Chicken and Squash

Wow!  I'm glad I made it through last week.  Last week was crazy.  I endured 4 out of 5 days of afterschool meetings.  On top of it all, D1 had 2 advanced placement tests to take and a board meeting to attend.  She even managed to attend the year-end performance of the Ambassadors.  The high point of the week was the may day festivities on Monday.  We sure have lots of student talent, especially the Polynesian students.  There were several Tongan dances as well as modern Hula performances.  I had chicken skin during the oli to open up the program.  And thankfully, the program ran smoothly.  All the students behaved.  I hope it is a sign of healing.

I was also able to make good on a promise I made to one of my language arts classes.  When my administrator came in to do my observation, my students engaged in conversation with him, retelling William Golding's Lord of the Flies novel (up to the point we covered), and the admin mentioned never having read the book in his life.  The students also fully participated in the discussion, leading the admin to give me shining evaluation marks.  The last time he came to my room, the students were very hesitant to speak up.  I told them that if they weren't willing to share what they knew, I would look like I wasn't doing my job in educating them.  I also explained how if that was truly the case, it was their responsibility to let me know, as judging from the work they submit, they are getting what I'm teaching.  I'm glad they were more verbal this time because I think it gave the administrator a better idea on what they knew.  And the ones who were present on observation day got a Korean bento from me.  Anyway. . . yippeeee and whew.  "Yippeeeee" that I did okay and "whew" that it is over for the year.

Thanks to The Help, I was able to enjoy a relaxing brunch with the Ds.  We went to Hilo Bay Cafe again, and once again, they did not disappoint.  I hope they will always have spicy ahi inside-out roll on the buffet line.  Nobody makes it as good (unless you ask D1.  She insists Sushi Bar Hime has the best spicy ahi.).  Their featured crisp/cobbler was peach pineapple, which wasn't as good as the strawberry, but I think they learned from the Easter brunch and made the crisp/cobblers a little smaller.  D2 selected a Dutch apple pie, which was huge.  That's the next thing they need to pare down.  The size made it near impossible for the normal person to finish.  They had a bunch of salads and the typical breakfast fare.  D2 enjoyed herself at the make-your-own miso soup bar.  I hope they will have a Father's Day brunch that I can look forward to.

With all the meetings and events last week, I'm hoping this week will be a little more relaxed since next week is sure to be unreal hectic.  The Ds are already telling me what I need to make for their events.  Uh oh...forget what I said about this being a relaxing week.

And I almost forgot. . .with a string of sunny days last week, we officially welcomed pool season!  Water hit 90 degrees on Monday!  Of course, I was the only one thrilled by the high temps.  The Help and the Ds, especially D2, would've preferred it a little cooler.  Not me. . .I love it when the thermometer climbs into the 90s.  After so many months of cool water, it was nice to splash around again.

Now that the weather is getting warmer, I find myself wanting to eat a little lighter.  I'm not looking for a hearty beef dish with thick luscious gravy.  I'm looking for something with more vegetables.  The hot weather makes me want to eat vegetables. 

The Help was nice enough to humor me with a light pasta primavera dish.  Of course he made a side of grilled chicken sausage too.  I'm not a big fan of sausage, but the chicken apple sausage he got at KTA was halfway decent.

When I resumed cooking duties, I made this very humble chicken and squash dish.  In fact, it is so humble that I almost didn't post this.  I changed my mind when I thought this might be one of those cobbled-together dishes which are typical of the plantation mentality which influenced the way many of us here experienced while growing up.  The plantation mentality is one of frugality.  Older Japanese people (my grandparents age or older) might have said, "mottainai", a Japanese word meaning "don't waste".  I never heard that actual word being used , but I remember reading it in an article.  I suppose it's a throwback to the days when every possible cent was saved.  None of my grandparents worked on the sugar plantations, but that does not mean they weren't influenced by the plantations in some way.

So as a tribute to the hardworking people in Hawaii of yesteryear, I decided to post this chicken and squash dish.  The squash is something rarely purchased.  Most people have a friend who has an uncle, a brother, or a grandparent who has a prolific hyotan plant which produces enough to share with their vast extended family network.  That is the way I came upon this hyotan.  Of course, the Ds refused to touch this, as the squash was NOT the type they normally eat. . .they are winter melon purists.

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Chicken and Squash

     1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, sliced in half to make it thinner, then sliced 1/4" thick

     1/2 onion, sliced thin

     1/2" piece ginger, grated

     1 medium hyotan, cut into fourths, seeds removed, then sliced 1/4" thick

     1 tbsp oil

     2 tbsp brown sugar, packed

     2 tbsp miso

     1 tbsp shoyu

     1 tsp hondashi granules

     1/2 tsp rock salt

Heat oil in a pot.  Saute chicken, onion and ginger.  Add hyotan.  Add brown sugar, miso, shoyu, hondashi, and rock salt.  Cook until hyotan is cooked.

Feels Like Fall II: Apple Cheese Crisp

This is typical autumn scenery in Connecticut.

This past week I could really tell the weather was changing.  Its been getting dark earlier too.  I learned to love fall when I was in Seattle, and I fell in love all over again when I visited Connecticut.   I associate autumn with all sorts of feel-good things. . . halloween candy, football, pumpkin pie, apples, colored leaves, spiced cider.  If you are in Hilo, fall is also the time of the year for the Hawaii County Fair.  This is when Hiloans know it is guaranteed to rain.

There are no fall "colors" in Hawaii, but the stores are already full of halloween candy and supplies.  Kona Costco had a bunch of sweat-producing costumes.  Spookier still is the fact that Costco even had some Christmas things on display. . .wired ribbon, wrapping paper, lights, tags, and gift sets.  I went to Target this week, and I couldn't resist buying some fall-colored sprinkles (for cupcakes) and a few bags of "halloween candy", knowing full well the halloween candy wouldn't last past the end of the week.  I think they must put something in halloween candy to make it taste even better.  I swear the full size bar of Three Musketeers doesn't taste as good as a dozen of those mini ones eaten in one sitting.

One thing I have busied myself with has been football.  High school football.  The season seems a tad longer than it was last year, and being able to put forth a decent team makes the games very entertaining.  The Help has been doing some photo work for the coach.  He has taken some really cool action shots of the players.  I go to the game to cheer for my students and keep an eye on D1.  My favorite part is when the players gather at the end of the game to sing the alma mater.  Its always chicken skin.

This past weekend, I accompanied The Help to the game.  He thought it would be a good idea for me to accompany him onto the field and carry his other camera body.  I had a different idea.  I wasn't going to miss the opportunity to watch the game from a normal vantage point.  For those of you not familiar with Hilo, high school football home games of East Hawaii high schools are played at Wong Stadium, which is actually a baseball stadium.  This means that the football game is played in the outfield and part of the infield portions of the diamond.  Watching the game sucks because you are so far away.  Watching the game from a proper stadium was great, but I came home  soaking wet.  The sky opened up in the middle of the 4th quarter and didn't stop until after the game ended.  East Hawaii is one of the wettest areas in the entire state. . .why the heck is there no COVERED football stadium? 

While I was at the game, I realized that the weather really is beginning to cool down.  For the first time in months, I felt like eating something warm, like a big bowl of Portuguese Bean Soup.  My late friend Colleen made a great bowl of bean soup.  Its not exactly like the version The Help makes, but it is hearty and good.  I haven't eaten it in years, and thinking about Colleen and her life made me sad.  I worked with Colleen in the mid 90s.  She left the teaching profession and did a bunch of odd jobs.  I remember her with lots of fondness, and whenever she'd invite me and Mr. Dependable over for bean soup, she often made this kick ass apple crisp for dessert.

What set Colleen's apple crisp apart from all others was the addition of cheese in the topping.  Having bits of savory goodness just makes the sweet flavors burst even more.  Colleen took the time to cut in the butter with a pastry blender, but I'm lazy.  I found that the fastest way to make this dessert is to use a food processor.   Make the topping first and keep it chilled.  Use a 6 mm slicing disc to slice the apples.  I changed Colleen's recipe and used minute tapioca for part of the cornstarch.  I like the way tapioca thickens a filling. . .thanks for the tip, AJanice.  And whatever you do, do not be tempted to add a shortbread crust base to this dessert.  You will end up with a soggy bottom.

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Apple Cheese Crisp

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Topping:      2 c flour

                    2 c sugar

                    1 block + 2 tbsp butter

                    8 oz grated cheddar cheese

Combine flour and sugar.  Cut in butter to form a crumbly mixture.  Stir in grated cheese.  Refrigerate while preparing filling. 

Filling:        6-8 apples, peeled, cored & sliced ¼” thick

                   1 tbsp lemon juice

                   2 tsp cinnamon

                   ¼ c sugar

                   1 tbsp cornstarch

                   2 tbsp minute tapioca (may substitute and equal amount of cornstarch)

Combine all ingredients and arrange evenly in a greased 9 x 13” pan.  Sprinkle topping over apples.  Bake for 40-45 minutes.

If you prefer, the above filling can be substituted with 2 cans of sliced apples or apple pie filling.

On Thursday, we celebrated Kikukat Mom's birthday with a nice dinner at Imiloa Sky Garden.  I had been ono for crab, and I knew they boast crab legs in their buffet spread.  Of course I brought my own mayonnaise and Joyce Chen scissors.  I think Kikukat Dad was impressed with my forethought in planning.  He was amazed at how much easier it is to get the meat out of crab with kitchen shears.

Its rare when a crab dinner gets overshadowed, but I think thats just what happened last week.  On Monday, Kikukat Mom & Kikukat Dad (with D2 in tow) brought home their newly-adopted children from the Hawaii Island Humane Society in Keaau.  They actually went last Saturday, thinking they were going to adopt ONE kitten.  Somehow, they ended up with TWO.  FYI, two kittens can be adopted for the price of one, and senior citizens get an additional discount.  They thought they'd be able to bring the cuties home then, but they were told to return on Monday to get the boys (they were "fixed" on Monday).

Oreo and Mickey seem to be adjusting well to life in the Waiakea Uka manor.  After a few days of being confined to a safe area to establish litterbox norms, the boys are now exploring the house, climbing on furniture and napping on the sofa.  And should the Humane Society check up, the Ds can reassure them that Oreo and Mickey (aka Rider and Chris, respectively) are not being abused.  In fact, Kikukat Dad wants then to remain indoors until they are larger.  He said he doesn't want other cats to pick on them.  The only toxic element they have encountered thus far has been Kikukat Dad's everyday profanity.

On a disappointing note, I wrote my first disciplinary referral on a student last week.  He would not keep his mouth shut so I told him to stay after class.  When the bell rang, in spite of me and his skills trainer telling him to stay put, he bolted and said, "fuck you!  I don't need this fucking class!".  As he left, he slapped an old metal cabinet and pushed past other students in the hallway.  I wouldn't tolerate my own children speaking like that to me, and I'm certainly not going to tolerate it from him.  Needless to say, it was a rum & diet Coke weekend for me!

The Day That Went to the Dogs: Okinawan Sweet Potato Doggie Treats

I had great plans to bake and do all kinds of domestic spectacles which would even make Martha look pathetic (ok, maybe thats too strong a statement, but I'm trying to make a point here).  Instead, I ended up making doggie treats.  In the week I was on break, doggie treats were my legacy. I guess my dreams of giving the bird to the state and driving off into the sunset in my food truck is not going to happen this time.  By the time this post hits the internet, I will be back at work.  On the plus side, only 21 work days until the next holiday (General Election Day).  I will need to use a sick leave day sometime during that period to maintain my sanity.

Okinawan Sweet Potatoes

Actually, I cannot complain about fall break.  This was one of my most productive breaks ever.  I did manage to cook and bake things other than doggie treats.  We feasted on ginger green onion crab, egg custard tarts, apple tarts, peanut butter cookies, sushi, Texas-style smoked BBQ brisket, baked beans, cole slaw, okazu-ya food, and all kinds of cupcakes.  After feeding our faces, I suppose its only right that the dogs got a special treat too.

puree

In addition to all the cooking and feeding, I managed to evict D2 and re-claim my office.  Earlier in the week, the Ds decided to move both beds into the same bedroom.  The Ds together do not weigh more than 150 pounds collectively, and how they managed to move the bed to another bedroom is beyond me.  This move left D2's bedroom wide open for use.  Salivating madly, I suggested turning D2's room into a study/play room.  I got The Help to move D2's desk out of my office and into the new study/play room.  I will no longer need to walk through the mine field of crayons and little pokey things to get to my computer!

One thing I didn't get to do much of this break was sleep.  Nights were very restless.  My back has been bothering me, and even though I went to get a massage, I am still sore.  My neighbors went to Texas, Las Vegas, and Disneyland, and their dogs have been missing them tremendously.  One of their dogs kept escaping from the lead.  This caused The Help tremendous anxiety, as he constantly kept tabs on the dog.  The other dog, a cute puppy named Patches, barked ALL NIGHT.  The barking set off my babies, which resulted in them taking turns with the bark collar.  Maybe during winter break, I will come up with a way to put some kind of sleeping ingredient into the doggie treats.

I posted pics of the doggie treats on my facebook page, and several of my friends asked for the recipe.  For my friends in Hawaii, Okinawan sweet potatoes are easy to get, as most farmers markets and supermarkets sell them.  In my experience, they are drier than orange-fleshed large sweet potatoes (garnet yams) that normally begin appearing in supermarkets around this time of year.  If using those potatoes, just add less water when making the puree.

The dough was one of the easiest handling doughs I have ever worked with.  The rolling was done on a non-stick baking mat with a silicone rolling pin, and I did not need to add any additional flour to prevent sticking.  The cutting was equally simple.  I only wish cut-out sugar cookies were this easy. 

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Okinawan Sweet Potato Doggie Treats

     1/2 lb Okinawan sweet potato
     water
     1 1/2 tbsp oatmeal, ground to sand consistency
     2 1/2 c whole wheat flour
     3 tbsp creamy peanut butter
     2 eggs

Boil Okinawan sweet potato in water to cover for 45 minutes.  Cover with cold water and peel when cool enough to handle.  Dice in 1/2" cubes.  Blend with 1/4 c water until smooth.  Measure out 3/4 c of puree.  Add remaining ingredients and stir until mixture begins to come together.  Knead by hand until dough is smooth.  Roll out to 1/4" thickness and cut with desired cookie cutters.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Since we are counting. . .less than 50 days til winter break!

I am not sure what got into me after all the baking, cooking, and evicting, but just before the weekend, I decided to clean and reorganize the laundry room.  For fear of the "before" pictures going viral, I decided not to take any pictures of the room (although I posted the female shoe collection on facebook).  The Help added standards and shelves, and I went to Target and bought out their supply of clearance bins.  In trying to help me organize my things, The Help had a wonderful idea:

Yes, those are some of my cookie cutters strung on a clean bungee cord!  I arranged the cutters by seasons, so its a visual reminder to get busy with those Halloween cookies.  It also keeps the cookie cutters from being smashed in the bins.  The Help is so smart!




 

Easy Black Forest Cake

Except for my freshman year of college, I lived in a private apartment which was six blocks away from the edge of campus.  Along the route was a German bakery, Woerner's Pastry and Coffee Shop.  I passed it almost every day for three years but fear of mustard kept me away from the restaurant portion.  I would occasionally stop in to buy  a napoleon from the pastry case.  The napoleons sat amidst other pastries, cakes, and tortes.  The bakery seemed to have an endless supply of sachertorte and black forest cake.  I was immediately turned off by all the little seeds in the sachertorte filling, but the black forest cake was intriguing.  Unfortunately, I left Seattle before trying Woerner's black forest cake.

Being a perennial favorite of sweet tooth people like myself, some versions of black forest cake are very complicated to make.  Some boast over 3 layers of chocolate cake with a fancy creamy filling between each layer (Woerner's version was like this).  In local cookbooks, a shortcut version of black forest cake, sometimes called chocolate cherry cake, can be found in many volumes.  I've tested several versions and have tweaked the best one to make it my own.  The greatest variance between recipes came in the amount of eggs.  Some recipes call for as little as two eggs, while other specify "4 large eggs".  The cake seems to be the highest with four eggs.  One recipe said to "jigger in some rum".  My touch was to add a bit of amaretto di saronno, since cherries and almonds go well together.

And yes, Melissa, you are right. . .I do like a cold cake, so you can probably guess where I would suggest storing the cake.

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Easy Black Forest Cake

     1 box (about 18 oz) Devil's food cake mix*

     4 eggs

     1 c vegetable oil

     1 tbsp amaretto di saronno

     1 can cherry pie filling

     1 c sugar

     6 tbsp butter

     1/3 c milk

     1 c chocolate chips (semi-sweet or milk chocolate will work)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Combine cake mix, eggs, oil, and amaretto.  Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes.  Add cherry pie filling.  mix until gel is incorporated into batter.  Pour into a greased and floured 9 x 13" pan.  Bake 55 minutes.  Cool cake in pan on a rack for 25 minutes before starting on frosting.  Cook sugar, butter and milk over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture boils for 1 minute.  Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips.  Continue stirring until chocolate chips are melted.  Pour over cake.  

*If you are using a new cake mix with less than 18 oz (about 15 oz.), add 6 tbsp flour to cake mix before proceeding with recipe.