Hawaiian Food Diary

A little something to cleanse the palette in between courses

Mahi Mahi Stuffed with Crab and Lobster at Mama's Fish House

Kalua Pork Sandwich at Mama's Fish House

Ceviche at Mama's Fish House

Ahi Sashimi at Mama's Fish House in Maui

Flatbread at Mala's Ocean Tavern in Maui

Balinese Stir Fry at Mala's 

Ono at Mala's

One large fish

Breakfast--Acai Bowls

Ahi Sashimi Salad 

Food Fest

Although my blog is primarily about fashion, I do like to incorporate some food posts here and there. I have never been an avid cook, but ever since we have been on our cleanse (basically the Paleo Diet, but no dairy of any kind, nuts, or sweet potatoes), I have been cooking in order to stick to this 3-week regimen. I used to hate cooking just because recipes called for so many ingredients, but Paleo cooking is so much easier. Not only is it super healthy, but the meals are delicious. Below are some things we have made so far, and if you're interested, click on it to see the recipe.

Paleo Shepherd's Pie

Verdict: Really delicious. I used nitrate free bacon on top, and although it doesn't look so appetizing, I promise it is!

Sausage Stuffed Tomatoes

Verdict: So flavorful and juicy. I put hot sauce and chili flakes for extra flavor. 

Turkey Stuffed Peppers

Verdict: I don't have a recipe. I just made it up, but essentially, it's ground turkey with seasoning, fresh salsa on top, and a cracked egg on top. Then it was placed back into the oven so the egg could cook. 

Pork Tenderloin 

Verdict: I can't take credit for this one. My boyfriend made it and it was simply delicious. The pork was very tender and moist. Sage was called in the recipe, but we didn't use it. We just used whatever was in the kitchen.

Chicken Cacciatore

Verdict: Just had this last night, and I didn't follow the measurements for the tomato sauce. I didn't want to waste the 15oz can, so it came out a little bit more soupy than I would have liked, but still good regardless.

And what's on the menu tonight? Taco Veggie Lettuce Cups. Yum. Can't wait!

Last Friday Night

Top: Forever 21

Jeans: Levi's

Shoes: Elizabeth and James

Clutch: Ambiance

Happy Monday! I feel rather refreshed as I had about 11 hours of sleep last night and a fairly low key weekend. I went to dinner at Umami Burger in the Marina, followed by a Foster the People concert on Friday night. Saturday was spent running errands, and Sunday night was spent lunching, shopping, and celebrating my mom's birthday at Michael Mina. Here are some pictures from my outfit from Friday. I bought this cheetah printed flowy top a while back, but was so terrified of wearing something so bold. I figured, what better opportunity to wear it than at a concert? Oh, and the last picture was my bacon-wrapped scallop burger from Umami Burger. Drool.

Perbacco

I went to dinner with a couple of girlfriends at Perbacco in the Financial District and I was quite pleased. As usual, we always over order in attempts to try to taste as much as we can! We first started off with a refreshing peach salad paired with sweet bellini's, and took on the heavier dishes with risotto, pork shoulder, brussel sprouts, and short ribs. To top off the meal, we ended with a warm almond cake--it was the perfect date night!

Breadsticks

Risotto

Pork Shoulder

Short Ribs

Brussel Sprouts

Almond Cake

View of my lovely watch

Early Christmas Present: Fleur De Lys

Sorry for the lack of posts--I was on a roll too! It has been a pretty hectic week with the holiday season, especially in the retail world--so when I come home from work all I want to do is just lie in bed and do absolutely nothing! So today, I have a day off, and decided to post something real quick before I head to the gym.

I've always been a fan of the show Top Chef, and even watched the spin-off Top Chef Masters. On that show, I fell in love with Hubert Keller. He was the nicest chef, made good food, and was just so humble. So when I found out he owned Fleur De Lys, and it was in San Francisco, it was a done deal for me. My two friends from high school are foodies, so we all agreed to go to Fleur De Lys as a Christmas present to ourselves. We made reservations for Tuesdsay, December 22 back in November, so I have been counting the days ever since. Needless to say, the day had finally arrived! Here is my experience:

• Best service I have EVER had--the hostess was Chantal (Hubert's wife!) and she went around each table a couple times throughout the night asking how everyone was doing. We never had to ask for anything--the waiter knew exactly what to do! He was so friendly and patient. One of the people in the table next to us, went to the bathroom as the main course was coming out, and the waiter immediately brought out silver covers to cover the food so it wouldn't get cold. The level of attentiveness is out of this world! It's not a frilly restaurant either, which I love. It's a nice restaurant, but some people are still dressed more casually (jeans, etc) than others. But they treat the people wearing the 3-pieced suits the same as people wearing jeans.
  
• I had the 4 course meal--Appetizer: an assortment of items which included caviar and foie gras Seafood Dish: Sea bass Meat: Lamb Dessert: Apple Tart. I wish i could describe it better, but I have to say, it was the best meal of my life. If had to pick a last meal before I died, I would want anything from Fleur De Lys.
  
• Highlight of the night, I asked if the Chef was in the restaurant. They said he was at his other restaurant, Burger Bar. However, our waiter suggested that he can call and ask to see if they can arrange for us to meet him. He talked to Chantal, and she called Burger Bar to let them know we were coming! Chantal hugged and kissed us good-bye like we were old friends and sent us on our way.
• We walked into Burger Bar where the hostess informed that he would be out shortly. He came out, we shook his hand, and he was so genuinely nice and humble. He signed our Burger Bar cookbooks, and took pictures with each one of us. We thanked him for his time, even though he was very busy, but he insisted we were not taking up his time. I mentioned that he was my favorite on Top Chef Masters, and felt that he should have won. In response, he laughed and just said it was a really fun show. Love him! He is going up on my fashion wall--I will make an exception. He may not be a designer of clothes, but he's a designer of foods!
  

Sunday Funday

Well it looked like this today, so my mom and I spent the day trying new recipes that we saw on the Food Network, particularly Giada's show, Everyday Italian. We made a trip to the grocery store to get all our ingredients, and almost died when we saw how much cheese we had to put in this dish. My cholesterol probably just spiked 50 points. But all in all, we spent the afternoon cooking, and it was fun! Here is what we made (brace yourselves, it's a two-parter!):

Giada De Laurentiis: Spicy Baked Macaroni
For the complete recipe, click here

sautéing onions, mushrooms and garlic in olive oil

adding tomatoes, red pepper flakes, and spinach

mix, mix, mix!

adding the pasta, nutmeg, and the endless amounts of cheese

buttered the dish, and added bread crumbs and more cheese as the "base"

scooping it all in the casserole dish..ready for baking!

Final product: delicious!

Trader Joe's Gingerbread Cake and Baking Mix

I decided to try out this Gingerbread Cake and Baking mix that I saw at Trader Joe's. I originally wanted to make cookies, but when I saw the words "dough" and "chill" and "roll it out" I immediately ruled that idea out. The idea of me making dough really scares me, and I know it will ultimately fail. So I opted for the cake. The only ingredients you need are: vegetable oil, one egg, and water..and voilà! It's done! It's pretty good in flavor and texture, and I recommend it if you like gingerbread. My mom isn't a fan of the spiciness of it all, so I think it'll just be me tackling this thing for the next few days. Someone will have to wheelbarrow me out of the house.

Dear Santa, if I give you gingerbread cake, will you give me everything on my wish list? ;)