Sunshine All the Time

Saturday Breakfast

2008-03-15T14:53:00.001-07:00

For my last Saturday breakfast in Hawaii I found a restaurant that was given the Ilima Award Critics Choice for best breakfast - Diamond Head Market and Grill. I got the pancakes, of course, and would have not given them the award for the best pancakes or best breakfast, but they were decent. Unfortunately, they were a little tough and rubbery, but I just think maybe it was an off day. I also wish more places would serve real syrup instead of the fake stuff. I always enjoy going out to breakfast in the search to satisfy my favorite meal of the day. I leave in two days and so I expect that I'll have one last day, Monday, to try out another place for breakfast. We are going for an early morning sunrise surf on Monday, which I can't wait! I think it's going to be a blast and even better there will be no people around for me to worry about crashing into.

Cake

2008-03-10T21:58:00.000-07:00

I decided that the bakery needed some St. Patrick's Day decorative cakes so I made a Devil's Food with a minty butter cream and mint ganache over the top. Mint and chocolate almost go as good together and coffee and chocolate! I had fun making this cake and everybody was just loving the scraps of cake and leftover mint butter cream. If my "supervisor" doesn't have a cow that I made this cake (she doesn't seem to like to do anything out of her own rigid daily routine) maybe I'll make another. I think this cake is a bargain for $22. If I didn't know how disgusting the ingredients were in the cakes and how unsanitary most of the other employees were I would buy this cake in a second. I probably wouldn't do very well in the marketing of and advertising of this bakery, but I'm here for the experience. Anyway, I enjoyed putting this together and think it actually came out looking pretty good.

Books and bags

2008-03-08T17:54:00.000-08:00

I'm now reading by Michael Pollan, In Defense of Food An Eater's Manifesto. I left The Omnivore's Dilemma thinking, well what can I eat now? It seems like no matter what I eat there is going to be a "dilemma" with it. Luckily, Pollan has started off this book addressing this very issue and can't wait to read on and see what he says. I go the store today to food shop and end up leaving with all of these little plastic bags (like I do every week) and think to myself, does this make any sense? I feel like I am being a responsible consumer by shopping at a small, independently owned health food store, but then the excess of all these bags.... The solution to that problem would be to recycle these bags for several weeks instead of just tossing them in the trash. Also, the more I think about the food the more I wonder... do I really know where these nuts are coming from? What about raisins and granola? They might be organic, but I have no idea where these products are grown (it doesn't say which state or which country anything is from - except the coffee). It seems like such effort to have to ask an employee where everything is from. I like to think for the most part I am only eating US food (minus the coffee, tea, spices), but who knows.

Breakfast

2008-03-08T17:39:00.000-08:00

My usual Saturday in Honolulu mandates a trip to the farmers market and then a treat for myself, which is going out for breakfast. Last week I found this restaurant, Grand Cafe, in Chinatown and thought it was great. Exactly what I was looking for with its outdoor seating, good food, and of course, the coffee was acceptable (anything less then acceptable and I would not be making a repeat visit to the establishment). I got the French Toast Banana's Foster last week and while I was hoping for some pancakes (which is really why I go out - I want to find THE BEST pancakes) this morning I had to settle for the same menu as last week. Apparently, it's their weekend brunch menu and it doesn't change all that often. I decided on the Egg's Benedict, minus the ham, and thought it was quite tasty. I usually avoid getting Egg's Benedict because of the super fattening hollandaise sauce, but I thought, what the hell I'll be crazy today. Unfortunately, there is good reason for me to stay away from such delicacies as hollandaise because of my sensitive stomach. I blame it on not having my gallbladder! I ended up feeling sick for the next 4 hours. The meal was great and can only blame my sensitive stomach for probably not ever ordering anything like this again.

The Omnivore's Dilemma

2008-03-06T23:16:00.000-08:00

I just finished reading The Omnivore's Dilemma and quite honestly it might be the most inspiring and eye opening book I have ever read. Even before reading this book I had all ready committed myself to the lifestyle of label reading; health food store bulk bins for quinoa, granola, and anything else that seemed like fun to scoop myself into a bag; local, local, local; organic; and spending a whole lot of money on food. I have no problems with spending money on food. I have spent a third of my life (I must say a wonderful, inspiring, and at this point the best eight years of my life) working on a farm growing fruits and vegetables in a cute little town in CT. My mantra has been that farmers deserve more! There is no logical explanation for people to be upset about the price of tomatoes, lettuce, apples, etc when it's quite obvious hardly anybody wants to be doing farm work anymore. We need food to live and so we ought to be paying for all of the lovely produce (and meat!!) with nothing but smiles on our faces and thank yous from our mouths. I digress.... T.O.D. - if you care at all, even if it's just a bit about your food - what it is, where it comes from, do yourself a favor and read the book. I can't even talk about a great book and everything it has to say and offer without going off on a huge tangent about my love for farmers and how they deserve quadruple the prices they get. PS - My only experience is with small time farmers in New England and so I am not sure if I would feel as much "love" towards the huge, industrialized farms that have been taking over the US. That is TBD. Until my next thought...RMM

The time has come

2008-03-06T23:09:00.001-08:00

So, here I am. I have created this blog and the real treat will be if I can actually on a semi regular basis keep 'Sunshine All the Time' up to date. I have been requested by several people to keep a blog - what to blog? I am going to predict, right here, right now, that mostly if not all of my posts will be about food. The one thought that constantly is on my mind.... what and where will my next meal be from? Even if it's all ready planned out I'm thinking about it. Here I am just finished with dinner all ready excited about breakfast tomorrow morning. Enough said.