Return from Paradise

We just got back from Kauai. It was incredible. On Monday, we got married on Anini Beach at sunset. It was beautiful! So romantic. The minister performed a traditional Hawaiian ceremony. We exchanged leis and drank blessed waters from coconut shells which we combined to signify our joined life together.

For dinner, we ate at the Blossoming Lotus in Kapaa. This is most likely the best vegan restaurant on the planet!!! We loved it so much, we went back again on Wednesday night. They have an awesome cookbook. I'll put a link on the recommendations page. The Tuna-Free Tempeh salad is incredible as well as the Barbeque Tempeh Sandwhich. We loved the hand-made iced Chai and Lemonade. The specials were incredible. Gourmet vegan at its finest. The cornbread is legendary. I'm going to try the recipe from the book and review it here soon.

Tuesday we snorkeled in Poipu with green sea turtles!!! See the pics below! They are incredible. So graceful - they fly through the water. It was a truly amazing experience. We used a reusable underwater camera to take these pictures. They came out very well.

That evening, we drove up north and took some great pictures of the taro fields in the valley. We found a little lizard friend in a coconut tree and got some awesome moon and sunset views.

Every morning, we visited the Lotus Cafe (where the Blossoming Lotus used to be on the main drag in Kapaa.) The baked goods are to die for. We tried almost all of them. Also, the Java place next door serves up great organic Kona coffee with your choice of rice or soy milk. MMMMMMmmmm good. This place is a vegan paradise. We also checked out Papaya's, also in Kapaa. This was a very well-stocked natural food store with a vegetarian food bar serving hot entrees, salads and soups. We found a good selection of natural toiletries including sunscreen, bug repellant, and some soothing anti-burn and disinfecting lotions. (Needed those after getting sunburned and beat up on the rocks by the surf while snorkeling.)

Wednesday morning we checked out Glass Beach. The "sand" is made of tiny bits of polished glass that have washed ashore and been hammered by the surf. A local woman told us that the glass came partially from an old glass factory that was nearby and various shipwrecks just offshore. We found many colors and styles of glass bits as well as pieces of dishes. We were told not to take any lava rocks. It would anger the goddess Pele and would cause us bad luck. Up on the hill next to the beach was an old Japanese cemetary. What a view those corpses have! We took quite a few picture at the beach, of the glass, the surf, the shipwreck remains and the cemetary and wildlife.

After glass beach, we decided to go back to Poipu to find the turtles again. First, we went down the road aways and checked out Spouting Horn. Pretty cool. We headed back to Poipu. The surf was very rough, but after walking around the shore we spotted the turtles feeding just off the rocks. Awesome!

Thursday, we looked at some waterfalls, fed the birds. One thing about Kauai - there are wild chickens everywhere! They are really cool. The cocks crow constantly. They are fun to watch.

Finally we had to return our car and get on the plane home. We had so many wonderful experiences there. The locals in Kauai are super friendly and helpful. The scenery was superb (no wonder so many movies are filmed there). The wildlife was a real treat. We can't wait to visit again.

Swimming with Green Sea Turtle in Poipu, Kauai 

Eros Swimming with Green Sea Turtle 

Jason's Psyche with Green Sea Turtle 

Green Sea Turtle in Poipu, Kauai 

Nuevo Mundo Awesome Vegan Wine from Chile

The other night we ate at Real Food again on La Cienega. We tried the Nuevo Mundo Organic Vegan Cabernet / Malbec 2003 red wine. This is the BEST vegan organic red wine we've ever tasted. It's from Chile. Marcelo Retamal was named "2004 Winemaker of the Year" by Chile's
prestigious wine guide, La Guia de Vinos.

We found this wine to be very satisfying. It was leggy and slightly spicy, but fruity and deep. MMmmmm. It was delicious with the RFD burger and Club sandwhich. We had a glass each, then corked the bottle and took it home. We finished it off with some excellent homemade pasta with sage sauce and italian bread. It was even better after breathing.

Ironically, the web site says "awesome with meats and cheeses. ... Vegan." Oh well.

Organic Vintners - Importers of the World's Finest Organic Wines - Buy Wine

Eros' straight hair. 

Please Feed Me

Yesterday, we went to the mall to replace some zodiac necklaces that got lost. While there, we stopped in Hot Topic to browse. I found a pretty interesting vegan cookbook. It's called "Please Feed Me - a punk vegan cookbook" by Niall MCGuirk. I've been a long-time fan of punk and this cookbook is interesting. There are quite a few simple, yet substantial, meals that you can throw together that sound very, very good. "Creamy Coconut Curry with Zucchini and Potatoes" sounds very delicious. I'm going to try it tonight. Of course, keeping with the punk spirit, some of the recipes are completely bogus - like "Bread Sandwhich" - but there are so many gems in here that the book is well worth it. There is also some band info and a mini tour journal. Of course, Fugazi is in here as well our favorite punk band of all time, NoMeansNo!!

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

By far the best vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe I have come across is the one from Mori-Nu tofu: http://www.solaeliving.com/soyproteinrecipes/recipes/tofucookies.jsp

In my trial and errors with this recipe, I have found that the absolute best tasting, healthiest and most consistent thing to use in place of margarine in this recipe is Earth Balance Buttery Sticks. I swear by these for baking. You can't beat it (except with your mixer :-)). (You can also pinch a little buttery stick and melt it with buttery spread for popcorn - and a little nutritional yeast and paprika - mmm, mmm, mmmm!)

For baking, I recommend using parchment paper. You can find this in the grocery store near the aluminum foil. Parchment paper will give your cookies a consistency and elimates those burned bottoms. It also makes it really easy to move the cookies from the cookie sheet to the cooling area (just lift the paper, cookies and all) and then put a new sheet down for the next batch of cookies.

This recipe can be easily doubled to use the whole package of tofu. These cookies keep like champs in the freezer. I usually keep out a few to eat and freeze most in a large ziplock bag. You can fold them into the parchment paper that you used to bake them on to keep them from sticking together when they freeze. Then, just take out a sheet full and thaw (or heat up in the microwave) when you want to server. They are awesome warmed up!!!

If you follow these instructions, you'll have a very moist, chewy decadent cookie that tastes as good or better than butter and egg versions.

Links

Real Food and Vegan Organic Wine

We went to Real Food in Beverly Hills last night. Fortunately, we got in early enough to miss the long wait for a table. We squeezed in at the end of the shopping supper crowd.

We started out with their miso soup. I have to say it is darn tasty. They have a creamier miso than what you find at a Japanese place (or California Vegan). I think they must puree the tofu into the miso. They also cook it with large chunks of ginger. MMM. Yummy.

For an appetizer, we had the hummus and whole wheat pita and opened a bottle of Organic Vintners Pinot Noir. I'm becoming more of a fan of Pinot Noir. This one was good. It was better after it breathed for a while. I like supporting organic and vegan wineries. I hope that they will become more popular and the demand will grow. This would improve the overall quality and selection in the long run. Quoting the label, "Made with Certified Organic grapes from the renowned Mendocino region, this rich, deep wine has aromas of raspberry, current and plum." The label says it is vinted and bottled by Barra of Mendocino Winery, Ukiah, CA for Organic Vintners - http://www.organicvintners.com

For our entrees, we went with the specials this month - "Mama Mia Wotta Lasagna" served with brocolli and salad and "Mexican Riviera", a pecan-crusted sliced tempeh drizzled with black bean sauce and mango salsa, side of coconut mashed yams and sauted greens. Dee-lish!!!!

Our Wedding - 3-1-2005 

Happy Birthday Eros and Congratulations to Us

After returning from a trip to the Bay area, for Eros' big birthday, we got married at the little chapel near our house. It was very romantic and sweet. Look at the picture. This is our second wedding, and so special since it's near our house. I have pledged to marry the love of my life in every state and country we visit. Next time it will be Hawaii on the beach. :-)

We followed up with dinner at L'Opera (of course) and we tried a French Bordeaux for a change. Clos du Marquis - very delicious. This was our first Bordeaux. We liked it's subtlety compared to the heavier reds we usually drink. Very fruity and tasty. It still doesn't take my favorite place compared to a real Chianti or a fine bold Zinfadel, but I can see why it's all the rage with the stars.

I'm working up some very nice designs for the zodiac Italiam charms bracelets. I'll post a couple of pictures of the charms here.