Since my mom had bought some Okinawan Festival scripts from a friend, we headed on down to Kapiolani Park yesterday to help her spend it!

We browsed through an arts and craft tent, a country store, and another tent selling orchid plants. My mom picked up a really pretty orchid that will look great once it blooms. We passed the entertainment stage and a bunch of kid’s games making our way to the Okinawan culture tent.

Around this time I realized I could blog about the festival so I started to take a couple pictures. Above and below are pictures of the many bonsai plants that were on display.

Next it was time for some food!

The line for the andagi went really quickly

It was perfect – crunchy on the outside and warm and soft on the inside!

We also ordered several yakisoba plates for our early dinner.

Before heading home, we took our snacks and dinner to the Diamond Head lookout and enjoyed our food with these views…

Tried to make some vegetarian tacos a while back. I was pretty motivated so I even made my own homemade tortillas!

For the meat substitute I cut up a boca burger into little pieces and cooked it with some taco seasoning. Added some veggies and salsa and had a quick little dinner!

Hi guys! I’m still alive, just super busy starting a new job this year. I have photos from back in May just waiting on my camera…but until I have time to get those together, here’s a little something to tide you over.

This weekend we went out to celebrate my mom’s birthday at one of our favorite fine dining restaurants – Hiroshi’s. On Oahu, I think Hiroshi’s and Le Bistro are my two favorite restaurants.

There were six of us here this night. My hubby still being the good vegetarian went with their vegetarian 4 course menu. Above was a miso eggplant he had – very good!

The picture up at the very top of the post was an appetizer we shared – Seared Foie Gras & Crispy Hamakua Mushroom with white truffle oil and fresh raspberry reduction. My younger brother loved this!

My older brother had the Sizzlin’ Kona Kampachi Carpaccio above as his appetizer.

I had the Marinated Moi “In Bag” for my appetizer. It came with shiitake mushrooms, Hauula tomato concasse, and a delicious sauce of truffle butter and chili pepper water-konbu broth.

For dinner my dad had the August Locally Grown Four Course Menu. It included Pepper Seared Ahi Sushi, Bacon Wrapped Kauai Shrimp & Nalo Green Salad, Maui Cattle Beef Eggplant “Sandwich”, and an Island Banana “Puff” for dessert.

My mom and I shared entrees switching plates half way. We got the duck special of the night that you see below.

As well as the Pan Roasted Chilean Sea Bass. I really enjoyed this fish – it came with Hauula tomato concasse, baby bok choy, ume musubi & ogo-miso ginger brown butter sauce.

My younger brother had the Almond Crusted Mahimahi with seasonal vegetables, angel hair potato & Hiroshi’s original miso cream sauce. This is was also very good, Hiroshi is just amazing with his sauces!

For her birthday my mom was presented with this Hawaiian Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta dessert. We all shared it and it was excellent like everything else this evening.

I didn’t photograph everything we had that night (I was just too busy eating!) but you can check out their website for more photos and menu information.

Hiroshi Eurasion Tapas

Website: www.hiroshihawaii.com
Address: 500 Ala Moana Blvd, Restaurant Row
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813

Finding vegetarian places to eat out here in Hawaii isn’t always easy. But we’ve found Down to Earth to be a great place to pick up lunch while grocery shopping!

On this day we had a couple burgers and a bowl of chili. Everything was delicious! And the really good part is now that Circuit City is gone in Aiea, there is a ton of parking at the Pearlridge location.

Here’s a look at their menu…

If you’re in the area, check out the vegetarian groceries as well as eats at Down to Earth!

Website: www.downtoearth.org

A month ago we made a switch from morning cereal to oatmeal. You’ve probably seen the commercials of those people saying their cholesterol went down so many points after eating oatmeal every morning for a month. We thought, it couldn’t hurt to give it a try. Anyways, I was never really much of a cold cereal person so this was pretty easy for me.

After plowing through a container of quick cook oats, we decided to try out these Steel Cut Oats that everyone seems to be talking about. This style of oatmeal is less processed (not rolled out like the traditional and quick cook style), the oat is just cut into several pieces – leaving a much more textured oatmeal.

Here it is right out of the package. You can see that it looks much harder than the rolled oats. Because of this it takes a little while longer to cook.

Basically what I do is look at the package instructions to see the oatmeal to water or milk ratio. I put in half the liquid with all of the oatmeal into a large bowl (use a big one so it doesn’t overflow while in the microwave). I microwave this for about 1.5 minutes. Usually all of the liquid gets absorbed after this, so I add a little more liquid in and let it sit for about 10 minutes to get soft. After that I add the remaining liquid and microwave again for about 1.5 minutes. When it comes out if it needs a little extra milk I just top it off and stir it in until it reaches a nice creamy consistency.

The picture below was taken while the oatmeal was resting after the first round in the microwave. The picture at the top was taken after the final time in the microwave. You can see that the top one is a bit creamier after the second zap in the micro.

We usually add dried blueberries or cranberries for some sweetness instead of plain sugar or other sweetener.

The verdict? My husband wasn’t a huge fan of it, he thought it was a little too chewy. I on the other hand liked the change of pace from the regular rolled oats. Basically if you like a little more bite and texture to your oatmeal, you’ll probably enjoy this steel cut version of oatmeal. And if the double round of microwaving doesn’t appeal to you, I’ve read about others who simply leave it in the slow cooker overnight and have perfect oatmeal in the morning!

Our new favorite place to eat when in the Ward area is Mocha Java Cafe in Ward Centre. We are trying to eat vegetarian these days and this place has a very nice selection of vegetarian dishes to try!

Up at the top is the Vegetarian Szechuan Stir Fry – Tofu, peppers, and onions in a shoyu based sauce. If you are afraid of heat, don’t worry…this is a very mild dish.

Here is the Vegetarian Burrito – Whole wheat tortilla filled with vegetarian beans, potatoes, peppers, onions, served with brown rice, salad, and salsa.

This below is the Veggie Stir Fry – Italian veggies, bean sprouts, cabbage, with shoyu based sauce, served with brown rice.

Whenever we’ve come here there seems to be at least two homemade soups on special. Here is a cup of Italian Vegetable Soup that we got to share.

Next is one of my favorites, Vegetarian Curry Chapati – Italian veggies and potatoes in a curry sauce, wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla, served with chutney, brown rice, and salad.

On the outside the Chapati below looks just like the Vegetarian Burrito, but inside it is very different. It is a mild Indian style curry coating all of the veggies inside. This makes for a very satisfying and hearty meal!

And finally, here is the Vegetarian Hash – Red potatoes, pepper, onions, crumbled veggie burger, topped with low fat cheese and served with sour cream. If you like potatoes, this is the dish for you!

If any of you are vegetarians looking for somewhere to eat on Oahu, this is a great place to try. Or if you are just concerned about your health and want to try eating healthier this is also the place for you.

For any of the dishes that uses eggs, you can replace it with either egg whites or Egg Beaters for a small additional charge. Also, the brown rice, whole wheat tortillas, and toss salad (instead of mac), make Mocha Java Cafe a great place to eat for any meal of the day!

Hours
Monday – Thursday, 7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Friday and Saturday, 7:00 am – 10:00 pm
Sunday, 8:00 am – 6:00 pm

Phone: 808.591.9023
Address: 1200 Ala Moana Blvd, Honolulu, Hawaii 96814
Ward Centre, On the Ewa end near Kakaako Kitchen and Kua Aina

Here is a simple yet very tasty vegetarian dinner…veggie curry!

In a large pan I sauteed one zucchini cut into bite sized pieces with half a carrot cut into thin slices.

While these veggies cooked, I soaked a large handful of dried mushrooms in a bowl of water. Fresh is great if you have them.

When the zucchini and carrot were about half cooked I added the mushrooms, water, and curry seasoning. Check your package to see the water to curry seasoning ratio. I normally read the directions then double the water so that it’s not as salty.

Then right at the last minute I added half a bunch of watercress cut into bite sized pieces. The watercress adds a nice crisp freshness to the final dish! I love this over some brown rice, so savory and delicious!

Back in June of 2008 I did a post about Off the Wall’s restaurant opening in Pearl Kai Shopping Center. Time sure does fly and I felt it was a good time to do a little update to see how they are doing now.

New hours of operation are located at the bottom of this post and there are all kinds of interesting specials these days…

Pau Hana Specials Nightly, 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Friday and Saturdays – $3.00 Draft pints and pupu specials
Wednesdays and Thursdays – 50% off on all Takara sakes and sakes by the glass
Sundays – Free Keiki Meal (3-9 years old, with purchase of an adult entree, one child meal per adult)

and the coolest attraction…

1st and 3rd Wednesdays at 8:30 pm – Live Okinawan Music!

And now, on to our food for this evening. At the top is what my brother ordered, the Spicy Ahi Katsu Donburi. He was very happy with his choice!

Below is the Goya Champuru. It’s a really popular dish that is basically a bittermelon Okinawan stir fry.

My husband tried to get this in the vegetarian version but I think there was a little miscommunication and we received the bittermelon and pork version instead. It worked out though because my dad hadn’t ordered an entree, just appetizers that my brother and I mostly ate…so my dad took the goya and pork champuru which he really loved and my husband ordered another of the vegetarian version.

And one last thing, in the Goya Champuru you see above, it was ordered without egg. We’re trying to be mindful about our cholesterol these days and try to avoid eggs whenever possible. My dad and I both agreed that it was still very delicious even without the egg!

Here are some of those pupus that we had…

Vegetable Spring Rolls

Ika Nankotsu

Yakitori Bacon Wrapped Shrimp

For my entree I had the Yasai Champuru which is an Okinawan style vegetable stir fry. The vegetables had a light yet tasty sauce, I’d definitely get this again!

And while we were waiting for the Vegetarian Goya Champuru they brought out some cute little andagi for us, yum!

What we had this night was just a small selection of what they currently have on their menu. On previous occasions we have also enjoyed the Okinawan “Rafute” Pork, Fukuoka Style Tonkatsu, and Grilled NY Strip Steak.

And if you are looking for lunch time take out, Off the Wall currently has a selection of $5.00 lunch specials. Choices are: Hamburger and 21 oz soft drink, Chef’s Chicken Special, Kalbi Grilled Pork Chops, Fish Special of the Day, and Okinawan Soba. This is quite a bargain at $5.00 each!

Website: offthewallhawaii.com

Hours
Take Out Lunch: Wednesday – Friday, 11:00am – 2:00 pm
Dinner and Drinks: Wednesday – Saturday, 5:00 pm – 9:30 pm; Sunday 5:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Phone: 808.486.WALL
Address: 98-199 Kamehameha Hwy, B-10, Aiea, Hawaii 96701
Pearl Kai Shopping Center

This past December I bought myself a grill pan for my Christmas present. I’ve only used it a couple times before but I think with this recipe I have already found my favorite use for it!

Cut your favorite veggies into big chunky pieces and throw them onto a lightly oiled grill pan. Turn once to get those pretty grill marks and you are done!

Grilled Eggplant

Grilled Onions – These became so deliciously sweet and mild, next time I’m going to do two onions so we don’t have to fight over them!

The other veggies that I also grilled up this day were bell peppers, portobello mushrooms, and naganegi (Japanese long onion).

Along with our sweet grilled veggies were a choice of three dipping sauces. Up front is low salt shoyu with grated ginger – very tasty, back to the right is low salt shoyu with wasabi, and back to the left is yuzu ponzu sauce – my favorite!

My posts have been slowing lately but I haven’t really slowed in taking pictures. Needless to say my camera is now totally overloaded with food pics. I’m sure you’ve been there before.

Many of them don’t make the cut and get tossed in the digital trash bin. But others make their way to the photo editing and resizing line, which at this point resembles the line for parking at a new mainland discount chain store that just opened in Hawaii.

This picture was teetering on the edge of the trash bin, only because it isn’t much of a recipe. This is all there is to it!

In a pan, heat (on medium low) a tablespoon of oil and a clove or two of minced garlic. When you smell a nice garlic oil aroma coming from the pan add in the sliced veggies and cook on high for a short couple of minutes. Sprinkle a little bit of salt in there if you want. I used only about a 1/4 teaspoon because I’m trying to watch the amount of salt in our diet.

These garlic oil veggies would be really good with so many different combos of vegetables. On this night I just used up whatever I had in the fridge – which happened to be eggplant, bell peppers, snow peas, zucchini, and shiitake mushrooms.

And while it isn’t much of a fancy recipe, it does make a very refreshing vegetable side dish. For me, it’s one of those dishes where if you leave the bowl in front of me, I’ll just keep snacking away on it for as long as I’m at the table, until you take it away from me, or until I see the bottom of the bowl!