S'more Bites

Let's talk about opposites. Sometimes all I eat are vegetables from the farmer's market and garden and sometimes I can't resist a SPAM musubi or poke bowls with fish from Lord-knows-where. You might catch me making my own yogurt or pasta, but you'll never find me making my own mustard or nutella, because ain't nobody got time for that. Sometimes I make you a healthy coleslaw and sometimes s'mores are just on my brain. I hope you don't mind.

Seriously, I try not to keep sweets in the house because it'll be stuffed in my face faster than you can say high fructose corn syrup. My name is Gwen and I'm addicted to sugar. So I hope you understand that while I tempt you with the cutest marshmallow treats ever, I totally want you to eat your vegetables, too.

S'more Bites
serves as many as you want to make!

1 bag marshmallows
2 cups chocolate chips
4 graham crackers

Melt the chocolate chips in a bowl in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until chips are melted and smooth.

Place graham crackers in a ziplock plastic bag, seal and crush crackers into a fine meal, a little smaller than the size of rice kernels. Place crushed crackers on a plate.

Dip marshmallows, one at a time, in the melted chocolate and then in the crushed graham crackers. Allow to cool on a drying rack. Serve as a dessert, party favor, holiday treat or snack. Great recipe for kids to make. Enjoy!

Vintage Honolulu

We snuck in a couple vaca days in Honolulu before I had to report to work at my summer job this week. I'll be leading a team of 17 and 18 year olds on camping adventures on the Kona side of the Big Island, where I live. Along the way, we will be doing conservation work like building trails, planting native trees, and removing invasive species. I am more than stoked.

We stayed in Waikiki and just chilled since Dustin had hurt his back. This was totally fine with me having just finished a nightmare 2012-2013 school year, I needed some downtime.

Everywhere we went in Honolulu clues from the past kept popping up. I couldn't help but wonder what Waikiki would have been like in the '60s.

We also took some time to look at a few sailboats, we'd like to buy one next summer and plan so do a little world cruising. For real.

Aloha vintage Honolulu!

My friend Danielle introduced me to the La Mariana Sailing Club tiki bar. It is fully decked out in tiki regalia, complete with dive bar status. If you have never been, it is a must.

Of course we had SPAM musubis for breakfast, this one has bacon and egg. Nom.

For Memorial Day, Magic Island hosts an annual lantern lighting ceremony in which a message is placed in a lantern for a lost loved one, lit and set free in the ocean. (Don't worry, the lanterns are collected so they won't harm the environment). It is a beautiful way to remember and honor those that have gone before us.

We enjoyed some classy drinks poolside at The Modern Honolulu including a fab deconstructed mai tai garnished with a shiso leaf.

Even the carpet patterns are vintage.

Love the turquoise.

A rare snapshot of me. Hi!

A Greek Easter Feast

Smoky Slow Cooked Lamb and Traditional Greek Salad

My most memorable Easter was spent on the island of Crete in Greece. Dustin and I were there in 2006  just after getting engaged, upsetting our lives to spend some time in Europe and figure out if marriage was right for us.

We'd rented a tiny studio apartment overlooking the ocean with two wooden twin beds, a hot plate, and a cold water shower. All the other tenants were Greek, including the friend we'd made at the car rental agency who'd found the apartment for us. We spent lazy days cruising the coastline by scooter discovering vibrant red poppy fields, tasting homemade moonshine and wine in the dark back-rooms of grocery stores, and purchasing our daily supply of perfect, sun-warmed tomatoes.

It was spring so the weather was still cool and the tourists were at a minimum. The Easter buzz began two weeks or so before the holiday. Everywhere we went, locals warned us that all businesses would be closed for several days around the holiday and tried to prep us on all the upcoming events. Coming from a background of fuzzy bunnies and egg hunts, we had no context for the festivities that were to come.

Traditional Greek Salad

I don't know the ins and outs of the Catholic religion/Greek orthodoxy, so forgive me if I explain this incorrectly. During the days leading up to Easter, the people will fast. On the eve of the holiday, people gather in the evening, in our case the town center was a small lake, and start to set off fireworks. It was quite pretty to see the reflection of the sparklers in the water as thousands of people gathered around in their Sunday best. As the excitement builds toward midnight, the fireworks become more intense. We were constantly dodging roman candles and M80s at this point, the devilish grins of teenaged boys illuminated by a constant spark.

A religious procession made its way to the lake, led by robed priests and what appeared to be a life-sized figure nailed to a cross. There were prayers and songs and candles held high by all in a moment of silent reflection. And in one fantastic finale, the figure on the cross was floated upright in the middle of the lake and set ablaze. Cheers rang out and firecrackers exploded everywhere. I swear someone threw dynamite into the lake at one point.

It turns out the figure on the cross was Judas, the apostle who betrayed Jesus, whom everyone was happy to burn. We were some of the last people hanging out by the lake after midnight as the local people went to their homes to share a meal and break their fast. The next morning we were invited to our neighbor's apartment for dinner and ate some of the best food of our lives including grilled lamb and fresh bread.

This year, we'd tried to relive some of those memories by hosting a Greek style barbecue on our very different island home. Below you will find recipes for slow-cooked lamb and traditional Greek salad. We also enjoyed spanakopita, tzatziki, and grilled asparagus fresh from our garden as my nephews hunted for eggs in the sand.

Beach egg hunt

I hope you have a delicious, memorable, and special Easter.

Smoky Slow-Cooked Leg of Lamb
serves 10-15

5 lb boneless leg of lamb
5 cloves garlic
1/2 cup fresh rosemary
1/2 cup fresh oregano
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup water
olive oil
salt & pepper

In a food processor blend garlic, herbs, and some salt & pepper to form a paste. Cut lamb into large sections about 1 pound each. Rub the lamb with the paste, drizzle with olive oil and allow to marinate for at least 2 hours and up to overnight.

In a slow cooker, add lemon juice and 1/2 cup water. Stack lamb in the slow cooker, sprinkle with more salt & pepper and olive oil and cook on low for just shy of 8 hours. You want the meat to easily pull apart, but not so loose the it fall apart when picked up.

Prepared a charcoal grill with wood chips. Grill the pieces of lamb, drizzled with more oil, for no more than 5 minutes each side so as to impart smoky flavor and form an outer crust, but avoid drying out the meat. If the meat is falling apart (that's ok!) then simply grill it on a piece of foil so it won't fall through the grate.

Serve with tzatziki, on pita bread or make a gravy from the drippings in the slow cooker. Enjoy!


Traditional Greek Salad
serves 10-12

3 cucumbers
5-6 tomatoes
1/2 red onion
1 cup kalamata olives (or other Greek olives if you can find them)
5-6 oz feta cheese (be sure to get the block style and check that it is made with sheep's milk)
fresh oregano or a dried mediterranean herb blend
fresh lemon juice or your favorite vinegar
olive oil
salt & pepper

Cut cucumbers in half lengthwise and chop into 1/2 inch slices. Slice tomatoes so they are a similar thickness to cucumbers. Please in a bowl and sprinkle with salt & pepper.

Layer thinly sliced red onion and olives on top. Slice cheese into 1/4 inch slices and layer on top, sprinkle with herbs and salt & pepper. Drizzle with lemon juice and olive oil when ready to serve. Enjoy!

Clam Digging in Oregon

The Edwards' home in Silverton, Oregon

It's Christmas eve. An impenetrable mantle of hot electric blanket has forced me out of the bed I'm sharing with Dustin at his parent's newly built house in Silverton, Oregon. We've gone to bed leaving twinkling lights downstairs and plans to host his mother's family tomorrow. The beast is waiting quietly in the fridge for his turn to be roasted and the house murmurs with Dustin's steady sleeping breath and the hum of the heater.

Earlier today as we walked the property in the brisk afternoon I couldn't help but imagine myself holed up in their tiny, red guesthouse working hard on my first novel, a pot of tea steaming on the stove  as my fingers tap, tap, tapped the keyboard. The clouds piled high above our heads as we rode the tractor back to the house.

This place has a mix of both homey familiarity and a sense of belonging I can feel nowhere else but in Oregon, where the trees and the mud and the icy mountain streams make up the very blood in my veins. This sensation grows as we trudge through the fields in high rubber boots down to a nearby creek, stopping to admire rose hips and forgotten blackberries still red and unripened on the vine. Moss grows thickly on the little wooden bridge crossing the creek and the coffee colored water rushes under us, drowning out the sound of my thumping, longing pulse.

Netarts, Oregon

Days later, after the last guest has gone, full and happy, and toting a number of tasty leftovers including smoked turkey, Yorkshire pudding, and champagne cake, I select my breakfast from the once inviting, now daunting pile of endless Christmas cookies. Blackberry brandy and eggnog have slowed me this morning but I've managed to pull on some boots and a sweater. The beach awaits.

Netarts, Oregon

We arrive in Netarts on an utterly perfect day. The sun is (almost) out and the wind has taken a break. Waves crash far offshore and the salty air creeps slowly down into my lungs. The combination of cliffs and breakers and moss and trees trees trees on the Oregon coast is like nowhere else. Lucky for us the tide is low and I came prepared with a shellfish permit.

Digging for clams in Netarts, Oregon

Rake, shovel, and bucket in hand we set off skeptically down to the sand. My dad had told me about this method of simply raking the sand and scoring clams. I doubted this claim as my memories of clam  digging as a kid were just that, digging to frigging China in the freezing sand as fast as possible before the clam out-dug you.

Oregon cockles

When you dig for clams you look for little holes in the sand, step near them, and hope the clam shoots some water up at you through the hole. That's how you know where to dig. Well, as we sloshed along the sandy bay, we saw no such holes. At all. I was beginning to look the fibber. My mother in law suggested we just start raking.

So we raked a little in the sandy tide pools and pop! up came a clam. We laughed at our luck but then pop! pop! pop! we scored more and more. Within 15 minutes we'd drawn a small crowd and the legal per day catch limit. This was definitely the easiest clam digging I'd ever done.

As you can see from the photo, these clams are quite large. They have a hard, textured shell and are technically called cockles. Before you steam, broil, slurp, or chowderize your cockles, be sure to soak them in an open container of fresh water for at least a couple hours or up to 12. Do not cover with a lid as the cockles need to be able to breath. Soaking them allows the excess sand to seep out before cooking. We skipped this step because we were so excited to eat them, but trust me, it's vital, we were eating some crunchy clams.

The recipe below is the simple way to enjoy clams. Serve with crusty bread, pasta, or hot cooked rice.

Fresh, steamed Oregon cockles

Steamed Oregon Cockles

20 cockles (or your favorite clam)
1 cup white wine (salted water or broth is fine, too)
1 clove garlic, smashed
1 TBL butter
salt & pepper to taste

After the cockles have soaked in an uncovered container of fresh water for at least 2 and up to 12 hours, rinse and set aside.

In a large pot, add wine and and garlic over medium high heat. As soon as wine begins to boil, add cockles to the pot and cover. Be sure not to crowd the cockles. It helps to have a glass lid so you know when the shells have opened.

Steam for 3-5 minutes or until shells have opened wide. Discard any that do not open. Serve with the wine/butter mixture and add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Potluck All-Stars

The holiday season is teeming with potlucks. From work celebrations, to Christmas parties, to family gatherings my calendar is full of them.

My first tip is to plan ahead. Look at your calendar right now and next to the potluck event, jot down what you're thinking of bringing. This way you'll have a chance of remembering this when you do the grocery shopping that week instead of scrambling to throw something together a half hour before the potluck. Which is in the real world, what I ALWAYS do.

This year is going to be different! I am planning ahead people. Below are my potluck go-tos. Most require minimal prep, but if they are more in-depth, I'll be sure to warn you. I'm going to put them in order of difficulty/time involved to prepare.

Have fun this holiday season and remember, eat something before you dive right into the spiked punch. Oh and never eat the booze soaked fruit. Never.

Easiest Peanut Butter Candy Ever

Easy Potluck Ideas (as in, I'd trust my husband to make it if I'm running late. None of these require cooking and can be thrown together in less than 30 minutes)

"Costco" Style Broccoli Salad
Pink Slaw
Magic Bean Salad
Easiest Peanut Butter Candy Ever

Fig and Goat Cheese Bruschetta

Mostly Easy Potluck Ideas (as in, you need to cook these ones, but should not take more than 1 hour)

Fig and Goat Cheese Bruschetta
Southwestern Meatballs with Creamy Cilantro Dipping Sauce
Positive Self-Talk Potato Salad
Don's Grilled Sweet Potatoes (scroll to bottom of link)
No-Carb Lasagna
Steamer Clams
Avocado Pie

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Kinda-Difficult Potluck Ideas (as in, you may need to prepare these the day ahead but are great if you want to wow the crowd)

Savory Pumpkin Pie
Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Coffee Brigadeiros
Homemade Butterfingers
Limoncello (this one needs a couple weeks prep, be sure to read the recipe first!)

Homemade Butterfingers

Savory Baked Apples with Parmesan and Sage

It's possible you are freaking out because tomorrow is T-gives and you still don't know what to make. Don't freak out. It's turkey. It's potatoes. It's pie. As long as there's enough of it, no one will complain.

But just in case you want to make an unexpected and super fancy side that is (much) easier than pie, I have a recipe for you that I'm really excited about. These baked apples would look awesome next to a turkey, but would pair especially well with ham or any porky product. They look elegant and I love serving foods that are fun and unique.

And before I go I need to say that this year I'm thankful for some really amazing people. You. All of you that read this little blog and leave comments or like my posts on Facebook, you are what keeps me going. Thank you from the bottom of my avocado pie. Sincerely.

Savory Baked Apples with Parmesan and Sage 
serves 4

4 apples
1 cup walnuts
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup yellow onion
1/2 cup parmesan cheese + 4 TBL for topping
4-5 fresh sage leaves or 1/2 tsp dried sage
salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 325. Core apples using a paring knife, taking care not to pierce the bottom of the apple. If you do, all the sweet juices will leak out. This is tricky, but don't worry, no need for perfection here.

In a food processor or similar device, grind up the walnuts, garlic, onion, 1/2 cup cheese, sage, and some salt & pepper. Spoon walnut mixture into hollowed apples, pressing to pack in. You may need more or less filling depending on the size of your apples. Top each apple with 1 TBL of additional cheese. 

Place apples in a baking dish or sheet and bake for 1 hour or until apples are soft and cooked all the way through. Serve as a side to turkey, ham, pork chops or ? Enjoy! 

Hawaiian-style Thanksgiving

It's Sustainable Sunday! Let's get into it. Since Thanksgiving is next week, I want to encourage you to incorporate as many island grown ingredients as possible in your turkey day spread.

Speaking of turkey, unless you'll be hunting for your bird on the slopes of Mauna Kea, you won't find a  Hawaii raised turkey in the grocery store. Maybe an herbed-stuffed whole fish will grace your table, or some prime grass-fed beef steaks.

Get real Gwen! I know what you're thinking, there is no way you are going to forgo a turkey dinner for my personal agenda. Ok, ok fine, but will you consider doctoring a few sides then?

Let's start with potatoes. Why mash up some decrepit mainland shipped potatoes that have been rolling around on the bottom of an ocean liner for several months when you can make delicious, fresh and unexpected mashed breadfruit? Below you'll see my recipe for mashed breadfruit with roasted garlic and goat cheese.

Grab some fresh island grown green beans (I've seen them at Costco, KTA and the farmers' market) and some Hamakua mushrooms and you've got yourself a green bean casserole, recipe below.

Savory pumpkin pie

Kabocha squash is widely available and will make the best (sweet or savory) pumpkin pie you'll ever have. Maybe you're up for adventure? Serve some avocado pie.

Will you be serving locally grown dishes at your Thanksgiving this year? I'd love to hear about it. In the meantime, I hope you'll consider trying these sides.

Mashed breadfruit

Mashed Breadfruit with Roasted Garlic and Big Island Goat Cheese
serves 6-8

1 green breadfruit (make sure it is hard, like a bowling ball. If at all soft, find another one)
1 head garlic
2 to 5 oz Big Island goat cheese (found at KTA)
2 TBL butter
1/2 cup Big Island milk (found at all major grocery stores)
Hawaiian sea salt
2-3 sprigs rosemary (if desired)

Preheat oven to 400. Peel and core the breadfruit. Keep in mind the sap is messy and can stain, so use a junk knife. Cut breadfruit into bite-sized pieces and place in a steamer basket. Steam for 20-40 minutes or until very soft. I realize that the cook time is vague, but I have found that all breadfruits are slightly different, which has to do with its stage of ripeness. Don't be afraid to steam the heck out of it.

Wrap head of garlic in foil and roast in oven for 30 minutes.

When garlic and breadfruit are finished cooking, transfer breadfruit to a large pot and mash. Peel garlic and add to mash. Place pot over low heat and add goat cheese (I only added 2 oz or so, but if you want it cheesier, add more), milk, butter, and sea salt. Continue to mash until all is combined and mixture is smooth. Sprinkle with chopped fresh rosemary, if desired.

Big Island green bean casserole

Big Island Green Bean Casserole with Hamakua Mushrooms
adapted from My Life as a Mrs. 
serves 6-8

1 lb island grown green beans
1 TBL olive oil
1 TBL butter
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 package (12 oz) Hamakua mushrooms, sliced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
dash cayenne pepper
3 TBL flour
1 cup water (or vegetable broth)
1 cup milk
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Blanch green beans in salted boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain.

In a cast iron skillet heat olive oil and butter over medium heat. Saute onion until soft, adding some salt & pepper. Add mushrooms and cook until soft and fragrant, 8-10 minutes. Add garlic and cook another minute or so. Add flour and stir to coat. Add water and bring to a simmer, then add milk and simmer until the mixture thickens, 5 minutes or so. Be sure to add salt & pepper along the way, tasting as you go.

Add green beans to the mushroom mixture and stir to coat. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sustainable Easter Sunday

So this post is coming to you a day late this week, but there was no way I had the energy to post after our family Easter dinner last night.

We started things off right with my new signature drink, the Duck Pond (an iceless white Russian with a Peep floating on top).

I'd spent the day before in Waimea, scouring the farmer's market for the freshest ingredients for our meal, it being Sustainable Sunday and all. Admittedly, not all the ingredients for our meal were locally sourced (Duck Ponds did not originate in Hawaii) but everything for the main courses was found either in my garden or at the farmer's market.

Amidst sugar-high shrieking by my nephews, waning light eggs hunts, non-stop running doggy feet, and all burners on high we managed to chew on some local lamb, garden fresh asparagus, creamy sweet potatoes, and a ginger lime salad. Throw in some smoked salmon and crab caught by my brother-in-law in Alaska, cheesy biscuits whipped up by my baker of a sister-in-law, and spiked Easter eggs, we had ourselves quite the meal.

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter, too. Please read on for more Sustainable Sunday recipes.

Spring Vegetable Roast
serves 4-6

2 small leeks
5 small carrots
1 bunch asparagus (about 1 pound)
2 TBL olive oil (or mac nut oil)
sea salt

Preheat oven to 400. Cut leeks lengthwise into slices about the same width as the asparagus, discarding green leafy part. Peel and cut the carrots in the same way.

Arrange leeks and carrots on a baking sheet and toss with salt and oil. Roast for 10 minutes. Add the asparagus to the baking sheets, toss, and roast for 10 more minutes. Enjoy!

Asparagus from my garden, leeks and carrots from the Waimea farmer's market.

Seared Big Island Lamb with Mushroom Pan Sauce
serves 3 (or 6 if you share)

3 lamb loin chops
2 TBL olive oil (or mac nut oil)
salt & pepper
1/3 cup red wine
1 cup cremini (or similar) mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 400. Heat a cast-iron pan over medium high heat and add the oil. Wait for the pan to get real hot then drop the lamb in, sprinkling it with a little salt and pepper. Sear both sides, this will take no more than 2 minutes on each side. Flip the meat when it is nice and browned.

After both sides are browned, place the pan with the meat in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until lamb is medium rare.

Remove meat to a plate and place the pan with the drippings back over medium heat on the stove. Add the wine to deglaze the pan, using a metal spatula to scrape up the browned pits. Add the mushrooms, some more salt and pepper and saute until soft. Add the water and allow the liquid to reduce down a bit before adding lamb back to the pan. You can transfer it to a serving platter, but I think it looks fabulous served right in the pan. Enjoy!

Lamb and mushrooms found at the Waimea farmer's market. Other ingredients not locally sourced, sorry!

Ginger Lime Vinaigrette
for any old salad

1 TBL grated fresh ginger
1 tsp honey
juice from 2 limes
1/2 cup mac nut oil

Add all ingredients to a food processor or blender and combine. Pour over your favorite salad greens. Enjoy!

Greens, tomato, lime, ginger and mac nuts found at the Waimea farmer's market. Local honey and oil found at KTA.

Spiked Easter Eggs

This week I started obsessing over making an adult version of easter eggs, sort of like those tiny bottle shaped chocolates with liquor inside.

So I rounded up some hollow chocolate eggs. Now, I could have injected straight booze into them, but the eggs were rather large and I didn't want the liquid to spill out everywhere when you bite into them. I had to think of a way to thicken it up, and landed on pudding mixed with a little Kahlua. Narf!

First, you need a sharp, pointed tool like a dentist pick to poke a whole in the egg without cracking it.

Then, use a pastry bag with a fine tip or an injector to fill the eggs.

Last, seal the hole with a little melted chocolate.

Now that's an Easter treat!


Spiked Easter Eggs
makes about 10-15 eggs

1 package Jell-o pudding, I used butterscotch
2 cups milk
1 cup Kahlua (Bailey's would be good, too)
10-15 hollow chocolate eggs
1 cup boiling hot water
1/2 cup chocolate chips, chocolate bar, or almond bark
sharp, metal tool
pastry bag with a fine point

Whisk the package of pudding with the milk for 2 minutes and allow it to set in the fridge for at least 5 minutes.

Unwrap the eggs just enough to get a peek at the top. Boil a cup or so of water and pour into a coffee cup. Dip a pointed metal tool (a large needle or knitting hook would work well) into the hot water. Use the tool to gently poke a whole in the top of each egg big enough for your smallest pastry tip.

Add Kahlua to pudding and stir to combine. Spoon pudding mixture into a pastry bag. Inject pudding mixture into each egg.

In a small bowl, melt chocolate chips, bar, or bark in the microwave according to package directions. With a spoon, spread a bit of the melted chocolate over the whole and allow to harden, maybe 5 minutes. Re-wrap eggs in their foil and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Of course, you can make these eggs kid friendly by omitting the Kahlua. These would be delicious served over ice cream. Enjoy!