The Masonry Oven Finished!!!

Isaiah with the completed oven

Finally I have an "After" to go with the before photos. We fired the oven up for the test run taking 3 hours to get to 500 degrees F. We put potatoes, and chicken in to bake, and closed the door with extra oven bricks. After one hour it was down to 175. I ended up finishing up the baking in my gas oven. Good thing we called it a "test" because we were not too discouraged. Our friend Jimmy put another layer of cement on the dome, and fixed the chimney. We are ready to test it again. This time PIZZA!!

SPICY Corn Chowder

Souper easy Spicy Corn Chowder

Ingredients:
Imagine Organic Harvest Corn Soup 1qt. carton
1/2 onion
clove garlic
1/2 stick butter
2 cups fresh or frozen corn(or more)
crispy BACON
chili pepper
salt to taste

Melt butter, and saute the onion till clear and soft. Add corn, and garlic,and saute a few minutes more. Add diced pepper, and soup base. Simmer 10 min.
Sprinkle with bacon, and serve with a salad and fresh bread.

Tasty Vortex *BACON*

Do you need to laugh as much as I do? Jim Gaffigan is better than Prozac. Bacon. Also highly recommended, Cake, Camping, and Hot Pockets.

Masonry Oven

Before picture of Masonry Oven June 2009

Here is the almost finished base of the masonry oven my wonderful son is building for me(with help).
The rocks are from our land, and the fire bricks are used and were a trade from a friend. One of the men helping my son build it was able to get really good information, and left over fire bricks from a guy who has been researching masonry ovens. When this is built, I hope to bake bread,crackers, and many pizzas here.
The beauty of this oven is I will be able to cut down my gas bill, and burn "scrub" trees that are unwanted anyway.
After photos to come, hopefully before Summer is over, and there will be a pizza party.

E Claire's Bakery

Here is the lovely Claire of E-Claire's Bakery on Waianuenue Ave. I stepped into this new bakery just out of curiosity, and ended up buying some éclairs, and cream puffs. Claire was very friendly and helpful. I asked her how business was, and she said, "Very good!" It is so good to hear good news, especially while you are eating a cream puff.

I just sit around doing nothing all day

I think I have a catering business now. This is a Alice Waters chocolate cake with chocolate butter cream frosting. It was for a woman I met at the farmer's market. I made another one for my family because we had to test it to make sure it would be good enough.

Bananas and chocolate

Tis another before and after photo blog. Before is a box of apple bananas that are on the verge of being too ripe, and no good for anything except chicken food and compost.
I saved the day by peeling and trimming them all, dipping them in fresh lemon juice,and dehydrating them. Then I did what seemed the most reasonable thing to do, I dipped them in chocolate. Semi-sweet chocolate. I like them, but I think next time I will dip them in dark chocolate.

Kimchi

I just read that Kimchi is listed as one of the top five healthiest foods in the world! Here is some Kimchi I picked up at our local farmer's market.

I love Kimchi, and have been eating it since I was a child when my mom made Kimchi. My favorite way to eat it was actually with grilled cheese sandwiches.

I might add that although I love Korean food, I am really bad at remembering the names of the foods I like. You know that yummy beef stuff that is coated with egg, and then you dip it in a delicious sauce that has soy sauce, carrots and chili pepper in it? I love it. I love all the different kinds of kimchi, that daicon one, and the cucumber one and especially the one that is made from cabbage.

I would never have imagined, when I was a child slurping up kimchi, that it would someday be considered a super food.
There is a kimchi pancake, kimchi space food, kimchi air conditioners, and even kimchi clothing.

At the Sea View Farmers Market

For four weeks now, I have been selling bread, and Kealani's Kona Coffee at the Sea View Farmer's market.
My friend Noelle,seen here with Kealani, is baking multi grain bread with flax,mini sweet potato pies,freshly ground peanut butter,cashew butter, and whole grain English muffins. Sometimes Noelle makes cashew lime bon bons, and cashew chocolate bon bons.I must say that Noelle is a lovely lovely young lady, who is beautiful in every way, but the only two pictures I took of her, her eyes were almost closed. So, this was the most bright eyed of the two pictures.We love you Noelle! I love selling bread with you!

I have been making sourdough bread, French bread with garlic and basil,olive and feta,rosemary, and oatmeal. I have also started making rye bread,Peruvian Chili pepper bread, and hamburger buns with sprouted wheat.We serve a "Greek" breakfast plate too.

Anyone have a good recipe for sprouted wheat bread? I think the buns were good, but the wheat berries were a little too crunchy.

Aquaponics in Hawaii

I got this forwarded to me by my pastor yesterday.
I had been dreaming about something like this for a while now, and want to post this for anyone who might be interested.
Someone please do this so I can be happy for you, and a little jealous.

Commercial Aquaponics Training

October 18th and 19th, 25th and 26th in Honokaa, Hawaii
Four days/32 hours of classroom time and hands-on learning at our
farm.

Why Take This Training?

· Eat Well:
Feed your family and friends with the highest-quality, freshest
organic food on the planet! When you feed yourself, you are paying
yourself retail price for the food. Always feed your family from your
farm before you sell to others; it gives you the best financial return
for your work, and the freshest food.

· Do Well:
The small commercial system you will learn to build in this course
grosses from $6-8,000 per month on operating expenses of $800 per
month, and costs under $20,000 to build. This pays off the
construction cost of the system in 4 months of growing and puts you in
the black in the first year.

· Save The Planet:
This system uses 70% LESS energy than farming in the ground (either
conventional OR organic), to produce an equivalent amount of
vegetables. Instead of being petrochemical based, the energy is all
electrical, which means it can be run from alternate energy systems
such as solar panels, wind turbines, and hydro electric. This is the
first and only farming system in the world that doesn't require
petrochemical energy. It's also organic. In fact, it doesn't allow the
farmer to cheat at all, because any pesticide or chemical applied to
the vegetables goes to the fish next and kills them. The fish are the
canary in the coal mine and force the farmer to farm organically.

· Save The Planet Again:
With the addition of a catchment tank and a pump, the system supplies
all of its own water in any region with more than 50 inches of rain a
year. Even if you don't install the catchment option, the system only
uses 1,500 gallons of water for a vegetable production of 1,500 pounds
per month. Help conserve valuable water resources.

· For Those Of You Who Are Already Farmers:
There are no weeds. There are no soil pathogens or pests. There is no:
tilling, cultivating, fertilizer spreading, compost shredding, manure
spreading, plowing cover crops in, irrigating, or tractor shed
required. For that matter, there is no tractor, tiller, fertilizer
spreader, compost shredder, etc. There is also no dirt needed: it
works just as well on pahoehoe lava graded flat with a D9 as on
fertile soil. Seeding and a large part of harvesting labor can be done
sitting in the shade, in a Costco tent, or if you prefer, standing and
working at waist level. The only consumable inputs to this farming
system are fish food, fish fry, seeds, and potting media.

· It's Easy and Simple:
My wife Susanne and I have never farmed before (only small home
gardens), and are now producing 4,200 pounds of vegetables and 600
pounds of fish a month from the three systems we've built in the last
year. We've looked for why this is "too good to be true", and in an
entire year of operation, haven't found it. This really works.

· Movable Feast/ Movable Farm:
The whole system can be disassembled and moved to a new location. For
the first time ever, the farm is movable and not tied to a specific
piece of land. This means you don't need to own the land or even have
a traditional long-term lease in order to farm profitably. Although
longer term leases are desirable, you could make money even if you had
to move the operation every few years. It is much easier to lease a
piece of land for 5 years than 25. Owners like to make money off the
land, but don't like long leases that won't allow them to sell the
land if they need to. The short-term lease will allow them to do this
and lease the land to you. And in the meantime, you may earn enough
off the farm to buy the land it's on.

· It's Fun:
We've had the time of our lives planning, building, operating, and
talking about our aquaponics systems. They're hip, slick, and cool.
They're sustainable. Be the first on your block to have one. Imagine
the crowd surrounding you at parties to hear about your cool,
sustainable, energy-efficient aquaponics system. And the fish and
vegetables you farm and bring to a potluck will disappear before
anything else does.



Aloha from

Tim Mann
Friendly Aquaponics, Inc.
PO Box 1196
Honokaa, HI 96727
808-775-7745 training@friendlyaquaponics.com

Cilantro with Cockscomb Amaranth

I am growing cilantro and cocks comb amaranth from seed as you can see here. I am so excited because this is the first time I have gotten cilantro to grow from seed. I usually end up buying seedlings. Even better is the fact that these are from seeds I collected, and everything is organic.

Other potato related blogging

I harvested my sweet potato patch. I was so happy when I finished digging, I had enough to give away to friends, family, and plenty for our dinner. Here in Hawaii we have a purple sweet potato variety that turns a bright lavenderish purple color when cooked.

My ranting and raving letter to the editor

A letter I wrote to the editor was featured in the Hawaii Tribune Herald last Saturday.
Why do you care so much about the Strawberry Guava you might ask? Why does it seem as though Sunny thinks the world as we know it will end with the introduction of this new bug. I mean geeeze, what difference will one more bug make right?

Unfortunately, I can't really answer that question very well. It may have something to do with the family drama that I mentioned. I was thinking about all the more important things in my life as I sat in the County Council meeting regarding the guava and the invasive bug. As I spent hours waiting to testify at the public hearing, listening to one boring scientist after another blab on and on about how evil the Strawberry Guava is, I wondered if I had indeed lost it. There are things in my life right now that I wish would change, but I have no control over, and this guava crisis is something I can rant and rave about publicly with out fear of family backlash. Here is the letter:

Why are we spending tax dollars to eradicate a food source on the Big Island?
I was born on Oahu, but grew up in Puna. As a girl, I spent many hours after school in the forest, climbing trees, hiking, and collecting fruit. Instead of eating candy or cookies, I would eat guava. My mother made jam, jelly, chutney, and even spaghetti sauce out of Waiawi. I have prepared Waiawi for breakfast in the morning, baked in the oven with butter and brown sugar. My children eat Waiawi, and as an islander, I know that Hawaiians, and many other people of diverse ancestry eat Waiawi too.

We all know that there is a food crisis going on in the world, so why are we wasting money trying to get rid of a food source? Close your eyes for a moment and think about how thousands of children die each day of starvation while the State of Hawaii wastes time and our tax dollars coming up with ways to destroy a food source.
There are many things wrong with that picture. Maybe those scientists who study the invasive insect could instead, cook up some Waiawi spaghetti sauce to add to our island food bank? Could the U.S Forest Service instead of releasing insects to damage a tree that provides food, fuel, and building materials, maybe smoke pig with Waiawi wood instead, and add it to our island food bank? Maybe the Forest Service and the Big Island Invasive Species Council could partner with the Housing Department and use the wood to build houses for our homeless people here in Hawaii?

Each year on our island we have flooding problems, and if the Waiawi is eradicated, will our flooding problems be worse? Forests with Waiawi use 27 percent more water than forests without Waiawi. Could this be because Waiawi most commonly grows in forests where there is more rainfall? This could also mean the Waiawi is saving our flood zones from property damage, crop damage, and road closures. If the Waiawi is missing, will we have 27 percent more flooding? Furthermore, without Waiawi, the forests might have more puddles which will produce more disease carrying mosquitoes.

Has anyone thought of how ugly the Big Island will be with all the damaged and dying Waiawi everywhere? We must think of the residents first who will no longer have beautiful hedges and natural privacy screens, instead, there will be shriveled brown Waiawi that will no longer provide fruit. I live in Hawaiian Paradise Park, and will not enjoy seeing its natural beauty further damaged. I met a man in Hawaiian Paradise Park who shapes his Waiawi nicely with a hedge trimmer, around the edge of his property. His neighbors were picking the lovely fruit from the Waiawi that were near the road while we talked. We can’t be sure about every outcome from the release of this invasive Brazilian scale insect, but we can be sure that it will make our island ugly. Who will pay for the property damage when our landscaping is ruined? Will tourists want to come back when they see the ugly damaged foliage along our roads, highways, and valleys?
Has anyone forgotten that we the people of Hawaii still rely on tourism as one of our main sources of income in our economy? People come to Hawaii because it is a beautiful paradise.

The Waiawi has been a food source on the islands for animals and humans for almost 200 years. In the light of the world food crisis, and the many benefits the Strawberry Guava provides in Hawaii, I think we should not waste anymore time and tax dollars to eradicate it. Destroy those invasive insects that are being tested at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Quarantine Facility before they are accidentally released. Don’t even bring invasive insects to our islands to test. Let us instead find ways to use the Strawberry Guava to benefit the people of Hawaii.

Those silly humans

We thought Speckle and Goompy had been molting again, but boy were we wrong! Isaiah found two large piles of eggs behind the shed yesterday. Nicely hidden from us in soft quiet nests. Unfortunately many were rotten, and two even exploded when Isaiah tried to move them. Poor Isaiah. I heard them pop from inside the house. Fortunately 14 of the eggs were still good. Thanks girls.
Time to make some pound cake.

It was a lovely night...

This weekend we had a few friends and family over. I forgot to take a picture of the rest of the food, but you can see here the steak and fresh pineapple(from my yard) with red onion on rosemary skewers.There was purple sweet potato salad, cornbread with chili peppers, Bar-B-Q chicken, mango salsa,guacamole with cilantro and red onion,organic blue corn chips,grilled artichoke, and blueberries.Mmmmmm. Thanks to Jen Woodruff we had some lovely music, to eat by.Thanks to Michelle and Jeff, we had a super cute baby to take pictures of and admire.When it got dark I lit candles and we sipped wine. Y.B. and Sarah made waffles which went well with the blueberries.
The kids were in the pool most of the time, unless they were eating. It was a lovely night.

Sourdough cheddar cheese biscuits

First Preheat oven to 375 and lightly oil cookie sheet.
Ingredients:
2 1/4 C flour
1 tea. baking powder
1/2 C butter
3/4 C grated cheddar cheese
2 C sourdough starter
In a bowl, cut butter into flour, then mix in baking powder.Dump in sourdough starter and cheese. Mix quickly and gently,folding over several times. Make a disk on the cookie sheet, and cut into 8 wedges. Bake for 35-40min. I turned up the heat to 400F toward the end. It should get slightly golden. This would be really yummy with eggs and bacon.

Chocolate peanut butter banana wrap

Kids love them, and they are good for you too. Better yet, kids can make them for you.
Ingredients:
1 banana
organic peanut butter
organic chocolate chips
1 tortilla (preferably whole grain)

Place the tortilla in a small non stick pan and warm over a medium flame. Flip the tortilla, and place desired amount of chocolate chips on the tortilla. They should start to melt very quickly. Place on a plate and add the rest of the ingredients.

Gas Prices and press on nails in 2008

We had a lovely Fourth of July. The weather was perfect,Andreas lit the fireworks and bar-b-qed,the pool was refreshing, and there was plenty of food. I marinated about 12 pounds of spare ribs, made The Barefoot Countessa's July 4th cake, and my mom's recipe for green mango pie.Hmmm. Auntie Gina brought these chocolate chocolate chip cheesecake cupcakes were so good, you might commit some sort of serious crime to get a second helping.

For fun, I got some "patriotic" press on nails at Clair's for $2.00. Press on nails are not exactly what I remember when I was a kid. When I was a kid, they fell off a few hours after you stuck them on, or when you buttoned your jeans,whichever came first.
I put them on thinking I would take them off that night or maybe the next day if I was lucky.

Here I am on July 8th and I am still wearing 6 of them. All ten would still be on if I did not try to rip them off last night. I soaked them in fingernail polish remover first and then when I ripped them off they also took the top layer of my real nail with them and tore them down to the quick.

I wanted to take them off on the night of July 4 but they were stuck on there so good,I was standing in my bathroom contemplating which was worse: stabbing myself in the eye while taking out my contacts, or ripping my nails out.

I also must admit, I am a little OCD in a few areas. One has to do with my nails. I wanted to rip them off that night #1 because they are unsanitary. #2 because they looked a little bubbly from the glue in spots. #3 because I had to poke myself in the eyeball in order to get my contacts off. In my brain, #1 and #2 are almost equal.
#3 would not bother me so much if I was not so worried about an infection of the eye while poking my eye out.

Now, as I type I am constantly aware that my nails do not match, and that bothers me more than the fact that it is so much harder to type with obnoxiously long nails.

I read the warning label on the press on nails, and it does not say anything about how this product could damage the tops of your real nails and rip them down to the painful quick. It does say, DANGER:Bonds to eyes and nails in seconds.
It should say, DANGER:You will not recognize your own hands after applying this glue.Glue is impervious to nail polish remover, dish washing, gardening, and nuclear war.

On a happier note, I noticed that regular gasoline is $4.48 a gallon today. I have a strange reaction to the new gas prices. Ask my kids if you don't believe me. It all started when gas hit the $4.00 mark. I will be driving innocently, and if I look up at a gas station sign, and the price has gone up, I cringe uncontrollably. I have a hard time describing how I feel,but it is kind of like a cross between that feeling when you get the chills and that queasy feeling you get when you are about to throw up.
I wonder if I am alone, or if other people are experiencing this syndrome.

On the positive side, I live in Hawaii, I have my health,and my family, so I guess I should not complain right?

Organic roast beef arugula wrap

For lunch yesterday, I decided to make this wrap. I simply spread a flour tortilla with cream cheese, and then added heirloom orange tomatoes, fresh arugula, and lean grass fed beef.

You can not substitute lettuce in my opinion because I think arugula goes so well with roast beef.
I finished this too quickly, and then felt like eating like 3 more. I restrained myself and had some organic corn chips and cilantro hummus instead. This lunch was very easy, and quick to make.

Viva Brazil!

When I was in Bible College, there was a missionary kid/student from Brazil who was also cook in the cafeteria. When he would watch soccer games he would shout, “Viva Brazil!!!” in the hallways. This is my attempt to reproduce a meal that he would prepare.

Ingredients:

Rice

1 and ½ lb. ground beef or turkey

1 can diced tomatoes

1 package C&W Ultimate Southwest Blend 14oz (frozen veggie)

1 can refried beans (I like to use black bean)

Yogurt or sour cream for garnish (about a cup)

Cheese for garnish (about a cup)

Salsa

Cilantro or green onion for garnish

Mexican seasoning blend- to taste

Ground cumin- to taste

Cayenne pepper- to taste

Hot and Spicy Hawaiian Rock Salt- to taste (you could substitute regular salt and chili pepper flakes)

Instructions:

1. Prepare enough rice for 4 people. I usually boil 4 cups of water to 2 cups of rice for my family.
2. While rice is cooking, brown meat.
3. When meat is brown add seasonings. Add diced tomatoes and simmer for about 10 min.
4. Heat frozen veggie according to instructions on packet. I also add some Mexican seasoning
5. Heat refried beans
6. Layer each plate with rice, meat, veggies, cheese, salsa, yogurt, green onion, and some refried beans on the side. Serve right away while hot!

Serves 4