Hukilau Lanai bartender John Scott with a Garden in a Glass. Daniel Lane photo

Happy Aloha Friday and Earth Day to our Kauai Tasters!

NEWS:

Kokua Festival 2012, Kauai

Last night’s benefit concert for the Kokua Foundation was an amazing experience. The Kokua Hawaii Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that supports environmental education in the schools and communities of Hawaii, and Tasting Kauai was happy to donate time to this inspiring cause.

After we packed everything up, I got a chance to see the last part of the show. Paula Fuga  has a beautiful voice, and I really like John Cruz. When the two of them sing with Jack Johnson, it’s like Hawaiian angels caressing our ears.

Backstage Cas Schwabe-Lutton is ready to serve! Marta iPhoto

Cas from Akamai Juice Company and I were thrilled that everyone enjoyed our food before going on stage. The crew and band were especially nice, and really laid back. I stood behind the food table and answered questions, and got to chat with everyone.

Cas set up her juice bar, and her wellness shots quickly gathered repeat drinkers. You definitely want to shoot it, like you would tequila. Spice from Hawaiian chile peppers, fresh ginger and fresh turmeric open your lungs and leave a burn in it’s wake. One lady said it made her headache go away, and Jack Johnson’s wife Kim said it made her sore throat better! She ended up having two shots. Wellness Kauai style!

The juice Cas served was Keiki Love (pineapple, papaya, lilikoi, lime, banana, honey), Kauai Kolada (mint, pineapple, lime, coconut, ginger, turmeric, honey), Cucumber Mint Slushy (cucumber, mint, pineapple, lime, honey), and the Wellness Hot Shot (Hawaiian chile pepper, ginger, turmeric, lime). With chasers of course.

I got to check out the show for a little while. Marta iPhoto

Most of the menu consisted of Kauai grown ingredients. We served kale salad, quinoa tabbouleh, garlic roasted beets with Kunana dairy goat cheese, cru de te (cooked taro root and breadfruit; blanched green beans; fried sweet peppers; radish; carrots; cherry tomatoes; cucumber, and grilled zucchini), spring rolls (filled with Kauai Farm Connection freshies), avocado balsamic vinaigrette, fresh guacamole, fresh nori chips, fresh pita chips, and fruit salad.

My highlight was when John Cruz came through the line. He’s a really cool cat, laid-back, funny. He was curious about the food, and asked a lot of questions. I was happy to answer them, and saw that he had a rambutan (from Hole in the Mountain Farm), and was trying to open it. I asked him if he’d like me to open it for him. I don’t know why I said that because I didn’t have a knife or anything, and I have never been able to twist it off. He handed it to me, and I channeled the farmer Jude Huber (I’ve seen her twist those puppies open at the farmers market when she gives samples). I was pretty nervous taking it from him, but they were so ripe, I easily twisted it off.

Donation table. Cas iPhone photo

Besides donating food for Cas and I to cook with, the Kauai Farm Connection (formerly the Kauai Farmers Co-op) donated a beautiful basket of food for the display table. It probably had $120 worth of their produce and eggs. The display table was in the lobby, and everyone was so stoked on the basket, Gary and Jillian Seals did an impromptu raffle at $10 an entry, and donated the money they raised to the Kokua Foundation.

Five of seven Lotus Fudge flavors. Marta iPhone photo

Lotus Fudge donated their fudge bars, which everyone seemed to load up on first! Orchid Alley donated a gorgeous Mayor’s Basket for the display table, which was really cool because right now they are busy making Mother’s Day basket plans, and this is their top-tier option.

It was amazing to feel the aloha from everyone involved, and it is an experience I’ll never forget.

EVENTS:

Friday, April, 20 – Sunday, 22

2nd Annual Earth Day Rising Festival, Waipa

Last night at the benefit concert, I met Matt Lane. He works with school gardens on Maui, and is here to help Malama Kauai with their Earth Day event. Matt is in charge of the Zero Waste initiative for Earth Day Rising. He said, “It’s Earth day, so we will put on a zero waste event.” That means you need to bring your plates, forks, and cups, and pack out what you bring in. They aren’t even going to have trash cans! They will open coconuts for those who forget cups, and they’ll make eating utensils from the shells. Plates will be old school Hawaiian style, ti leaves.

Earth Day Rising aims demonstrate the abundance and vitality of Kauai’s food resources. Collin Darrell of Grow Culture will be cooking and serving Kauai grown foods, and he told me the food truck will be at the beach across the street. How cool is that?

Tonight, from 4 to 10 p.m., sous chef Jason Sessions from Nanea will be cooking. Tomorrow from 2 to 10 p.m., Colton Narikian from Kauai Pasta-Lihue, will be cooking, and Sunday from noon until 10 p.m., Garrison Price executive chef of the Kauai Grill will be cooking.

Each chef will cook ten different meals, and I jotted down a couple as Collin listed them on the phone. Eggplant poke; A`akukui Ranch brisket with kim chi relish, and ravoli made with Kunana Dairy goat cheese, lemon and fresh peas. All plates are $8 and under. There will be fresh coconut water, noni juice, fresh gingeraid, and kombucha to drink. YUM!

Visit Earth Day Rising for tickets, info, and a detailed schedule or call Katie Trussell at (808) 828-0685 x10.

Monday, April 23

Earth Dinner at Hukilau Lanai

Kaua`i Shrimp and Kaneshiro pork croquette. Daniel Lane photo

If you like great food at great prices then you’ll want to attend this dinner. I featured it in this week’s MidWeek Kauai, and I can tell you, the menu is scrumptious. Plus, most of the menu is Kauai grown. Hukilau Lanai’s website and an integrated menu from Real Time Farms, so you can see where the food comes from.

Love from the Kapaa Rotary Club

The Rotary Club of Kapaa honored eight local businesses as winners of the sixth annual 2012 Kauai Green Innovation Awards (KGIA) at an awards luncheon on April 18 in Kapaa.

“Each of these winning initiatives contributes significantly to helping our island be a cleaner, greener and more sustainable place to live and work,” said Judah Freed, chairman of the Rotary Club’s Vocational Committee, which coordinates the annual green awards.

The Hukilau Lanai Restaurant introduced a new interactive website menu in partnership with Real Time Farms to identify the sources of produce and other fresh items; purchased more food from local organic farmers like Moloaa Organica and Kailani Farms; made fresh sausage and charcuterie in-house from local Kaneshiro Farms pork; reduced unnecessary and imported garnishes for beverages and cocktails; switched to all-LED lighting in the dining room and lounge area; installed a dish sprayer using low water flow and pressure; repurposed used wine bottles as tabletop candles holders; collected batteries for the Kauai Recycle Center; collected coffee grounds for composting; printed menus on post-recycled paper, and a long list of other green activities.

Saturday, April 28

Kauai School Garden Network

Natalie “Hiwahiwa” Joyce-Maeda, garden coordinator for several Kauai schools, and Colleen Carroll, Malama Kauai’s director of the Kauai School Garden Network, will be hosting their first Kauai School Garden gathering at Wilcox School. Garden Teachers will receive a free copy of Big Ideas Linking Food, Culture, Health and the Environment, Center for Ecoliteracy. Over the past two years, Wilcox has implemented a variety of garden programs, and visitors will be able to taste, touch and smell what’s growing. At 9 a.m., there will be a demonstration in the hydroponic greenhouse followed by beverages made from garden harvests. At 9:45 a.m., five examples of grade specific will be shown. These gardens are tied to classroom learning such as life cycles, pollination, and plantation culture. The morning ends at 10:45 a.m. with healthy snacks. To RSVP, call Colleen at 808-828-0685, extension 13.

UPCOMING:

Saturday, May 5

Cinco De Mayo

Paco's Tacos in Kilauea. Daniel Lane photo

I wrote about Paco’s Tacos and Cinco De Mayo several weeks ago in a Pau Hana Friday post. Back then, Tony Aguilar, part owner, was thinking of having a fiesta at his Kapaa location. On May 5th, the Kapaa truck will be at Rob’s Good Times Grill. Tony tells me there will be a Kachi Kachi band from 7 to 10 p.m. with Wally Rita & Los Kauaianos. I asked him what Kachi Kachi was, and he said Puerto Rican merengue. RRRRah! (roll your r’s!) Of course, there will be Mexican beer and tequila specials. If you haven’t had a bite to eat at the Kapaa location, give it a try. This is fast food we approve, with an ocean view.

If you don’t have Earth Day plans, go hug a tree!

Me and a mango tree. Daniel Lane photo