share your bounty

while roaming around the winding roads of kauai with my girl, niki, we came upon several unattended little fruit stands, run by either the honor system (the fruits/veggies are individually priced & you put your money in the box for what you take) or the bounty share system (take what you need & share what you have when it's in excess).  

WHAT A WONDERFUL THING!

'cause, you know, it sucks to see a fruit tree dropping it's luscious fruits all over the place (although, i'm sure the other critters just love it). AND, it's so nice to just go grab a perfect, organic lime from the neighborhood box when you're making salsa or guac and you realize you don't have one.  anyways, it's all part of building a happy, healthy, trusting community. :)

kauai: a vacation from my vacation

i just spent a most excellent week on the island of kauai, visiting w/ one of my favorite ladies on earth -- the one and only niki otero. woohoo!


niki is, no doubt, the hostess w/ the mostest. read: 8 nights and days of island rambling in the infamous "red dragon", up cool green mountains and across sandy beaches, riding surf, paddling rivers, campfire jamming, volleyball spanking, wild fruit foraging, hearty home/camp cooking, hangin' w/ rad peeps, climbing waterfalls, drinking sunshine, and sippin' tasty, cool libations all along the way. Pure joy.

the red dragon will take you there

waimea canyon

riverside camp in koke'e state park

our friend, jameson (he brings the party)

paddling upriver to the falls

kilauea falls

a princess of a dog named kaya

mediterranean feast

kava on the go

i'm not surprised that i missed my flight back to oahu, and thank god, cuz i would've missed a crazy night of dancing w/ dj mark farina!   i think i'm recharged.

the lovely niki

love you niki!

my sister, the wacky cakestress

this post is in honor of my big sis, SARAH, for today is her birthday.



 she's got moxy and mad creativity and has been dabbling w/ art over the years.  just this year, though, it seems she has found the perfect vehicle for her artistic expression, and which brings in some money, too.  so now she has her cake and can eat it too... literally. 

yes.  she started up a cake business, called "LET THEM EAT CAKE" and her designs are limitless.  seriously, i'm floored every time she posts a new pic of one of her cakes on fbook.  check out her page, and if you live anywhere near southern ohio, hit her up for your next cake-eating occasion.



love you sista.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!  and big ups on the big talent.  xo



(here's a sneak peek of her stuff ;)

"jamaican me crazy"

wedding cakes

kids' cakes (mater, from cars)

cakes for a cause

scream

baby showers

http://www.letthemeatcake.cc/

asian fix

i can't even say how much i miss the food in korea but, somehow, i haven't even attempted preparing anything korean since i've been back. last night, though, there was a sudden asian inspiration in the kitchen, which resulted in a satisfying meal of unagi & veggie maki and gyoza (w/ an herbed potatoey filling) w/ stir-fried arugula on the side. that's what i'm talkin' about.

take time to smell the roses

my housemate, jason, works w/ both taro & flowers (heliconias and gingers, primarily). he sells them by the stem, in a bundle, or in an arrangement. it's a wonderful art and i had my first go at it the other day. behold, my first flower arrangement.

it's not too bad, if i do say so myself.  (and, yes, that is a portrait of reagan on the wall, in case you're wondering ;)


here are a few flower quotes for your enjoyment :)

*Earth laughs in flowers. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

*The temple bell stops but I still hear the sound coming out of the flowers. ~Basho

*The violets in the mountains have broken the rocks. ~Tennessee Williams

*When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a lily with the other. ~Chinese Proverb

*Bread feeds the body, indeed, but flowers feed also the soul. ~The Koran

*We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses. ~Abraham Lincoln

*In joy or sadness, flowers are our constant friends. ~Kozuko Okakura

lilikoi lemon bars

it's was an overcast sunday and i came back from my drizzly morning walk around the farm with 6 lilikoi (passion fruit) in hand.  while juicing them, i got the idea to put that tart, tangy liquid into lemon bars.  so i found a basic recipe and added in the lilikoi juice.  here's the recipe:  

Lilikoi Lemon Bars

Ingredients

For the crust:

1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups flour
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

For the filling:
6 extra-large eggs at room temperature
3 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest (4 to 6 lemons)
1 cup freshly squeezed lilikoi/lemon juice (i used about 3/4 c lilikoi & 1/4 lemon juice)
1 cup flour
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the crust, cream the butter and sugar until light in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Combine the flour and salt and, with the mixer on low, add to the butter until just mixed. Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and gather into a ball. Flatten the dough with floured hands and press it into a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking sheet, building up a 1/2-inch edge on all sides. Chill.

Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes, until very lightly browned. Let cool on a wire rack. Leave the oven on.

For the filling, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour. Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is set. Let cool to room temperature.

Cut into triangles and dust with confectioners' sugar (which i didn't have, but oh well).

yummers. 

birth of chocolate

i planted a bunch of cacao pods a couple of weeks ago and they all started popping over the last few days.  this is what the first leaf of a cacao tree looks like.  a bit erotic, dontcha think?  ;)

raw vegan alfredo (with noni)

there's a noni tree right outside which is dropping its fruit all over the driveway.  if you know noni fruit, you know that it's aroma is, well, less than pleasant.  it's just downright funky.  then again, noni is supposed to be so good for you (high in fiber, protein and macronutrients: vitamins A, B3, C, iron, potassium and calcium, etc) ... don't you just hate it when it works out that way? 

anyhow, i was trying to think of a great way to ingest all the noni goodness while masking the nastiness, and jason, my friend and housemate, mentioned that he'd had it in an alfredo sauce at a raw food cafe.  wow!  what a great idea!  noni does have that cheese-like funk after all..  perfect for alfredo!

so i found this recipe on Vegan Yum Yum and used noni pulp in place of the nutritional yeast:

Hurry Up Alfredo
Makes 2-3 Servings
1 Cup Soymilk
1/3 Cup Raw, Unsalted Cashews
1/4 Cup Nutritional Yeast* (i used noni pulp instead)
3 Tbs Low-Sodium Tamari or Soy Sauce
2 Tbs Earth Balance Margarine
1 Tbs Tahini
1 Tbs Fresh Lemon Juice
2 tsp Dijon Mustard
1/2 tsp Paprika (smoked is awesome)
1 Pinch Nutmeg
2-4 Cloves of Garlic, optional
Black pepper, to taste

Just throw it all in the blender or food processor and blend until smooth (the longer you blend the smoother it will be).

I served it over penne pasta and dressed it up w/ some spicy vegan sausage, fresh basil and cracked black pepper.  It was quite delicious, if i do say so myself.  om nom nom!

i'm back in the bacteria

i finally got my new kombucha brew cranking here in hawaii. yay!

to get it started, i just bought a kombucha beverage from the store, let it sit on the shelf until a little scoby formed on the top (just a few days). then i made a small batch of sweet tea to get it growing in the bigger jar. just a couple weeks in now, and it can't be stopped! i have the first bouncing baby scoby to give away. takers?

kombucha info:
* what is it?
* how to brew your own
* fun with flavors

green goodness

peanut butter banana smoothie w/ spirulina!

(click here to read up on the health benefits)

sexy time in the fish tank

first of all, i never before pondered how fish have sex, or that they even do it at all.  i mean, doesn't the chick lay the eggs and then the dude comes and fertilizes them or something like that?  hmm.... 

well, i found myself shocked and fascinated the other day.  i was having a drink at a bar that had an aquarium built into the wall.  the water was a bit murky and the tank was probably way too small for the 4 or so koi swimming around inside.  anyway, while watching them swim back and forth and back and forth, i couldn't help but notice that one possessed what sure appeared to be a penis (about 1/2" long!).  and as if that weren't awkward enough, another fish (which i presumed to be female) was incessantly chasing him around the tank, sucking on it whenever she got the chance. (!!!!)  i couldn't help but to stare for a while, and i even let the lady sitting next to me in on my little secret (i think she thought i was a weirdo).  

so, this little encounter inspired me to google "fish reproduction" to find out what was really going on in that algae-coated liquid love den.  and i still didn't find a clear answer.  evidently, there are at least three modes of reproduction--heterosexual, hermaphroditic, and parthenogenetic--found in fish (wow).  and i couldn't find mention of a fish penis anywhere.  supposedly, when a female koi is preggers, the male(s) chases her around and tries to slam the eggs out of her.  after that romance is over, they often times feast on the caviar.  

sure, everybody needs the lovin'.  but that's a little bit kinky if you ask me.  ;)     

the farming life for me!

...so here's what i've been up to since my return to the sandwich isles (click the links for more info). 

~this is where i live (there is a house in this picture):

~a lot of my time is spent planting and harvesting this stuff .

















~i'm also surrounded by oodles of heliconia and ginger flowers like these (which we cut to sell to local florists):

















~i'm propagating and planting fruits & veggies, too!

~i wash my hair with this:

~i make yumminess w/ the abundance:

~i'm forever smitten w/ nature: 

~and i rarely go into town in fear of being ostracized for my dirty fingernails (keeping them clean seems impossible these days, true story, hehe):

~plus, i'm in good company.  so far, so good!  :)

permaculture

i recently completed an intensive 2wk permaculture design course in northern thailand. it was an awesome experience; i learned a lot, and i got to study/work with a fabulous group of folks. the course was hosted by the panya project and we also visited a bunch of other really cool farms & projects.  here's a sampling of photos from the trip.  let me know if you'd like some more info on the course &/or these farms.  cheers.

curly, the goat

bamboo hut

adobe hut

collecting shroomies

going to harvest bamboo

my bamboo basket

bamboo dishes/utensils

hearty lunch

teak leaf thatched walls

bicycle washing

amazing banana

save your seed

artistic adobe construction

mushroom farm

homemade cheese

earthen house

hen house

making adobe bricks

kombucha cultivation

composting toilets