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The Radish

Another week gone by, another trip to KCC farmer's market and @codyonizuka.  Todays vegetable is the radish.

Same as before I asked the salesperson, "How can I prepare this thing?"  The answer was... Salsa!  So on this day, began the double experiment again.  First time making salsa and first time preparing radishes.  

Raw radishes are similar in texture to a raw potato.  I chopped, diced and sliced and tasted.  Raw radish surprising taste like a super mild wasabi.  You may be saying at this moment... duh.  Horseradish.  Ok OK.  I just never put it together until that moment.  *shrug*

After what seemed like forever of chopping and cutting, I ended up with what looked like lomi salmon.  And guess what?  It taste kind of like lomi salmon with a bite.  I was kind of dissapointed that it did not taste like salsa.  Luckily I like lomi salmon and ate a good size bowl of the salsa with corn chips.

What did I learn from this experience.

1.  Radishes are surprisingly good in salsa.  *more on this in a moment.
2.  Making salsa just requires too much dicing.
3.  Salsa taste way better the second day.  Amazingly the spicy lomi salmon turned into a good salsa the next day.  It taste totally different then when it was fresh.  *So in the end, I liked the salsa alot.

The recipe I used to make the salsa was this.

approx. 6 roma tomatoes.
half a bunch of cilantro
half a maui onion (i used maui because it was on sale)
half a jalepeno pepper seeds and all
2-3 tablespoons lime juice
garlic salt to taste( I think i put in about quarter tsp)
add fresh garlic if you like.  I did not.

Dice everything up and mix it together.  It makes alot so you could just double and use whole ingredients instead of half but don't say I did't warn you.

the thing with salsa is that it's all to taste.  I normally like an exact recipe but for salsa it just isn't happening.

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Kale

Saturday again means another experiment with vegetables from @codyonizuka at the farmers market.  This time its Kale.  

Cody was nice enough to introduce me to farmer Ed.  This kind man suggested I make some Portuguese bean soup and drop the kale in right at the end so it stays a little crisp.  He also leaned in close and said... "make sure you also put in a little secret ingredient in the end too."  More on that later.  

I never actually made Portuguese bean soup so this was kind of a double experiment for me.  Another quick trip to Times Supermarket for soup ingredients and I was in business.  As this is more about the kale and not really about the soup I'll just skip to the end.  

Soup was made from consulting some local cookbooks.  The soup had a nice smell but seemed to be missing something in the taste department.  I think it needed the secret ingredient.

I chopped the kale into about one and a half inch strips and dropped the whole bunch into the soup.  Raw taste test found the leaves to be kind of tasteless.  I was warned by Cody that kale is bitter.  To me it was not bitter at all.  Did I get an unusual bunch of kale?  Maybe my taste buds are just wacky.  The texture was slightly crisp and maybe slightly tough.  After a few mins in the soup the kale stems remained slightly crisp and the leaves became softer but not soft like cabbage does.  The farmer Ed was right,  Kale is good in Portuguese bean soup.  Oh and his secret ingredient.  Put a little vinegar in.  =)  Shhhh don't tell.

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Burger at Burgers on the Edge

2011-05-03_17

I needed something to make me feel better after my battle with a cold.  My solution was a Cheeseburger from Burgers on the Edge.

Burgers on the Edge has 2 types of hamburger patty options, Kobe style, and Sirloin.  There are also veggie options which I will be sure to try on a future visit.  My order was a Sirloin burger on wheat bun with Pepper Jack cheese, garlic aioli, grilled pineapple, crispy onions, bacon and jalapenos.  All this would normally cost $6.69 plus tax but luckily Shay gave me a coupon so the burger was FREE.  YaY!

The wheat bun was topped with oatmeal and I found it to be kind of dry.  Which makes me wonder if there is such a thing as a non dry wheat bun?  The pineapple was decent.  It had nice grill marks on it and did not appear to be from a can though I can not say for sure if it is from a fresh pineapple.  The bacon was somewhat dry as well but nicely cooked.  At least it wasn't oily.  The crispy onions were thin and somewhat oily but work ok in a burger.  The jalapenos are sliced from a fresh jalapeno.  It was pretty spicy and I ended up taking half of it out so that the hotness didn't drown out everything.  The burger itself being sirloin was not juicy or oily.  Can't expect too much juiciness from sirloin.  Over all I thought this burgers ingredients were above average and together made a tasty though slightly dry  burger.  What makes it good is that you can customize it almost anyway you like.  I am going to try and ask for the burger medium rare next time.  

Big Red Beet

Today I bought a large red beet because I never cooked one before.  The pretty lady at Otsujifarm who sold the fresh large beet to me, told me it is similar to a potato and can be sauted with some olive oil.  I decided to give it a try.

I quickly searched the internet and found that you can eat the skin.  Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of it before i sliced it up.  After washing it,  I sliced it about a quarter inch thin and laid them out on a nonstick cookie sheet.
I  then gave them a quick coat of olive oil and garlic salt.  Since I had a good number of slices, I was able to season them 3 ways.  Some were seasoned with taco seasoning, some with Italian herbs and some with just salt and pepper.
15 mins later at 425 degrees I had a great smelling tray of roasted beets.  

The final product was a success.  Each type was pleasantly flavorful.  I only wish I had made a few with no seasoning to taste the true untainted flavor.  I can tell you that cooked beets are similar to a cooked carrot but slightly more tender and sweet.  They did not crisp up as i thought they might but I was still pleased with the results.

So if you haven't tried cooking your own beets before, I hope you give it a try.  It's easy and tasty.

Update:  After letting it cool, I noticed it has a strange kind of texture in it.  Its hard to describe.  Theres almost like a stringiness in it or a slight grit.  It doesnt bother me but it may bother some people.

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Cheese burger from Chili's

Chilis

Even though I am striving to eat healthier and cut down on meats, there is always a place in my stomach's heart for a great hamburger. =)

The other night I found myself at Chili's Waikele, ordering an Oldtimer burger with cheese. 
The service was really good.  Our waitress was friendly, polite and attentive.  When ordering a burger you get a choice of doneness (medium) and since I wanted cheese, 
type of cheese (pepperjack).  I believe our waitress offered a choice of chedder, american, swiss, or pepperjack. 
The wait was not very long and soon I was taking a big bite out of my burger $9.99 + $1.29 for cheese. (*warning - prices are from my bad memory)
I'll just come out and say it.  I did not like this burger.  The bun was dry and tasteless.  The burger somewhat thin (even though it looks large in the pic), dry and tasteless.
At least the tomato and lettuce were fresh.  And to top it off, all this was overpowered with yellow mustard.  I suggest if you order a burger from Chili's, tell them to hold the mustard.
I would not order this burger again.  
One good thing I can say about the order was the french fries were excellent.  They were hot and seasoned with salt just right. I could not figure out if they put other seasoning on them but if it had other seasonings, it was very light.
They are thicker then Mcdonalds and appear to be freshly made from potatoes, as opposed to frozen.  

Focaccia: not quite bread, not quite pizza

2011-03-10_13

Almost everyone loves pizza including me but as I bit down into a nice combo slice from a certain warehouse club snack bar, I could just feel the unhealthy fats/oils squish out into the sides of my mouth.  This was very troubling to me so as I usual I found myself thinking of a healthier substitute.  As of right now, that answer is focaccia.

Focaccia has similar flavors as a pizza but minus most of the cheese and greasy meats.  Yes it still has all those carbs that go along with eatting bread but at least its a step in the right direction.

I am by no means a pizza crust expert but I have been experimenting with pizza dough recipes.  After many failures I have found that this simple recipe has worked well for me.  You can use this to make thick or thin crust pizza or focaccia bread.  (note: I use half/half flours because if you use all bread flour, finished product can become tough)

1 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2-1/4 cups bread flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
2 Tablespoons olive oil
about 1 teaspoon corn meal
extra flour for coating hands and rolling surfaces.

1 cup warm water 105 degrees F.
2 tsp yeast or 1 packet of yeast active dry yeast (not instant yeast)

Any toppings you desire.  For example:  Italian seasoning, fresh chopped garlic,  parmesan or mozzarella cheese,  caramelized onions, or sun dried tomatoes.

Directions:  Mix the warm water and yeast and let stand for about 10 mins.  In a separate bowl, mix flours, salt, sugar and olive oil.  Pour in the yeast mixture and mix till you get a ball.  This takes only a min.  You don't need a special mixer.  Place dough ball on a well floured surface and kneed for a couple of mins.  Keep flouring your hands and surfaces so nothing sticks.  If your dough is too wet, you will have to flour often and alot.  Place dough in an oiled bowl. Cover with a moist towel and let rise for 20-30mins in a warm area.  Punch(smash) down dough so air comes out.  Roll out on a floured surface till about half inch thick.  Spread cornmeal on a non-stick or slightly oiled pan.  Place dough on cornmeal and let stand for 15 mins.  Brush top of dough with olive oil.  Use your fingers to make dimples in the dough to hold toppings.  Top with your favorite toppings.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 15-17 mins.

Cut and dip in your favorite dipping sauce such as flavored oils or balsamic vinegar/olive oil mixture, or marinara sauce.  I have also tasted a simple tasty mixture of pesto, sliced cherry tomatoes and olive oil.

Be prepared to fall asleep because you ate too much carbs. =)

*focaccia pictured above is topped with fresh garlic, mozzarella, italian seasoning, and sun dried tomatoes.

Mountain Spinach

2011-03-05_10

On my never ending quest to become healthier and happier, I had decided earlier this year to change my carnivorous diet and try to eat more vegetables.  Yes my last post was about chocolate cake and yes I did eat too much of it so this time I am eatting Mountain Spinach to counteract the unhealthy indulgence.

What is Mountain Spinach you might ask and where does it come from?  Short answer as far as I could tell it came from asia and was popular in the mediterranean until common spinach took over.  It looks almost like choi sum.  The leaves are much bigger then regular spinach.  I got it @otsujifarm where @codyonizuka hooked me up.  The vegetables are so fresh there and very reasonable.  I got 5 bunches of different vegetables and it only cost about $10.

When I bought it, I asked Amy who was the cashier, is this easy to make?  She said, "It's just like spinach."  "Just heat it up in a pan with some oil."  So that i did with olive oil, some garlic salt and pepper.  And guess what.  It taste just like spinach. =)  Next time ill make a boiled egg and maybe some turkey bacon bits to do it proper.

Chocolate cake recipe test

2011-03-03_13

Recently I decided to eat all of the food in my house for a bunch of reasons.  This includes one a box of devils food cake.  Normally I make cakes by following the directions on the box but this time i thought i would try a recipe from Allrecipes.com.  The recipe is http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Too-Much-Chocolate-Cake/Detail.aspx

The recipe has 5 stars so I thought WTH.  To keep this short, (you can see the full recipe by following the link above) I'll just say the recipe calls for extra eggs, sour cream, chocolate pudding and semi-sweet chocolate chips.  I slightly modified it per the comments below the recipe.  I added only half a cup of oil and 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips.  Since Best Yet chocolate chips were on sale i used those and it turned out fine.  I also used a 9 x 13 glass pan instead of a bundt pan because I don't have a bundt pan.  Cooking in a different pan apparently lowers the time by about 5-10 mins.  Therefore cooking time was 45 mins.

After mixing the batter I thought this was going to turn out bad because it comes out very thick and seems to be too little in volume but the cake rose alot and became light and fluffy and very chocolaty.  I would recommend trying this recipe if you like your cakes like that.

Now the problem is I'm on a diet and got a chocolaty delicious cake all to myself.

To Thai For

2011-01-03_12

Originally I was not going to write about eatting at this place as I felt it would be unfair for me to review a salad dish at a Thai  restaurant because I dont even like Thai food or vegetables.  But 3 things made the experience fun and odd so I had to share.

1.  I like the name of this place! =)  To Thai For.  Yes it seems ridiculous and kind of prepared me for what comes next.

2.  Since I don't like Thai food so much I let my friend order.  She "Joannie" ordered the Crying Tiger Salad for me and the house specialty for herself which was some kind of soup.  I was kind of like what the hell... order me some salad and order yourself the house specialty.   My suspicion is that she ordered  the Crying Tiger Salad for me just  because she thought the sad name was interesting.  Annoyed

3.  And finally my salad tasted like a Big Mac.  Yes you read that right.  It was a strange thing that a salad (which I generally hate) could taste like a Mcdonald's burger (which I generally love).  There was no sesame seed bun,  special sauce or cheese so what the..?  If I came back to To Thai For I might order this again and close my eyes thru the whole meal to imagine it was a nice greasy burger.

Other general thoughts about the place:  The waitress was nice but didn't speak english very well.  She also told us Medium spicy was hot.  It was not.  It was medium.  This place accepts Islediscount card in the evening.  For lunch dishes generally cost about $9 up.  

ps. Rick ordered the pad thai and didn't appear to be impressed.  I might have to dub him the "Pad Thai Snob".  Maybe also "Pho Snob" too.

zpizzahawaii

Today I tried ZPizza for the first time.  I did not plan to write a review so please bear with me on this not so detailed review.

I got to try 3 different pizzas because I had the great company of  @melissa808 and @ricknakama.

Melissa ordered the Tuscan. $12.95  Homemade roasted garlic sauce, mozzarella, cremini, shittake and button mushrooms, caramelized onions, feta, truffle oil and fresh thyme.  This not only looked good but tasted the best of the 3 pizzas.  Something had a nice smokey taste and something was sweet.  The crust was not oily and it was crisp but not too thin.  Together they made a nice pizza.
I'd order this again.

Rick ordered the Mediterranean.  $12.95 Mozzarella, feta cheese, artichoke hearts, roasted peppers, greek olives, oregano, and pili pili oil (a pepper infused oil).  This pizza looked really good but personally I didn't like it so much.  Not that it was bad but the key words are Greek olives.  Greek olives are not the black ones you get in the can and put on your fingers.  The Greek olives on this pizza are the type that are sort of bitter.  If you like that type of olive then you might like this pizza.  
I wouldn't order this pizza again because I just found out I don't like greek olives so much.

I ordered the Thai pizza.  $12.95 Peanut sauce, mozzarella, spicy chicken, red onions, cilantro, 
carrots, bean sprouts, serrano chilies.  I wanted to like this.  It had a little spice to it and the same good crust as the other 2, but for some reason i just didn't.  There were some raw bean sprouts and carrots topping this pizza that fall off when you try and eat them.  Maybe if they cooked them a little or cut them smaller it would help.  Maybe if there were better pieces of chicken on it.  I don't know.
I wouldn't order this pizza again.

You might think that I don't like zpizza or wouldn't want to go back there because I only would reorder 2 of the 3 pizzas but that would be wrong.  I actually liked zpizza.  The crust was nice and they offer a good assortment of toppings.  I think I just got to pick the right toppings/pizza. Also the wait is kind of long if you order a made to order pizza, but you got to expect that cause they got to make it and bake it.  Call it in or order it online if you want it fast.

On a side note, the workers there were courteous and offered me a cup for water after I didn't order a drink.  While we waited they even gave us a couple of samples of different pizza. 

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