Saturday, January 28, 2012

The trade winds are back. What this means is a clearing out of the vog (the volcanic debris blown in from the big island, which has an active volcano), a slightly cooling off in temperature and wind gusts up to 32 miles per hour. As I write this blog entry, I can here the wind howling around the condo buildings. If I didn't know better, I'd think there was a blizzard outside! But no, it's raining. The wooden slates on the windows rattle and the wind whistles through them. Kind of unsettling....

After breakfast, we walked to the beach. The downside of the trade winds is that when you sit on the beach, you end of getting blasted with sand when the wind gusts. Don't leave your mouth open too long, lol! We were able to do some whale watching while we were sitting there. The whales were about ten miles off shore, playing like children, in the water between Maui and Molaiki. They seem to alternate between swimming with one fin out of the water and swimming straight up head first out of the water, then a big splash as they go back under the water. What amazing creatures. I can only imagine their size. It was so cool, sitting there watching them, waiting to see where and if they would resurface.

Lunch was a Langostinos salad stuffed into little sweet peppers and served on a vinaigrette-dressed lettuce salad. It turned out better than I thought it might. I am using almost all new recipes, which is exciting although I have been accused (jokingly) of using my friend as a guinea pig. Otherwise, no complaints so far!

After lunch I baked up for tart shells for tonight's dessert using puff pastry and mixed up the marinade for tonight's steak. If I open the slats in the kitchen window, the kitchen doesn't get as hot as it usually does now that the trade winds are back. I read a little, then watched a movie on TV-"Polar Icestorm". What will they think of next?! After the movie it was time to start making dinner. I chopped the strawberries I used to top the tarts, whipped up the mascarpone cheese pastry cream for the Strawberry Mascarpone Tarts, cooked the potatoes for twice baked potatoes and readied the cherry tomatoes for Green Beans and Tomatoes with Carmelized Garlic. Everything was ready in about an hour and dinner was served! The marinade was a coffee-cinnamon base, quite unusual. Cinnamon is not a spice you would normally associate with beef. Part of the marinade was reserved for a dipping sauce (after adding sherry and sliced green onions) and while the marinade added a nice flavor to the meat, I was not so sure I liked the dipping sauce. I was glad I tried it though.

I talked with Jordan after dinner, then readied myself for bed. The wind is keeping me up, but I'll get used to it. Tomorrow will be filled with shopping for the week coming up as well as more cooking. We are invited over for dinner to John and Sandra's house tomorrow evening. John apparently does most of the cooking but is nervous cooking for a "chef". I told them not to worry-anytime someone cooks for me I am happy! Besides, John cooks a lot of Chinese food (learned while growing up) so it should be interesting.

Friday, January 27, 2012

It's the end of January! Already!! Time goes quickly, that's for sure.

Today was not really a work day....breakfast was coffee and a muffin. With the computer problems I have had, I had to redo my blog (my examiner article had to be done twice because my computer froze and I had to shut it down). we did walk down to John and Sandra's condo. We met them the last time I was here. They are a young married couple who have one little girl (we call her "the princess"). We took them some cookies and the rest of the "Crack Pie". Sandra says they want to have us over for dinner-nice, nice young couple.

I got my hair cut at the Ritz Carlton today. And when you take advantage of any spa services, you get all day access to all of the spa facilities. My haircut was at 12:30pm so I went over about 10:30am to see what they offered. I spent time in the jacuzzi and the steam room. They also have what they call the "relaxation room"--chaise lounges and chairs with blankets and soft music playing. There is lemony cucumber water, tea and candied nuts, as well as apples and oranges to eat. All very soothing.... I met a woman in the relaxation room who is a nurse practitioner married to a physician. They were at the Ritz for a medical conference. We had a very pleasant conversation about nursing and medicine and children (hers). At 12:30pm on the dot, Irma came and got me for my haircut. I have been going to the same hairdresser for years now, so it was time for a fresh pair of eyes to see what might be done with my hair. It was all very pleasant.

The afternoon seemed to go quickly (especially with a nap) and soon it was time to get ready for dinner at the Banyon Tree at the Ritz Carlton up the street.

We sat at Robert's station (remember, he's the French waiter, so it is pronounced "Rro-berr", accent on the last syllable). He is such a pleasant, friendly man and takes excellent care of everyone. We did the chef's tasting menu, which changes every month. There were also a few changes to their regular menu with the new year. Got to stay fresh and current to keep people engaged!

I had seared Foie Gras, a Seared Scallop with Egg Custard (that is actually served in an egg shell!) and a kale chip, Kobe Skirt Steak with an awesome dipping sauce served with Haricot Vert and for dessert- a financier (little almond cake) and POPCORN ice cream. I have GOT to find a recipe for popcorn ice cream, or, as my friend suggested, see if I can come back to the restaurant kitchen and ask them to teach me how to make it! It was absolutely divine!!

When I have the chance to eat so well, it's almost as if I died and went to heaven! It reminds me of that scene in Julie and Julia when Julia Child and her husband first arrive in Paris and go out to dinner. The food is so divine, Julia is speachless, she simply cannot find the words to describe the food and how wonderful it tastes to her. Her husband, Paul, says,"Yes, yes, I understand". I totally get that!!

The Ritz Carlton is built back from the ocean front. Apparently when they first started construction, years ago, they found an ancient burial grounds and so could not finish construction. The Ritz decided to just move the hotel back several hundred feet and started building again in a different location. The Banyon Tree looks out over the ocean. I'd forgotten that if you look out and watch the water long enough, you can see whales breaking the surface of the water. It's SO cool! And sure enough, there were whales tonight, just like e other morning at the beach. If nothing else, you can see them spout water when they surface, even if the whales don't come out of the water.

But tomorrow I begin to cook again, which for me, is not really work.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

I was up early this morning and after a "first breakfast" (as the Hobbits call it) of coffee and an Oatmeal Raisin muffin, I wrote an article for Examiner.com. The article was on ideas for food for your Super Bowl party. Super Bowl is less than two weeks away and was one of the ideas that the staff at Examiner.com sent out. They are always trying to encourage their writers with ideas and promotions to help motivate the writers to write.

About mid-morning, it was time for "second breakfast"! I made "A Hole in One". (Sorry, no picture!) You take a piece of bread, cut a hole in the middle (I used a glass and it worked just fine), butter both sides of the bread then lay it in a hot skillet to toast. Once the first side is toasted, flip it over gently then break an egg into the center of the hole you made. The egg then cooks in the toast while the second side of the bread is toasting. You can cover the skillet with a lid to speed up the cooking of the egg. Pretty cool, actually. What happens to the bread round you removed, you ask? It gets toasted in the skillet, too, as an "extra" piece of toast.

About 11am we headed over to the pool to sit poolside for about an hour. My tan is coming back nicely, thank you very much! There is such a variety of hibiscus around the pool area as well as around the condo complex.

Lunch was Curried Chicken Salad, a recipe culled from Ina Garten at Food Network. She uses a tortilla wrap to make it into a sandwich, but I served it with lettuce and papaya. Poached chicken, raisin, cashews, celery, mayo, curry powder, mango chutney, salt and pepper. Easy yet tasty!

I read most of the afternoon as well as texting my sisters. My brother was taken to the ER with chest pain. We are of the age where this could happen. That, and poor genes from both sides of the family. :-(

Dinner was Curried Langostinos (a tiny lobster tail-SO cute!) over white rice. I think today's theme must have been curry. A nod to my Mother's Indian upbringing. Dessert today was Rum Raisin ice cream with a chocolate chip cookie on the side. Easy-peasy, as they say.

A shower and some reading, then bedtime......

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Another warm day with vog. Vog is like smog, but caused when the winds come out of the south and blow "volcanic ash" from the big island thru the air to the other islands. Makes the landscape look hazy, like LA smog!

We took a walk around the complex after breakfast (the proverbial morning constitutional, lol) then I came back and made chocolate chip cookies. By the time I finished the cookies, it was time for lunch. I made Sweet Potato Soup with Mascarpone and Rosemary. I am adding that to my recipe list on this blog. It was very yummy! We finished the chicken from last night also.

I talked to Michele and Janell (both sisters) in the afternoon. Before dinner I made Oatmeal Raisin Muffins. And once those were done, I made Pasta Ponzo. Curly pasta with a roasted cherry tomato and caper sauce. It turned out well. Everyone was pleased!

Otherwise, nothing new in paradise. Warm humid weather (80-82), sunny skies, slight breezes and bugs (just a few). Lots of singing birds, a few butterflies and a myriad of flowers. It's Hawaii!

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

I was up by 7am-late when you consider there is a two hour difference in time from here to Reno. We went for a walk to the beach after breakfast. The beach it's about a five minute walk from the condo, all downhill. The only hard part is coming back-all uphill!

Lunch was pear slices wrapped in Speck (a smokey Spanish ham) served with slices of Pecorino Romano and La Panzanella crackers. I cleaned up the kitchen, then read and did research on the web.

Dinner was Spicy Chicken on a bed of Romaine, avocado and corn, with a warm spicy vinaigrette. I had made the vinaigrette about 4pm and let it sit. That let the flavors meld together so it ended up being a great salad. I would repeat this salad again. It called for fresh cilantro, so I walked down to the pool area (for whatever reason, the complex keeps herbs in large containers in both pool areas. I managed to get into the pool area but my key would work to open the gate to let me out! Thought I might be stuck there, but used the card on the keychain to open the gate (just like in the movies, lol!). Finally got out!

Dessert was crack pie. It really is addictive, all caramelly and buttery! Time to give the rest away, lol.

Sunset in Maui tonight!

Monday, January 23, 2012

I am back in Paradise.

We went grocery shopping this morning. Groceries for this week, anyway! There will be more shopping to do next week, lol. They have a store called "Farmland" in Ka'anapoli that is similar to Whole Foods but has a better gourmet selection. I really like this store. And I found Speck there!! Speck is a type of Spanish ham that is smoked. Yummy! I am going to use the Speck tomorrow to wrap around slices of pear to serve for lunch.

When we got back to the condo (which by the way is up a flight of stairs! Guess I'll be getting more exercise staying at this condo, lol.) I got groceries put away, read some emails, then made lunch. I made a Broccoli-Cheddar Frittata for lunch. Nice and light! And served it on a bed of Romaine dressed with a simple viniagrette.

After lunch I made "Crack Pie", a recipe from Momofuko's Milk Bar (momofuko meals "lucky peach in Japanese), a restaurant in NYC. It sounded kind of crazy but interesting. You make an oatmeal cookie (just spread the cookie dough on one big cookie sheet then bake it for about 15 minutes) first, let it cool, then break it apart and whooze it around in a food processor with a little sugar and salt. You add a little butter to the cookie crumbs, then press it into a pie pan. It is filled with a caramel-like cream filling made with white sugar, brown sugar, butter, egg yolks, cream and vanilla. Then you bake the pie for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees, then 325 degrees for 10-15 minutes. The pie is cooled then refrigerated to "set" the center. It is suppose to come out ooey gooey creamy. I'll let you know, lol! My crust baked up over some of the filling, don't know if that's good or bad?

Dinner tonight is Bread Crumb-Olive Crusted Fish (Ahi) with French Rice and Green Beans and Cherry Tomatoes with Caramelized Garlic. Will add a picture later.

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Saturday we got up late. Jordan has been working long hours so we both needed the sleep. After breakfast (homemade yogurt, which really did turn well-strawberry flavored made in a yogurt maker by EasiYo, a New Zealand company) I started laundry then baked up the No Knead dough I put together yesterday.

Once the bread was done, I made the frosting the Gary's birthday cake. Chocolate Cream Cheese Buttercream frosting. The first batch wasn't dark enough, so after I added the crumb-coat (a thin layer of frosting spread over the outside of the cake to contain the crumbs that come off the cake when you start putting a frosting layer on it) so I added more cocoa. I did swirls on top of the cake and added cake crumbs to the sides of the cake.

I finished laundry and packed my bag, took a shower and got ready for Gary's birthday party. While I was packing, I had a plastic container of sweaters on the bed. Ah Choo decided to get into the container but made it tumble off the bed. When I turned around, he had become trapped under the container, looking for a way out! Poor kitty, lol!

At 6:15pm we headed to Kasia and Gary's house for a meal of Hamburger Stroganoff. One of Gary's favorite meals. Good meal, good friends. We left about 9pm because I couldn't stay awake any longer and we had to get up at 3:30am to get to the airport by 4:30am.

Sunday morning we were up before the alarm went off. Got dressed, ate some yogurt and Jordan took me to the airport. The flights to Maui were packed! No first class this time, I'm afraid. The trip, however, went smoothly and My friend was there to pick me up at the airport. We headed off to Costco for a few things like meat and wine. When we checked out, it turns out they almost turned us down because they said we had an old card (I had forgotten Michele lost her card and replaced it while Janell and I were visiting with my mom. They got us the new number and a new card-Michele's name, my picture, lol.

From Costco, it was back to the condo. It is a different condo than the one I was at before. The kitchen is definitely smaller and the unit is older (think 1970s, lol), but it still is nice and it's MAUI! Got to make some sacrifices, lol.

For dinner, I got to go out to Merriman's restaurant. We sat outside, on the patio (lanai, I guess they call it). Lovely meal! Fantastic wine and seafood.... We watched the sun go down and took a picture, then I texted the picture to Jordan (he had to go to chilly Boise!).

Thus begins my Maui adventures.....