Hawaii Day 3 - Oahu's North Shore

The main reason why we chose to stay on Oahu for a part of this Hawaii trip was the chance to visit with the husband's college friend, J. Since husband attended a very small college in Michigan, he was able to make some really good friends that we have managed to stay in touch with over the years. J moved to Hawaii about a year ago, so pretty much the only chance we will get to visit with him will be when we are in Hawaii. Our 3rd day in Hawaii was spent with J and his parents, who also live on Oahu in the North Shore area. J showed us some interesting spots that we might not have explored on our own. We had lunch in Hale'iwa Town at Pizza Bob's, where I had a yummy Ahi Katsu sandwich (Panko Crusted Fried Ahi with Wasabi mayo, really unusual and good). Then we headed to his parents, where we explored their huge backyard with enormous fruit trees before heading out to dinner at Ginger House Restaurant in Mililani. J's parents explained that Mililani is the closest city they can go to for most of their shopping (other than grocery). It is about 45 minutes away, so they really live in a remote area. It struck me as funny, since so many people don't go to Oahu because "It's too busy, too many skyscrapers," etc. There may not be as many resorts outside of Waikiki, but when we go back to Oahu, we will either stay in a rental property or a B&B somewhere outside of Waikiki. Here are some pictures of our great day with J:

The end of the road - these shots were taken at the farthest point driveable by car - several filming locations for LOST are located along the North Shore (yay, Lost!). The ocean and earth interact in such unique ways on the islands, making cool rock formations!

Turtles at Turtle Beach (not to be confused with Turtle Bay Hilton!). I will never forget telling husband that we were going to Turtle Beach, then getting out of the car to hear him say "Woah, there's like, HUGE turtles here!" He didn't really understand the literal naming of the beach, I guess!

La'ie Point - We spent a lot of time in this area just watching the ocean, the fishermen, and admiring the rock formation created by a tsunami in 1946 (you can't really see much of it in these pics). La'ie is heavily populated by Mormons, who run the Polynesian Cultural Center nearby. This is important because if you visit on a Sunday, you might find a lot of closed businesses.

Pipeline Beach - This beach is pretty hidden from tourists, as you have to walk through a neighborhood and it is not visible from the roads. What a beautiful stretch of white sand beach! We didn't stay long, but on our next Oahu visit, I could picture bringing a lunch and spending the day here!

J's Parents backyard, including (from top) the house framed by their mango tree; a funny prickled fruit that J says doesn't taste all that good, but is fibrous and you suck on it to get the sour juice out; the biggest grapefruit tree I've ever seen (and I'm from CA!); and the biggest snail I've ever seen.

Our sincere thanks go out to J and his family for their hospitality. They were all so sweet to us and really showed us that Aloha spirit that makes Hawaii special. The people are what makes Hawaii great, beyond all the beautiful sites and amazing weather.

Hawaii, Oahu Day 2 - Pearl Harbor Exhibits

We woke up fairly early, had cereal at the hotel for breakfast, then headed out to the Pearl Harbor area for a nice long day of history. We knew that this would be one of the highlights of our trip, because we both really enjoy historical sites like this (we also really enjoy history museums, Alcatraz, etc.). We arrived at about 8:15 on a Friday morning and promptly picked up our (free) tickets for the 9:20 boat ride to the Arizona Memorial, the earliest available time. We spent an hour checking out some of the cool artifacts around the waiting area, including a vast collection of historic torpedos over the ages:

Japanese Manned Suicide Torpedo

The husband showing off his guns!

I had been to the Arizona once before, on a choir trip to Hawaii in High School, but the husband had never been. It is sobering to think that these servicemen went from relaxing on their ship during peacetime to entombed in a sunken ship due to a horrific act of war - all in a matter of 9 minutes. The memorial is beautifully done, run incredibly efficiently by our military. You don't spend all that much time on the memorial itself, but that isn't necessary. The memorial visit is a time to reflect and remember; all the displays and sites back at the dock are where you want to spend your time taking pictures and learning more details. Here are some pictures we did take at the memorial

:

Me in front of one of the turrets visible above water

Husband, with USS Missouri in background

The memorial wall

I love symbolic flag pictures - this is a good one.

Alright, now down to the really good stuff: Folks, you can't go to Oahu and do the Arizona Memorial and then leave. You MUST go to at least the other two main attractions at the Pearl Harbor Historical exhibit: The USS Bowfin Submarine and the USS Missouri Battleship. Yes, they cost money where the Arizona is free. However, these sites offer so much insight into the lives of soldiers/sailors during WWII that it is completely worth the time and money to devote your day to these sites. Do not miss out! The Bowfin will have you climbing up and down fairly steep staircases and through porthole style doors, so if you are claustrophobic or have some difficulty moving around in tight spaces, the Bowfin may not be for you. But otherwise, man is this a fun little tour. They give you a headset to guide you through each area (similar to Alcatraz) and explain each little room of the sub in detail while giving you an account of life on the sub during its very active war history. I found it just as fascinating now as I did when I went on this tour in High School (I was one of the few in our group who paid the extra for this, the Missouri wasn't even an option back then):

Torpedo readying room

Sub kitchen

Mess Room

Husband, on the sub, viewing an active duty sub being brought up on the other side of the base - one of the coolest things we saw on the entire trip. Pearl Harbor is an ACTIVE Naval Base, people!

After the Bowfin Tour, we ate some hot dogs (Yes, family members reading this, that IS very funny) before headed out to the bus stop to drive over to Ford Island and the USS Missouri dock. The first thing you realize upon stepping off the bus is that this is a really big boat. I know, this makes me sound like a simpleton, but it really takes your breath away, and this is "just" a battleship, not even a "floating city" Aircraft Carrier. I knew that the Missouri is where the paperwork was signed to end the fighting in the Pacific for WWII. I didn't realize that the ship had been recommissioned for a short time during Operation Desert Shield and was in service as recently as 1992. I have an interest in modern military life due to my work (advertising to reach the military), and so I was thrilled that I was able to get a sense of life on a ship that was used so recently. I'm a military dork, what can I say? One thing I noticed was that while we were on the lower levels of the ship, I got a little bit of a vertigo feeling even with the ship just very gently swaying. Without windows or a horizon, it was a little disorienting. I can't imagine what it would be like if you were prone to motion sickness, which I am not, usually. The best part of this tour was the guides who were positioned throughout the ship to answer questions. They were so informative and obviously passionate about their work. One little visitor from Australia (about 6 years old) tailed one of these guides so closely that he kept running into him if the guide turned around quickly. Kids about 6-10 years old would LOVE both the paid tours. This tour, more than the others, made me want to call my dad and ask him more questions about his time in the Navy. He served in Vietnam and was on a ship that was sheared in half by a collision with another during manuevers. After being on this ship, the realization of how terrifying that night must have been for him becomes even more real to me.

Approaching the Mighty Mo'

One of the dorm areas

The chiefs mugs

This is a big boat!

We could have spent much more time on the Missouri, but the husband was getting hungry for what he was calling "real lunch" and so, at about 3:00, we headed back to Waikiki. We split a California Pizza Kitchen pizza because by this point, we knew we were going to dinner with our friend Jeff and so didn't want to spoil that by eating somewhere we didn't know or getting too large a portion. Jeff took us to Colony inside the Hyatt, which was a very short walk from our hotel and his apartment. We had a great time catching up with a longtime friend of the husband's, and the food was quite good. I didn't get a picture of my Hot Rocks Ahi, which was sashimi grade ahi served with a scorching hot rock that you put your ahi on to sear it to your liking. Yum, I love Ahi! Here are some of our other flavors of that night:

Filet Mignon, medium rare

Trio of potatoes - Molokai Sweet, Okinawa Purple, and Idaho Russet

Hawaii Trip Day #1 - Oahu arrival

Well, we couldn't stay away! It is no secret to my friends and family that I LOVE Hawaii. I was blessed to go there many times as a kid because my mom's family all lived there, and even though no one is left on the islands, I still feel like Hawaii is a part of my soul that I inherited from my mama. The husband likes it too, but I think he would imagine that we would go there much less often than we have. He says every five years would be about right, but we've been there 4 times in the last 6 and a half years! This latest trip was not for any particular celebration, but we had vouchers from Hawaiian airlines from our last trip (return flight was an 8 hour delayed fiasco), and we had to purchase tickets within one year for them to be valid. You can only go to Hawaii with Hawaiian Air tickets, so off we went!

We decided to split our time between Oahu and Maui. Oahu is the only island that the husband has not spent any time on, and we now have a good friend to visit. J, from the Husband's Kalamazoo College days, has been living on Oahu for the last year, working as a Doctor of Radiology for a hospital group based in Indiana. The time zones work out nicely for both parties (night shift is a much more day shift in Hawaii!).

We had to wake up at 3:00 am to catch the 4:00 am Airbus from Goleta to LAX. We don't often fly out of LAX, but it makes lots of sense for the flight to Hawaii. Airbus also makes sense so that we don't have to drive 2 hours while half asleep, or pay/deal with parking. Our flight landed in Honolulu on time at 11:30am, and we proceeded to the Budget Car Rental counter. I had booked through Costco at a great price, but unfortunately, the system messed up my order and produced one confirmation number for my two separate island rentals. My Oahu rental was lost, even though I had a printed confirmation sheet. Luckily, Budget was able to match the rate within about $3 of the original price, so off we went in our Pontiac G-6. Driving in Honolulu/Waikiki is a nightmare. The streets were not well planned, and getting into and out of Waikiki is really difficult considering it is the main tourist area. Luckily, I was prepared and planned our routes in advance. I also prepaid for parking at our hotel at half price ($10 instead of $20). We stayed at Aqua Bamboo, which is about 1 block away from Waikiki Beach. This was a great deal! It was a small suite with a kitchen, living area, and separate bedroom all for only $108 per night! The only complaint is that the bathroom is a little small, but that was fine for the 3 days we were in Oahu. Some people may have found the street noise a little loud, but we slept with the air conditioning on all night (we like our room cold), so the white noise blocked that out.

View

Kitchenette

After check-in, we decided to walk along Waikiki Beach/Kalakaua to see if we could find a bite to eat and a tropical drink. We found both at Cheeseburger in Paradise, a small chain that is a little overpriced, but which offered a great view and some yummy maitais:

After our mini lunch, we headed back to the hotel for showers & naps. We were feeling really weird from being up so early and then having a 3 hour time change, not to mention the two maitais each we just slurped down. We slept for 4 HOURS! It really felt great, though, and we were able to head out for a late dinner. Since this was our 5th meal of this weird day, we kept it to appetizers & dessert. I declared my Ahi Poke eggrolls from Duke's to be "my perfect appetizer," (a title that would be undone just a few days later), and the Husband thought his shrimp cocktail was the perfect late-night tide-over. The Hula Pie was a testament to simplicity, with quality ice cream and rich chocolate sauce sprinkled with toasted macademia nuts over a cookie crust. Of course, we couldn't finish it, but it was tasty! While waiting for our table, we were able to walk a little on the beach, and I was just giddy with excitement over our return to this amazing place!

Monterey Trip 2010

We really love the Monterey area of California, and we are lucky enough to have an excuse to go to Monterey every year for the annual Sea Otter Classic bike race. The event takes place at the Laguna Seca raceway, about halfway between Salinas & Monterey, and the Platinum team has stayed in Carmel for the last several years at the Hofsas House. Hofsas House is a cheaper option for anyone wanting to stay in Carmel without paying exorbitant rates. We love that the team pretty much takes over this place when we are here, and it is rare that there isn't at least one person we know hanging out by the pool or cleaning their bikes in the parking lot. Here are some pictures of Hofsas House:

Driveway artwork - Right before the driveway drops off in a ridiculously steep grade that the team refers to as "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride." It is so silly the husband had to take a picture.

View from the upper level balcony. Weather was awesome while we were here.

This year, I managed to avoid going into the expo area at the race. This is the largest race expo in the country, and it is overwhelming at times for me. It costs $10 a day for spectators just to go in and walk around. I have found ways around this fee (usually involving picking up scraps of racer wristbands and cobbling them together to make my own) because I think it is ridiculous to charge the friends and family money just to get in to the area where you are able to spend MORE money for food & drinks. This year, I avoided the expo altogether and hung out at the hotel or went out with the other wives of the team. Here are just a couple of pics that the husband got (his entry was free as a racer) of the madness:

Before crossing the bridge over the racetrack into the insanity

Just one of the booths - We do love Specialized in this family!

I am rather proud of how well researched I was on this trip. I didn't take pictures at all the restaurants we ate at, but there were some that were worth mentioning even without the pictures. I used Yelp and Trip Advisor extensively to research the types of food we were interested in and to find the best options for our entire group. The first night there, I inadvertantly ended up planning the "team dinner" as more and more couples signed up to join the husband and me at our chosen dinner spot, Little Napoli. The husband is very particular about where/what he eats the night before a race, so I chose this place for its simplicity - Italian food in an American style where you know what you are getting when you order spaghetti & meatballs. We ended up with a table for 12, which was a great size, since everyone was able to interact and no one was left out. Everyone seemed to enjoy their meals, especially my husband, who got a spicy pasta with swordfish that he really enjoyed and was a perfect fit for his pre-race needs. The next night, the race was over and we were both exhausted after a long day (husband got 12th, see team website for all the team successes and photos by me!). We decided to celebrate with Mexican food and some margaritas. I found Club Jalapeno on Yelp and never would have found it otherwise, since it is tucked inside a business area courtyard. This place was fantastic. The sauces are unique combinations. I loved the Spicy Yellow Pepper sauce with my beef tamale (roasted yellow bell pepper with habaneros), and the husband thought the Oaxaca style Mole sauce was better than any other he had tasted. Several teammates went here the next night and loved it as well.

Now, onto the food that we DID take pictures of. We had eaten at Katy's Place for breakfast last year, and knew we wanted to go back again. The husband is a big fan of eating out for breakfast, and even my small breakfast eating self enjoyed Katy's Place enough to return. It is expensive, and cash only, but it is a fun environment and has very tasty food. Although they are known for their Benedict items, we have yet to try any of the benedict combos, since we aren't huge fans. The husband's banana chocolate chip pancakes did start a trend, however. After his plate was delivered, we saw several people ordering by saying: We want THAT! I got a delicious strawberry waffle and a hot chocolate:

We also ate at the Sardine Factory, which was our "fancy" meal of the weekend. We had a few recommendations for this location, so we made reservations and headed over to the Cannery Row area. We accidentally stole another couple's table (I swear they said "Moore!"), but thankfully, they were able to accomodate both parties in the lovely conservatory room. We dined on their famous abalone bisque, the albacore special (Husband) and Sole Americana (me - Sole with Diver Scallops and Lobster pieces over local greens, yum!) and finished with their Chocolate Marquis Cake, which was fantastic:

Of course, we also visited the aquarium. We don't visit every year, because it is expensive and doesn't always work into our schedule, but it is a really well run show here at Monterey Bay Aquarium. They are very passionate about saving the oceans and have become known across the U.S. for their sustainable fish consumption guide. I don't always abide by the guidelines while dining out, but I do try and choose sustainable options when buying fish to eat at home. Here are some of my favorite pics of the many I took at the aquarium (having an SLR at an aquarium makes picture taking much more fun!). We loved the sea dragons/horses and the jellyfish, and I think I'm in love with that little sardine with his mouth open!

Brown Sugar Meatloaf

Sorry for the very long hiatus! The good news is that I've been tasting & touring for the last month and have lots of posts to catch up on. But my adventures have kept me away from my blog far too long and so now, I begin the catch up - starting with a recipe that uses ketchup! Ha ha!

Meatloaf is a classic recipe that many people consider a staple. I grew up with a pretty standard meatloaf recipe that included dry onion soup mix, bread crumbs and eggs, with a basic ketchup glaze. It was always just okay, so I was never really inspired to try it out on my own. But lately, with my food blog, I've decided to try making some of the classics on my own, utilizing the techniques I've been learning through the blogging world, plus adjusting for our personal tastes. Meatloaf was back on the list of potential "to-try" recipes. This recipe received some pretty rave reviews on allrecipes, and we do like savory items sweetened with brown sugar, so I thought I'd start there. I added some worcestershire sauce and Tabasco to the glaze and we really enjoyed that added kick to the glaze. Spicy and sweet just go so well together! This meatloaf was very moist and was tasty on sandwiches the next day. Everything a meatloaf should be in my book! I'm thinking of making this with a mix of beef and turkey next time, so that it is a little lighter. But as it was, it wasn't too greasy, since I used a pretty lean mix of ground beef. Good recipe.

Brown Sugar Meatloaf (adapted from allrecipes)

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup ketchup

(added: 1 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce)

(added: 1 tsp Tabasco Sauce)
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef (I used 93/7% Lean/Fat ratio)
3/4 cup milk
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 cup finely crushed saltine cracker crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 5x9 inch loaf pan.
Press the brown sugar in the bottom of the prepared loaf pan. Mix ketchup, worcestershire sauce and Tabasco in a small bowl. Spread on top of the brown sugar in loaf pan.
In a mixing bowl, mix thoroughly all remaining ingredients and shape into a loaf. Place on top of the ketchup. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour or until juices are clear. Allow to cool for 10 minutes prior to slicing.

Tofu Parmesan Florentine

I knew I wasn't going to use an entire block of tofu on the Peanut Tofu recipe, so I figured I'd want another great tofu recipe to try with the remainder before it went bad. I looked no further than Mary Ellen's blog. Mary Ellen has some great tofu recipes because she really experiments with it when her husband is out of town (since he doesn't like it). I know that I make some of my favorite experimental recipes when my husband is out of town, as it really gets the juices flowing to know that if you fail, you can always eat cereal or ramen for dinner and not disappoint the husband! Anyway, Mary Ellen's Tofu Parmesan recipe looked fantastic. I made a couple of changes (I added some Parmigiano cheese and removed the dreaded mushrooms), but I loved this recipe. The husband declared it a "definitely make again" which is really saying something for a new tofu recipe. The key was that since Mary Ellen didn't list specific amounts on the spices for the breading, I went a little heavy on the cayenne (which I used instead of pepper flakes). Wow, the flavor of that spice, combined with all the other intense flavors, made me forget that I was eating "boring" tofu. The tofu turns an amazing golden color with the light pan fry because the square shape has more consistent contact with the pan than most other proteins would. After I pressed the tofu dry, I cooked the spinach first and used it as a bed for the tofu, sauce & cheese, which I then placed in the oven just until the cheese melted. This is not exactly healthy fare, but it is a healthier way of enjoying the flavors of chicken parmesan that I love so much without the deep fried chicken.

Tofu Parmesan Florentine (adapted slightly and halved from Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations)

1/2 block extra firm tofu
1/4 c bread crumbs and 1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano mixed with the following spices:
Spices: salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano, onion powder, cayenne
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c marinara
1 bag baby spinach
1/2 c shredded cheese; I used mozzarella

1 tsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 375. Slice tofu into 1/2 inch slices. Press between two cutting boards with paper towels to remove most of the liquid. Heat olive oil over medium heat in non-stick pan. Saute spinach until just starting to wilt. Place in 11x7 baking pan, set aside. Dip tofu in egg, then in bread crumbs and add to hot pan. Cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Place on top of spinach in baking pan. Top each slice with marinara sauce and cheese. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted & bubbly. Serve over hot whole wheat pasta. Serves two.