Apple Banana Mac Nut Chocolate Ice Cream

5 large apple bananas
1 8 ounce container Meadow Gold yogurt (I used haupia but other flavors would be great also. Meadow Gold has most of its cows on the Big Island, some on Oahu. You can use more yogurt for additional creaminess - play around with amounts)
20 or so roasted cacao beans (I used Hilo Shark's Hawaiian roasted cacao, purchased at Island Naturals Hilo)
1/2 cup mac nut butter (I used Baby Bruddahs Mac-Nut Buttah purchased at Island Naturals Hilo)

Blend everything together in a blender and freeze over night. Top with shavings of Hawaiian chocolate (I used Hilo Shark's 85% cacao chocolate bar) and roasted mac nuts (from Hamakua Macadamia Nut Co)

Roast Leg of Lamb, Pineapple Relish, Mashed Pumpkin, roasted Maui onions

Roast lamb according to: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/roast_leg_of_lamb/

roast with vegetables such as maui onions, sweet potatoes, green onions, carrots, etc. I roasted some squash chunks then mashed them.

Serve with pineapple relish: maui onion, bell pepper, mint, pineapple, salt/pepper

Dinner July 31

The eggplant recipe is adapted from the 1994 "The Farmer's Market is Cookin'" recipe book, authored by Sandy Knies Foley Bonk.

1 eggplant (BI)
3 garlic cloves minced
1 large heirloom tomato (BI - real beauties from Aurora at the Hilo FM)
Chevre (Puna Goat Farm - I used one of their flavored varieties, Tomato Chive)
oil for sauteeing (non-local)

Slice eggplant 1/4 inch and grill in saute pan in a bit of oil. In the leftover oil, cook garlic. Mix with chevre. In a baking pan, layer tomatoes also sliced 1/4 inch, eggplant, and a dollop of chevre. This can also be topped with tomato sauce. Bake for 25 minutes in a 350 degree pre-heated oven.

July 30th

Breakfast was again, sorry this is so repetitive, eggs with onions/hamakua mushrooms. Lunch was spicy tuna poke over asian salad: This is a very simple salad made even easier with Suisan's lovely spicy tuna poke. The salad is napa cabbage (BI), green onions (BI), carrots (BI) and avocado (BI). The dressing is wasabi (non-local), lemon juice (BI), vinegar (non-local), sugar (Maui), toasted sesame oil (non-local) and calamansi lime juice (BI).


Dinner: Garlic Aku in Ti Leaf

(post baking, closed)





When served open:


I grilled some Maui onions with garlic till they were caramelized and then spooned them on some fresh aku from Suisan. The ti leaves were cut from the back yard and then wrapped and tied around the fish, cooked at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. Super Duper ONO!

Dessert July 29

This is SINFULLY good

Carmelized Red Cuban Bananas


2 or 3 Cuban bananas (BI)
3 T butter (non-local)
3 T honey (BI)
1 t vanilla (BI)
dash salt (BI)

Peel and cut the bananas into 1/4 inch slices. Heat the remaining ingredients in a saute pan over low-medium heat. Cook the bananas about 4-5 minutes per side, or until they begin to carmelize. Once we are off the "diet", we will serve this over ice cream but it is really marvelous as is.

Dinner July 29

Steak Salad with Hawaiian Lemon Pesto Dressing



1 pound round eye steak (BI)
3 cloves garlic (non-local)
1/2 C soy sauce (non-local)
salt/pepper
1 large bunch basil (BI)
1/4 C coconut oil (non-local)
Juice of 2 lemons (BI)
salad greens (BI)

Marinate the steak for a couple of hours in the garlic, soy sauce and salt/pepper. Use a food processor to blend the rest of the ingredients for dressing. Sear steak quickly on each side. Let rest, and slice on top of salad greens. Top with dressing.

Breakfast and lunch July 29

Breakfast: Omelette with onions and hamakua mushrooms.

Lunch: the last of the pot roast.

July 28

We had the very last of the curry this morning, mixed with some scrambled eggs, for breakfast. Lots of pot roast so this was lunch. Snacked on coconut strips (BI), lychee, and mango. Ahhh - mango season!

Dinner: Grilled Ahi with Chevre Stuffed Mushrooms
served with sweet mashed potatoes and water apples




These mushrooms were delicious and the idea came straight from Chong Kim from Hamakua Mushrooms. She and I were chatting at the Hilo FM at the Hamakua Mushroom booth when she told me how she will core their large oyster mushrooms and then bake. The coring was a little tough with the smaller mushrooms but do-able. I baked them for about half an hour at 375.
The ahi was salted/peppered and flash grilled. Sweet potatoes were cooked in the micro whole and then seasoned with salt/pepper and a bit of butter.

Dinner July 27

Leftover pot roast.

Locovore Brunch! July 27

The Slow Food Movement had a lovely locovore brunch at Huli Sue's today - local fish, mushrooms, jams, baked goods; it was GREAT. And nice to have someone else cook for a change! :)

Dessert July 26

Pumpkin Pie with Macadamia Nut Crust



2 C cooked pumpkin (BI)
3 eggs (BI)
1 1/2 t pumpkin pie seasoning (non-local)
dash salt (BI)
6 oz mac nuts chopped (BI)
1/2 C cooconut flour

For the crust, use a food processor to blend the mac nuts, flour and one egg. Press into a 10 inch pie crust. Blend the rest of the ingredients and fill the pie tin, baking for about 1 hour at 350.

Dinner July 26 -- cheating a bit on this one

Pork Roast with Root Vegetables



It's Marcus' birthday today so we splurged a bit and indulged in pork from Oahu. My understanding is that there is one remaining hoggery in Ka'u but that it's difficult to find their meat. Otherwise, you must find a pig hunter for BI pork.

This is a straight-forward crock pot recipe and you can play around with the vegetables. I used tapioca (a bit stringy for my taste), new red potatoes, carrots and onions. For seasoning, I used a quart packet of marinara I had prepared ahead (see recipe July 4) and some additional salt/pepper, Worcestershire and bay leaves. I left this in the crock pot on low for about 8 hours.

Breakfast and lunch July 26

Breakfast: eggs with veggies

Lunch: leftover fish curry

Dinner July 25

Coconut Curry Fish



2 onions (Maui)
2 T coconut oil (Island Harvest)
3 cloves garlic (non-local)
1 T curry powder (non-local)
1 t freshly grated ginger (BI)
3-4 basil leaves, finely chopped (BI)
2 T "Thai Spice" (this is purchased prepared from Guinea Grass Farms at the Hilo FM. It has finely chopped lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaf, garlic and chili pepper, all BI)
1 C coconut milk (BI, made from scratch. For instructions on how to make the milk, go here: http://www.thenaughtyvegan.com/coconut.htm
3 bell peppers (BI) - preferably different colors
1 lb Naigari (Suisan)

Stir fry onion in oil until translucent. Add garlic and stir fry until the garlic starts to turn brown. Add curry and ginger and stir fry for about 5 minutes.
Add the fish and carefully fry each side for a 2/3 minutes. Add coconut milk and cook until done. Stir in basil right before serving. If you want it thicker, use a cornstarch slurry. Served with rice (non-local).

Lunch July 25

Leftover tuna burgers

Breakfast July 25

Stuffed Frittata Rolls



You can really put anything inside this frittata roll. It just so happens that I had extra ricotta/shiitake stuffing leftover in the fridge so that's what I used as a filling. For the frittata:

3 large eggs (BI)
1 tablespoon minced fresh Italian parsley (BI)
salt/pepper

Whisk ingredients until frothy. Heat 1/2 teaspoon oil in 8-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/3 of egg mixture (scant 1/4 cup) to skillet, swirling pan to coat bottom evenly in very thin layer. Cook until eggs are set and lightly browned on bottom, about 45 seconds. Turn frittata over and cook until set and slightly golden, about 30 seconds. Transfer to plate. Repeat with remaining egg mixture and oil for a total of 3 frittatas. Place frittatas on work surface. Divide whatever filling you are going to use, spreading out to edges. Roll up each frittata jelly-roll style. Wrap frittatas individually in plastic. Chill overnight. Unwrap frittatas. Cut on diagonal into 3/4-inch-thick slices. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Dinner July 24

Tuna Burgers



1 lb ahi tuna (Suisan)
3-4 basil leaves (BI)
1 T wasabi (non-local)
1 large red bell pepper (BI)
1 small maui onion (Maui)
salt/pepper

Grind everything together in a food processor and cook as you would a regular hamburger. We had some lovely poi rolls left over brought by dinner guests the other night so we used those to complete the burger. Served with some grilled Hamakua mushrooms.

Breakfast and lunch July 24

Breakfast: eggs with onions and mushrooms.

Lunch: leftover stuffed peppers

Dinner July 23

Ricotta and Shiitake Stuffed Sweet Peppers


3 Onion chopped (Maui)
6 garlic cloves minced (non-local)
1 lb Ground Beef (BI)
1 lb shiitake mushrooms chopped (Hamakua Mushrooms)
1 C chopped new red potatoes (BI)
4 large sweet peppers (BI)
16 ounces ricotta (Puna Goat Farm)
Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper to taste

Saute garlic and onion. Add ground beef and mushrooms and cook until done. Add potatoes and cook until softened. Cut tops from peppers and remove inner seeds and white flesh. Fill with mixture and replace tops. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

Tonight's side dishes were: superb poi rolls courtesy of our dinner guests - thank-you! as well as a broccoli spinach stir fry and salad. Dessert: figs from Akaka Falls and white pineapple (BI).

Breakfast and Lunch July 23

A simple breakfast of leftover mango pancakes and fruit. Lunch was the very last of the Indian Stew. I picked up a beautiful Star Apple at the Farmer's Market today - it was juicy and sweet with almost a plum-like essence. We gobbled it down before we could take a picture...next time!

Dinner July 22

Grilled Marlin with Kale/Shiitake/Potato side dish


served with delicious white pineapple (BI) that is SO in season right now!

2 marlin steaks (Suisan)
1 lime (or several Key limes) (BI)
2-3 T of Bragg's (non-local)
2 cloves of garlic, finely minced or ground into paste (non-local)
1 t ginger, finely minced or ground into paste (BI)
1 t toasted sesame oil (non-local)

Mix all ingredients but marlin. Marinate the marlin in the mixture, refrigerated, at least 4 hours (I did 24 hours). Heat cast iron skillet or saute pan and grill each side for about 5 minutes on medium high heat.

For the side dish, I sauteed garlic and onion (both non-local) till onion was translucent. Added sliced new red potatoes (BI), and after they began to soften, added about 10 kale leaves (BI) till cooked to desired done-ness. Braggs's for seasoning to taste.

Breakfast and Lunch July 22

It is a beautifully rainy day today - much needed after the dry, sunny summer we've been having.

Breakfast was left over mango pancakes with lilikoi syrup (from yesterday) and lunch was leftover stew. I think it has improved over the last couple of days -- the flavors have married.

July 21st

Pretty light cooking day today.

Breakfast: Mango Pancakes (see recipe and pic July 15th)

Lunch: Spicy Tuna Poke (from Suisan) with a green papaya salad already prepared from the farmer's market (Guinea Grass Farms; thanks Mary!)

Dinner: leftover stew from yesterday.

I am feeling more and more comfortable with the ingredients available to me and that we are gaining familiarity with the things we like and how to prepare them. This is getting easier :)

Lunch and early dinner July 20

Indian Taro Sweet Potato Stew


1 C diced onion (Maui)
3 garlic cloves (non-local)
1 lb cubed stew meat (BI)
1 C cubed sweet potato (BI)
1 C cooked cubed taro (BI)
1 C cooked cubed pumpkin (BI)
1 C red wine (BI)
1 red hot Hawaiian Pepper (BI)
1/2 to 1 t garam masala
salt/pepper to taste
You can play around with additional spices; I added a dash of Worcestershire, bay leaf

Saute onions and garlic. Brown the meat in separate pan and add wine after to de-glaze. Add about 4 C water, the onion/garlic, pepper and sweet potato. Simmer till onions and sweet potatoes are almost done and add taro and pumpkin. Simmer for several more minutes. To make it a little thicker, you can add about a couple T of cornstarch slurry.

This recipe was made easy b/c the taro and pumpkin were purchased already cooked from the farmer's market. Served over rice.

Breakfast July 20th

We are settling into a routine of eggs with mushrooms but this time I added some new red potatoes that I picked up at the market yesterday. A nice addition. Then we had this interesting fruit, called a Velvet Ice Cream Bean. Here's a pic:

July 19th

We were gone all day today so this was a light cooking day: after a breakfast of eggs (BI) with Hamakua mushrooms, we had leftover quiche for lunch and the last of the kabobs for dinner. Dessert was some Shark's Chocolate - yum!

Dinner July 18

Quiche


This quiche was very similar to the one prepared on July 10th, but I used peppers in it and lots of onions. Otherwise, everything was pretty much the same. Oh - one other difference: I did use rice flour as the crust because I needed the quiche to travel well tomorrow for lunch; the sweet potato crust wouldn't have been as firm.

Breakfast and lunch July 18

Man - you can't beat those Hamakua mushrooms! I sauteed the large thick white ones (I need to ask what they are called) with some onion (Maui) and a little butter (non-local); added eggs (BI) for a scramble. The mushrooms have a meatiness to them that is just fantastic.

Lunch was left over kabobs. We finished off the fish ones last night, so today was beef. Still have some left, which will come in handy over the weekend.

Dinner July 17

Fish and beef kebobs
The pic is a little yellow looking because we ate much later than normal and didn't have any natural light available. Marcus says that it looks like a 1970's recipe card :)

I used a broadbill swordfish (Suisan) for the fish, and round eye steak (BI) for the beef. Then added pineapple, zucchini, mushroom, and several kinds of peppers (all BI). Prior to skewering, I marinated the meat and veggies in a soy/lime/lemon/cayenne marinade. We don't have a grill here so I just used the broiler on low for about 10 minutes a side.

Served with rice (non-local) and steamed wing beans (BI).

Breakfast and Lunch July 17

Breakfast: I used the last of the corn/shiitake/onion mixture that was the base for the salad a couple of days ago and scrambled up with a couple of eggs. Not bad!

Lunch: last of the lasagna

Dinner July 16

Grilled Broadbill Swordfish and Fried Okra


Served with green papaya salad (from Guinea Grass Farms/Hilo FM) which I added some cilantro to.

1 clove garlic (non-local)
3 T olive oil (non-local)
3 T lemon juice (BI)
2 Broadbill swordfish steaks (Suisan)

Mix ingredients and brush on swordfish steaks. Heat grill or skillet and cook. Unlike tuna, swordfish should be fully cooked.

Fried Okra
1 lb okra, sliced 1/4 inch thick (BI)
1 egg, beaten (BI)
1 c. coconut flour (Island Harvest)
2 T spike (non-local)
Salt (BI)
pepper (non-local
Coconut oil for deep frying (Island Harvest)

Mix flour, spike, salt, pepper. Dip okra into egg. Roll in flour mixture to coat. Deep-fry at 365 degrees until brown. Drain.

NOTE: this okra dish is an alteration of the more classic version that uses wheat flour for dredging and butter or vegetable oil for frying. To be honest, the BIG version didn't work all that well - the flour was very crumbly and fell apart.

Breakfast and Lunch July 16

Breakfast: leftover pancakes; I also scrambled eggs with a bit of the corn/shiitake salad from yesterday.

Lunch:
Taro chips fried in coconut oil, Spicy Tuna poke (Suisan), and cucumbers (BI)


To make the taro chips, just slice taro root (BI) thinly and fry in coconut oil (BI). They are absolutely delicious!

Dinner July 15

Lasagna (using eggplant as pasta)

1 eggplant sliced thinly (BI)
1 Qt marinara (recipe July 4)
2 onions (Maui)
1 lb ground beef (BI)
6 oz mozzarella (Puna Goat)
6 oz goat cheese (Puna Goat)
salt/pepper
italian seasoning

Cook onions and ground beef. Cut eggplant lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices, salt them and lay flat to drain (this extracts the water from the eggplant). After 30 minutes, drain and rinse the slices. Pat the slices dry, then brush with olive oil and broil until cooked through and slightly brown, watching to make sure they don't burn. Mix cheeses together. In a baking dish, layer eggplant, marinara, cheese mixture, and meat mixture 2 times. Bake at 350 for about an hour.

We didn't post a pic because it didn't look very attractive. Tasted great, but I think I sliced the egg-plant too thinly so it didn't hold everything together like pasta would. I'll work on this and post again.

Lunch July 15

Ahi Mushroom Corn Salad



I had prepared an extra ahi steak last night for dinner. I decided to try to make a salad out of it; here's how: last night I grilled onions, shiitakes and corn and put in the refrigerator over night. About 30 minutes before lunch today, I took out of the fridge so that it could warm just a bit (for flavors to come out). Right before serving, I added the sliced ahi.

Breakfast July 15

Mango Pancakes


2 mangoes (BI)
8 eggs (BI)
1/2 - 3/4 cup coconut flour (BI)
1 tsp vanilla (BI)
1/2 tsp salt
2 T mild honey (BI)

Purée the mango in a food processor, add the remaining ingredients one by one until well blended. If batter is too thick, thin with a little water. The consistency of my batter was a really loose mashed potato. Heat skillet, use coconut oil for frying.
Served with mac nuts from Shark's (I cut/toasted) and lilikoi syrup (juice of lilikoi cooked with a cornstarch slurry).

Dinner July 14

Seared Ahi with Wawaeiole (Seaweed) Salad



Served with corn on the cobb from the Maku'u market:

I used the "Thai Seasoning" as a meat rub on some juicy ahi steaks from Suisan. Grilled on each side for about a minute. The salad recipe was given to me by a lovely young farmer/vendor at the Hilo FM. Simply add sliced tomatoes and onions to wawaeiole and a bit of toasted sesame oil.

Breakfast and Lunch July 14

There was a bit of the lamb stew left over in the fridge so we finished that up for breakfast. It's really too hot to be eating stew at any other time of day right now.

Lunch was leftover from last night.

On my way to Suisan for tonight's dinner!!

Dinner July 13

Braciola with wax beans

8 ounces mushrooms (variety pack from Hamakua Mushrooms)
1 onion (Maui)
2 cloves garlic (non-local)
1 qt marinara (mostly BI ingredients, see July 4 for recipe)
3-4 T parsley chopped (BI, no spray)
1 round steak, pounded to 1/4 inch thickness
3-4 ounces mozzarella, sliced thinly (Puna Goat Farm)
1 medium size zucchini

Sautee first 3 ingredients till cooked. Place slices of mozzarella on round steak to cover one side of it. Sprinkle with parsley, and add mushroom mixture on top, pressing all ingredients firmly down into the meat. Roll up tightly, secure with butcher's twine, and brown on all sides. Heat the marinara in a skillet and add rolled steaks. Cook on low for about 1 hr. Cut zucchini with a spiral vegetable slicer (I use World Cuisine). Blanch for about 1 minute and strain. Serve sliced meat and marinara on top, as you would pasta.

I served this with some very pretty wax beans found at the Hilo FM yesterday.

Breakfast and Lunch July 13

Ahhh -- the quiche is still good! Topped again with crumbled Puna Goat Farm feta.

Lunch has been snacking on my cultured veggies, the mac nut cookies from yesterday, various fruits and some rice crackers I made last night. I'll post that recipe tomorrow. Not really a Big Island recipe, but very tasty and healthy.

Chocolate Dipped Coconut Banana Mac Nut Balls ---- PHEW that's long! (and dinner, July 12)

OK - I feel like this is good enough to post. These are somewhat approximate measurements but the goal is to come out with a dough that will hold together around the mac nut. Served with some coconut strips (purchased prepared from Guinea Grass Farms at the Hilo FM) that I dipped in some melted Shark's chocolate.

3/4 C coconut flour (BI from Island Harvest)
2 eggs (BI - finally!)
2-3 bananas (BI)
1 t vanilla (BI from Hawaiian Vanilla Company)
dash salt (BI)
about a dozen mac nuts (BI from Shark's)
Coconut oil for frying (BI from Island Harvest)

Process all ingredients but mac nuts and oil in a food processor. Form a bit of dough around the mac nut (the thickness was close to 1/4 inch around the nut) and fry in coconut oil. After they cooled, I dipped half of the cookie in Shark's chocolate. In addition to selling at the Hilo Farmer's Market, Shark just opened a cute little store in downtown Hilo right off the bayfront on Waianuenue.

These ended up serving as our dinner tonight along with some sweet potato chips that I'm working on perfecting. Not terribly healthy, but oh so good :)

Breakfast & Lunch July 8

Breakfast was leftover quiche which was still surprisingly good. We put a little crumbled Puna Goat Feta on the top. We had a smoothie with it, which included pineapple, mango, lilikoi and coconut -- all Big Island:


For lunch we have been pretty much grazing on leftovers and some goodies I found at the market this morning. The lychee is almost out of season (sigh) so I bought several pounds and will freeze some.

I'm also working on improving the Mac Nut Balls recipe and enjoying the "failures" ;)

Hmmm - a possible dessert

I think this is a recipe in the making, but last night both Marcus and I were feeling a little pastry deprived, so I took about 3/4 C coconut flour, 3 eggs, a little salt, several tablespoons of sugar and a little vanilla and mashed it up with enough water to make a dough that held together when pressed in your hand. Then I took a mac nut, a small scoop of the dough, and formed the dough around the nut to make a ball and cooked it in some coconut oil in a skillet, turning as they cooked. They came out very tasty but so crumbly that I didn't want to post on the blog. Last night after they cooled, I put them in a tupperware container and today for some reason, they are holding together much better...at least passable. I'll try a few variations and post back later with a pic.

Dinner July 11

Lamb Stew

Just heat up the reserved lamb, broth and veggies from yesterday - voila!

Served with Watermelon Feta Salad:

4 cups watermelon, chopped into cubes or melon-balled
1 (8 ounce) package feta, crumbled (Lava Rocks Puna Goat)
10 leaves fresh basil, chopped
juice of 1 lime
salt/pepper to taste

Toss water melon with lime juice, salt and pepper. Add feta and basil just before serving and toss again.

Breakfast and Lunch July 11

leftovers!

Breakfast: quiche

Lunch: gazpacho and the okra/bean dish. Made some rice to fill it out a bit.

Dinner July 10

Lamb Shank and mint sauce
Double-click on the pic (or any on this page) for a closer look at the side of beautiful okra and scarlett runner beans, found at the FM.

Served with sauteed okra (BI), "lima" beans (BI) --I think they are actually Scarlett Runner but who am I to argue with the person who took the time to grow them) and onion (Maui).

Comment: You will notice that this recipe calls for veggies that are not in the picture. I made the choice to serve only the lamb for dinner, reserving the veggies, a little of the lamb and broth for a stew tomorrow. You can certainly serve the entire dish at once, however.

2 lamb shanks (BI)
6-8 garlic cloves (non-local)
1 C lamb broth (made from the bones from the shoulder chops the other night)
1 C pre-made marinara (see recipe July 4 dinner)
2 sweet potatoes (BI), in large cubes
2 onions (Maui), quartered
1 small squash, peeled and cut into large cubes (BI)

Wash and dry the lamb shanks. Brown them in a cast iron skillet coated with a little olive oil. Turn frequently so all sides brown evenly. While the shanks are browning, peel garlic cloves and toss them into the same skillet until they are nutty brown. In a crockpot, pour in and mix together broth and marinara. Add veggies and lamb and enough water to cover everything. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Mint Sauce:

1/4 C water
1/4 c. sugar (Maui)
1/2 c. vinegar (non-local)
Mint leaves to fill 1 cup, chopped (BI, no spray)

Combine water and sugar in saucepan, and bring to boil over high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves completely. Remove the pan from the heat, and stir in the mint leaves and vinegar. Set aside at room temperature for several hours.

Lunch July 10

Gazpacho
Served with fresh figs found at the Hilo FM!



2 lb tomato (BI, organic)
2 avocados (BI, no spray)
1 green pepper (BI, no spray)
3 cucumbers (BI)
3 mild chillies (BI)
1 onion (Maui)
1 clove garlic (non-local
1 small bunch cilantro (BI, no spray)
1 lemon (BI, no spray) juiced
1 lime (BI) juiced
salt (BI) to taste
pepper (non-local) to taste
1/2 C vinegar (non-local)

Blend everything well in a food process processor except for a couple of tablespoons of the lemon juice and 1 avocado. Chop the avo, pour lemon on it, and then mix into the soup. Serve cold.

July 10 Breakfast

Broccoli and Mushroom Quiche

3 cloves garlic (non local)
1 variety pack (10-12 oz) mushrooms from Hamuakua Coast Mushrooms (Hilo FM), chopped
3 onions (Maui) diced
3 eggs (Big Island Poultry - still out of local eggs)
8 oz ricotta (Puna Goat)
dash Worcestershire (non-local)
1 T grain mustard (I used Old Hawaii Recipes Sweet Maui mustard which is milder than most so used 2 T)
1 T finely chopped basil (BI, no spray)
2/3 C broccoli flowerets, chopped (BI)
salt/pepper

crust:
1 medium to large sweet potato (BI)
about 6 T rice flour (non-local)
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sautee first three ingredients until thoroughly cooked and moisture is evaporated. (This took about 30 minutes in my cast iron skillet). While it's cooking down, thinly slice and boil sweet potato till soft. Drain. In a bowl, mash potato with 1 egg and enough rice flour to make a paste. Add a bit of salt/pepper and use your fingers to smoosh the paste into a 10 inch pie shell to make a pie crust. Bake about 6-8 minutes on 350, depending on thickness. Let cool.

In a separate bowl, mix 3 eggs, cheese, Worcestershire, mustard, basil, broccoli, about 6 T water and salt/pepper to taste. When mushroom mixture has evaporated most of its moisture and been reduced in size by at least half, add to the cheese mixture. Poor into pie crust and bake at 350 for about 35-40 minutes, or until it's set.

July 9

This was a very light cooking day: breakfast was leftover sweet potato pancakes, lunch was leftovers from dinner and lunch yesterday, and dinner was at my ahi cooking class at Paradise Restaurant Supply on the Bayfront. Got some great recipes and learned some interesting factoids about ahi. For instance, there are 36 grades of ahi, the bottom 10 of which are pretty much inedible for humans. These poorer grades are the older fish, which can live to about 50 years. Grade 1A is the very best, and those fish can go for $15,000 whole!

Dinner July 8

Grilled Mahi Mahi with Chili Pepper Cilantro Aioli


YUM!

3 T dijon mustard (No BI, but I did find a Sweet Maui Onion Mustard from Old Hawaii Recipes out of Honolulu)
1/4 cup honey (BI - I used a VERY smooth and mild organic lehua from Volcano Island Honey)
3/4 cup cilantro, chopped (BI)
1 or 2 (depending on how hot you like) Hawaiian red chili pepper (BI)
3 egg yolks (out of local - must use Big Island Poultry's. Boo!)
1-1/2 Tbsp lemon juice (BI)
3/4 tsp sea salt (BI)
3/4 cup olive oil (non-local. I will try mac nut oil if I ever find some local stuff)

Purée all ingredients in a food processor or blender, except the oil. While pureeing, slowly add oil until it emulsifies. Refrigerate until ready to use. We served this over grilled mahi mahi (BI, from Suisan) with rice (our non-local grain of choice) and a simple stir fry of onions (Maui), bok choy (BI, no spray) and mild chillies (BI, no spray). Seasoning was Bragg's and toasted sesame oil (both non-local).

Stop the presses! Bad egg news....

I just learned from a friend today that as of about a month ago, Big Island Poultry is no longer producing their own eggs here on the island - they come from the mainland. My primary egg supplier is Guinea Grass Farms but the supply can be hit or miss so I've been supplementing with Big Island Poultry eggs. This is really disappointing.

Lunch July 8

Easiest lunch yet (with the exception of leftovers)

Avocado half with the spicy tuna poke from Suisan. YUM!




Side of green papaya salad. I didn't do the work though: this is another of Guinea Grass Farm's (Hilo FM, Saturdays only) fast slow food items. You can buy a quart sized bag of shredded green mango and a perfectly apportioned container of their spicy tomato dressing. Voila!

Breakfast July 8

Potato "Pancakes" with Lilikoi syrup



This was a real experiment. The pancake part is in quotes because these aren't your mama's (or Ken's) buttermilk pancakes. They are quite tasty, however, and I think that if the 1 C of flour were to be 1/2 wheat flour (remember, no grain grown here) and 1/2 coconut, they would hold together better - the lack of gluten in the recipe makes them more crumbly than a standard pancake.

1 C cooked, mashed yellow sweet potato (BI)
5 eggs (BI, free range)
1 C coconut flour (Island Harvest, purchased at Abundant Life)
1/2 C sugar (Maui)
1/2 t salt
1 1/2 t cinnamon
coconut oil for frying (Island Harvest)

Add all ingredients together, mix very well, and add enough water to make a batter that resembles very moist mashed potatoes. Have your skillet fully warmed to the setting you would normally use for pancakes with several tablespoons of coconut oil melted in it. In your hand, scoop the equivalent volume of a large egg. Pat into a round disc, about a half inch thick. Apply the patty to the skillet and pat down a little bit more with your hand to thin it a bit and make sure that there is good surface contact. Grill for several minutes on each side.

The lilikoi syrup is just 1/2 C water and 1/2 C sugar brought to a boil. Add 1 T corn starch that has been dissolved in several tablespoons of water. Stir; when it thickens, remove from heat. Add about 4 T lilikoi juice (you can use fresh or I got mine already juiced/seeded from the farmer's market).

Dinner July 7

Grilled Lamb with Plum Chutney



1 1/2 C chopped plums (BI)
1/2 C sugar (Maui)
1/3 C vinegar
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1/2 t cinnamon
1/8 t cardamom
1/8 t allspice
1/2 C water
1/2 of a Hawaiian chili pepper, whole, so you can fish it out

1 lb lamb (I used shoulder chops from Kahua Farms)

Bring all ingredients, but lamb, to a boil for about 30 minutes or until it's reduced by about half, stirring infrequently. Cook some more, stirring more frequently, until it becomes the thickness of jam. Grill the lamb - I just salted, peppered, and threw in the cast iron skillet for several minutes each side - and serve the chutney over the top.

I also sauteed some "vine spinach" (BI, no spray) with some onion. This was my first taste of this creature and I was impressed. It has a strong spinach flavor and holds up VERY well. Not something you would want to use for a wilted spinach salad.

Also in the pic are some grilled "chocolate beauty" peppers, which we picked up at the Waimea Farmer's Market. They were quite mild and sweet. Very good, but not $2 each good, IMHO. Here's a pic of the pepper before cooking:

Breakfast and Lunch July 7; and LYCHEES!

Kind of a light cooking day thus far:

Breakfast was eggs (Guinea Grass Farms) with sauteed pepeiao mushrooms (Hamaukua Coast Mushrooms) and onions. Lunch was leftovers from last night. We've been snacking on lychee, which are in season right now and very abundant. They are really luscious little fruits. I happened across this great website today, with many interesting recipes...looking forward to trying some!

http://www.lycheesonline.com/recipes.cfm

Dinner July 6

I had a not-so-great experience with taro several weeks ago, when I did not cook it long enough to remove the needle-shaped raphides in the plant cells. Nothing serious, but I did have a sore throat for a couple of days. Nevertheless, it has made me a bit gun-shy so I purchased the taro for this recipe already cooked and cubed from from Mary, Guinea Grass Farms, at the Hilo FM. I knew I could trust her taro cooking skills :)

Taro Beef Burgers

1 lb ground beef (Hawaiian Island Beef)
1 C cooked taro root (BI, no-spray)
4-5 mild green chillies, chopped (BI)
1/4 C chopped green onions (BI, no spray)
1 egg (BI)
salt/pepper
*optional: few dashes of worcestershire sauce and/or Liquid Smoke

Mash the taro and mix in well with all ingredients. Grill to your preferred doneness. Top with some sauteed mushrooms (I used the "variety" pack from Hamakua Coast Gourmet Mushrooms, Hilo FM).

Squash Flowers

Small bunch of squash flowers (7-9) (BI)
2 eggs (BI)
1/2 C rice flour
salt/pepper to taste
oil or butter for frying (I think mac nut oil would be awesome for this but I haven't found any BI yet, so I used some butter)

Beat eggs with fork, add salt/pepper. Roll each flower in the egg then the rice flour. Sautee on one side till it begins to brown slightly, and then the other.

Served with salad. If you click on the pic (or any on this page) you can get a better view, especially of the squash flowers which were beautiful and OH so good. Next time, I think I will put a dab of spicy goat cheese inside the flower before cooking it - a Flower Popper!

Lunch July 6

Thai Soup (almost Tom Yum)

4 C beef stock (I made this from the trimmings off of yesterday's steak)
1 C pepeiao mushrooms (purchased at Hilo Farmer's market from Hamakua Coast Gourmet Mushrooms, 808-962-6350)
2 bunches baby bok choi (BI, no spray)
1 hot chili, chopped very finely (or more; but be forewarned, the small Hawaiian red guys are DANGEROUS)
3 mild chillies, chopped (BI, no spray)
4 T "Thai Spice" (purchased from Guinea Grass Farms at the Hilo Farmer's market - chopped lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaf, garlic and chilipepper)

To stock, add the mushrooms, chillies and spice. Simmer for several minutes and add the white part of the baby bok choy. After a minute or so, add the leaf parts of the bok choy. I served with salad (all ingredients BI no spray or organic) and lychee (BI, probably no spray).




For an afternoon snack, I scored some amazing plums at the Maku'u market (picked from trees at the 3,000 foot level on Mauna Kea).

Breakfast July 6

A slow Sunday morning. Believe it or not, we still had potato omelette in the fridge, so we finished that up along with some sweet jackfruit. This is not to be confused with the green jackfruit that you normally see at the market (same animal, different stage). I honestly have never seen a jackfruit in its totally ripe stage, which Mary (Guinea Grass Farms) tells me is brown. She and her family harvest the ripe jackfruit and package them, ready to eat right from the container. They are most awesome.

Jackfruit

Dinner July 5

Dinner was fajitas, using romain lettuce as the tortilla. Simple recipe of grilled onions, garlic, green pepper (BI, no spray) and the steak left over from yesterday. The picante salsa is on the side - tomatoes (BI, no spray), onions, cilantro (BI, no spray) and lemon juice (BI, no spray). The beautiful watermelon (BI, no spray) is from my favorite Hilo Farmer's Market vendor, Mary (www.guineagrassfarms.com). I can barely tear myself away from her booth - always something interesting there. I will give myself a hernia for sure one of these days, with all of the goodies I walk away with. For those of you here on the BI, she and her family are mauka side, on the corner closest to the street on Saturdays only. One of the things I love about her stand is that her family prepares a number of vegetables and fruits and has them in containers - it's very slow fast food :)



Dessert was the sorbet we made previously.

Lunch July 5

Lunch was at the Waimea's farmers market, sampling from the many vendors and then purchasing some delicious BBQ hamburger from Kahua Farms http://www.kahuaranch.com/. They were also selling frozen cuts of lamb and beef. We got two different cuts of lamb, shoulder and shank. Prices were reasonable we thought, but we don't buy lamb all that much so we really aren't sure what the going rate is.

Breakfast, July 5

Morning! It is SOOO beautiful here today. Wonderful temperature, blue sky, and the Hilo farmer's market was amazing. Among today's finds: baby eggplant (about the size of lychee, to be eaten raw), "seedless" lychee (well, almost, as it turns out), and gorgeous squash flowers which I have a recipe for from "The Farmers Market Cookin'" by Sandy Knies Foley Bonk (1994). Probably hook those up tomorrow.

So for breakfast this morning we had yesterday's leftovers but both of us felt that it was a little dry, due primarily to the sweet potatoes. So we topped it with chopped avocado (BI) and it was the perfect addition. Creamy goodness :)

Off to the Waimea Farmer's Market!

Two "standing" items and closing thoughts, July 4

Here are two items I made today: Mint Lemon/Lime Aid and Cultured Vegetables, that I will have on-hand and use often during the next few weeks. I will only post the recipe today. A note about cultured vegetables: these are to be eaten as a snack as well as with meals that have protein to help aid digestion. This particular recipe is from the book "Body Ecology". I added sliced daikon (as you might be able to see from the picture).


Raw Cultured Vegetables


3 heads green cabbage, shredded in a food processor
6 carrots, large, shredded in a food processor
3 inch piece ginger, peeled and chopped
6 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
(first 3 ingredients were BI and organic. The only garlic I've been able to find is either from California or China)

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Remove several cups of this mixture and put into a blender.Add enough filtered water to make a "brine" the consistency of a thick juice. Blend well and then add brine back into first mixture. Stir well. Pack mixture down into a 1½ quart glass or stainless steel container. Use your fist, a wooden dowel, or a potato masher to pack veggies tightly. Fill container almost full, but leave about 2 inches of room at the top for veggies to expand. Roll up several cabbage leaves into a tight "log" and place them on top to fill the remaining 2 inch space. Clamp jar closed (I've found that Adam's Peanut Butter jars are perfect). Let veggies sit at room temperature for at least three days. A week is even better. Refrigerate to slow down fermentation. Enjoy!


Mint lemon/lime aid

3 large lemons (BI, organic)
2 large limes (BI, organic)
1 bunch mint (BI, no spray)
1 C sugar (Maui)

Juice lemons and limes. Simmer 1 C water and sugar with the rind from one of the lemons, chopped up. Boil water, sugar, and lemon rind for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, bruise mint leaves and add to mixture, stirring. Add juice from lemons/limes. Let stand for an hour or two, strain into a jar with lid. For serving, add water to your taste and ice cubes. Refrigerate any leftover base mixture: it can be stored for 2 to 3 weeks.


Today's thoughts/comments:
I was definitely in the kitchen a lot today. But, I have tomorrow's breakfast ready to be warmed and in addition to making large batches of the cultured veggies and lemon/lime aid, I did three other time savings measures: At lunch I prepared extra steak for tomorrow night's fajitas. Also, when I prepared the marinara, I made enough for several batches to be frozen and used later in the month. Lastly, when I sauteed the garlic and onion for the marinara, I left a little behind in the pan and added sliced green peppers and sauteed for several minutes. Now, the meat and veggies are ready for tomorrow's fajitas.

Dinner July 4

Eggplant Sorentino

1 lb tomatoes (BI, organic) peeled and cubed * see note below re peeling
2 onions (Maui)
3 cloves Garlic (non-local)
italian seasonings to taste (non-local)
salt/pepper to taste
optional: 1 C Volcano Red wine (BI - Volcano Red)

1 lb eggplant (BI, no spray)
1 egg (BI)
ricotta (I used ricotta goat cheese from Puna Goat Farm)
1/2 C or so of flour for dredging (we stuck to rice, our chosen non-local grain)
oil for frying

Cook down tomatoes, wine, onion, garlic, salt/pepper and italian seasonsings into a marinara sauce. (personal note: I like to carmelize the onions/garlic in a cast iron skillet, then add to the tomatoes/seasoning for stewing) Peel and slice eggplant into 1/8-inch slices. Dip in egg wash, then into flour to coat. Fry eggplant until golden brown, then drain. As if making a crepe, fill eggplant with Ricotta cheese, then roll. Place eggplant in baking dish that has some Marinara Sauce on bottom. Cover eggplant with more Marinara Sauce and top with more ricotta. Bake at 350 F for about 40 minutes or until cheese melts.

* to peel tomatoes, bring large pot of water to a boil. Add tomatoes. Remove when skins start to split to a cold water bath. After several minutes, remove to plate to cool, then slip the skins off.


The picture taken here was before the marinara/cheese topping and last few roll-ups went in, so that you could get an idea of what the roll-ups looked like. Double-click the pic for a closer look:

Greens
Saute an onion or two with several cloves of garlic till onion is translucent. Add 1 or 2 bunches of greens till done to the point that you enjoy. I used kale (BI, organic).

Volcano wine to drink -- it's our 10 year anniversary! Cheers!

Dessert: Fruit Sorbet

Fruit can be your choice. Blend, freeze for roughly 4-6 hours depending on the fruit used. For this particular sorbet we used apple bananas, lilikoi, and two types of mangoes (hayden and cigar) , garnished with mint. All local! and the bananas and mangoes were organic.

Lunch July 4

Beef Salad
Lettuce, cucumber, beet, kohlrabi and tomato (all BI and no spray or organic, from Hilo Farmer's Market or Abundant Life) I intended to use onions as well but we took the picture and started eating it before we realized they weren't on there. Next time! :) The beef I used was Hawaii Big Island Sirloin (purchased at Island Naturals) salted/peppered and seared quickly on each side.
The dressing was fresh squeezed lemon (BI, organic - from friend's yard. Thanks Vicki!)

Afternoon Snack: mountain apple (local, no spray)

Breakfast July 4

Our morning drinks of choice are coffee (Marcus) and tea (Kim). Since this is a daily occurence, I won't list this each day but here's what we drink: "Ko'oko'olau Herbal Tea's 100% Hawaiian Green Tea". Their website is http://www.hawaiianherbalteas.com/ and I purchase it at Abundant Life. The coffee is "Island Naturals Hilo & Pahoa 100% Hawaiian Coffee" (purchased at Island Naturals).


Tortilla Espanola (Potato Omelette, Spanish Style)

1 lb sweet potatoes (BI, I used yellow)
2 or 3 Cloves garlic -- chopped (couldn't find BI)
1 large or 2 small sweet onions (I used Maui - couldn't find local)
6 Eggs -- beaten and seasoned with salt/pepper (Big Island Poultry, purchased from Abundant Life)

(You shouldn't need any oil if you use a well seasoned cast iron skillet, but if not add a teaspoon or so of coconut oil for sauteeing the onions/garlic/potato) (Island Harvest Organic, purchased at Island Naturals)

Slice onions and potatoes. In cast iron skillet, saute onions and garlic till they begin to soften. Add potatoes and cook until they are soft. Pour eggs over potato mixture. Bake 15 minutes at 350F and then start testing. When the middle is set and the top slightly brown, its done. Let set 5 minutes, run a knife around the outside and invert onto a round platter. (I made a double batch so that we could have this for tomorrow's breakfast)

30 Big Days

Welcome to the 30 BIG (Big Island Grown) Days blog!

We are Marcus and Kim, residents of Hilo, Hawaii, and this is our attempt to document 30 days of enjoying the bounty of the island, supporting Big Island farmers/producers, and reducing our oil consumption (needed to transport non-local foods to the island).

We have been inspired by our local vendors at the Hilo and Maku’u Farmers’ markets, The Slow Food Movement globally http://www.slowfood.com as well as here on the island http://www.slowfoodhawaii.org/, and books such as "Plenty" (Smith and Mackinnon) and "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" (Kingsolver).

We must admit that there are caveats; most significantly, we have been unable to find any grain growers on the island. We understand that rice was once grown here (and could certainly be again) so after careful consideration, Marcus and I decided that we would allow it (whole and flour) on the “diet”. Non-native spices and other flavorings are also embedded in the recipes, but are kept to a minimum. Our hope is that after this experimental 30 days, we can begin to carve away even these non-essentials (although I may not be able to live without toasted sesame oil).

***September 2010 update: Aloha --- Kim here. Marcus and I are gearing up for the Kanu 2010 Eat Local Challenge so will be adding to this site. PLEASE NOTE: in 2008 (almost at the end of our 30 days of BIG food), Marcus and I were informed by staff at Abundant Life that the Island Harvest coconut flour and oil is NOT locally sourced; i.e., the product is processed here in Hawaii but the coconuts are from the Philippines. If you plan to use recipes that include those products, please substitute locally-grown mac nut oil from Oils of Aloha and Mac Nut "fines" (which is almost as fine as flour) from Hamakua Macadamia Nut Company. If you know of other sources for locally-produced oil or flour, please post :)