like a good meal, has many layers. Many things considered, I enjoy doing it as a creative outlet and it is fun to be inspired by someone who sparks that creativity and has a good appetite. Yesterday I decided I wanted to do a nice meal for my friend Joy who has spent the last week with me and has been a wonderfully easy person to have visit and to say thanks for her reciprocated hospitality.

I did this based on the meals she has been ordering when we dine out and the meal came together without a hitch... and like magic, afterward, the pots-and-pan and dishes had all been washed!

Macadamia Nut Crusted fillet of Ono and Shrimp on a bed of Gingered Spinach, Roasted Purple Sweet Potato, Lilikoi Butter Sauce, Black Sesame Seed garnish

We could have licked the plates in the privacy of my home but we didn't ;)

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....