Now I’m as big a Lilo and Stitch fan as an 8 year old.  I’ve got a few stuffed animals and do dads they released and I could probably recite dialog from the movie.  However I’m a little puzzled by Disney’s newest addition their Lilo and Stitch line of products 6 years after its release.  The Stitch USB powered humidifier plugs into your computer and “belches” warm, wet air to keep your nasal passages properly moisturized during those dry winter months.  Yeah.  I can buy the novelty of that but they seem quite a few years too late but how much would you be willing to pay for such an item?  $10?  $20?  $50?  Try $117!!!!  Good luck selling any of these lovelies Disney especially in this economy. 

How to Dress
When deciding your wardrobe for Hawaii, plan on packing clothes that suit your lifestyle and travel plans. Start with clothes that are light, loose, and comfortable.

Daytime
• Shorts, sandals or some good walking shoes
• Short sleeve shirts or tops
• Hat and sunglasses
• Swim trunks or swimsuit for the beach

Evenings
• Casual pants and shirts for both men and women
• Dress or skirt and top for women
• Sport coat (if you plan to visit Hawaii’s finest restaurants)
• Light jacket or sweater

Special situations
You’ll need warm clothes if your trip will take you to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park or the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island, or to Maui’s Haleakala National Park. That also applies if you’ll be hiking at higher elevations or spending time on the ocean. It does get cool on occasion, particularly if you’ll be spending time up-country on one of the islands, so it’s probably smart to bring a coat or sweater if that’s where you’re headed. Consider bringing:
• Light coat or windbreaker
• Sweater or sweatshirt
• Long pants
• Hiking shoes

It’s also a good idea to check what your weather averages are.  We’re heading into rainy season so you may want to consider whether that’s an issue for you or not.  Also note when low and high seasons are.  You will pay more around the holidays and many accommodations will require a minimum stay that is longer than their typical requirements.  If you’re planning a trip to the Big Island, accommodations fill up well in advance around the time of the Ironman Triathlon (October 10, 2009) and Merrie Monarch Festival (April 12-18, 2009.)  The Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo tends to fill up the rentals in Volcano, Hawaii 30 miles away where rentals are limited so book way ahead around this time of year.

The alphabet contains 12 letters: 5 vowels (a, e, i, o, u) and 7 consonants (h, k, l, m, n, p, w). To simplify pronunciation, sound consonants as in English and break up words so they are easy to say (ie- Humuhumunukunukuapua’a would be pronounced humu-humu-nuku-nuku-apu-a-a)

Pronounce vowels as follows:

a - a in above; e - e in set; i - ee in see; o - o in some; u - oo in moon.

Pronounce vowels marked by a glottal stop (`) quickly ie- o`o sounds like oh-oh! in English.

Stress rising dipthongs (ae, ai, ao, au, oi, ou, eu, ei) on the first letter and end with a short e, i, o or u. ie- oi sounds like oy in soy, ending with a short “i”.

1 pound mahi mahi fillet
1 to 2 eggs, beaten
1 cup cornflake crumbs or panko (Japanese flour meal for breading)
Vegetable oil for frying

Marinade:
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine)

Instructions

Cut Mahi Mahi into serving pieces and score. Make marinade and soak mahi for 30 minutes. Dip mahi in beaten egg, coat with crumbs. Heat oil to 375 degrees, fry mahi until golden brown; drain on paper towels. Makes 3 servings.

#1. Stuffing. Boxed or from scratch?

I always use boxed because I’ve tried from scratch once and it wasn’t as good as I thought it should be.  I really want a good from scratch recipe that is like you find in restaurants.  It’s got a slightly wetter texture with big chunks of bread.  Maybe one of the participants will have some good recipes.

#2. If you were served the perfect Thanksgiving dinner what would it be?

Turkey, stuffing, grandma’s noodles and gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans for good measure and those little bake and serve rolls and of course a piece of pumpkin pie.  People have tried to use other types of rolls over the past few years and it’s NOT the same.  I told my mom this year she’d better bring the right rolls since others cannot be entrusted with the job!  LOL

#3. What’s your favorite Thanksgiving leftover?

My grandma’s noodles.  I mean I love all of the leftovers but we only get those twice a year so they’re a special treat-fresh or reheated.

#4. Share a recipe using turkey.

God love her, Grandma comes from the school of wake up at 4am, put the turkey in and let it cook all day.  The resulting bird requires something wet whether it’s gravy, ketchup or drink to get it down.  I made the mistake of bringing an extra bird last year since our growing family can no longer support a 22 lb bird and leftovers.  People RAVED about my turkey.  So my recipe is very basic but tasty. 

Separate the skin from the meat of the turkey to make pockets and rub butter in between the layers so it’ll be trapped by the skin but melt into the meat.  Now I use plain butter when I bring it for Thanksgiving but if I’m doing it at home I cut up fresh herbs like rosemary and sage, add black pepper and a touch of honey to the butter, mix it up and use that to rub in the pockets.  Make sure you butter the outside as well and put a little coarse black pepper and a sprig of rosemary in the cavity, follow the directions on the bird and you can’t go wrong.  For slight variations for the cavity stuffing you can put cut citris of your choise along with whole herbs and peppercorns.  If you want to go all “Martha” for the presentation you can tuck bay leaves in a pattern under the skin for flavor and wow factor.

I ordered the Crispy Pescado Mahi (Fish and Chips) and my hubby ordered the Pork Quesadillas.  See that little thing covered up with jicama julienne strips?  That’s my fish.  While the Mahi was really juicy and flavorful, it was about 2 oz and for what I paid ($17.99) that is just outrageous.  It was literally 4 tiny bites.  As you can see from the picture there is much more chips than fish.  The only upside to that is the delectable avacado cream they serve with it.  It is WONDERFUL and I’m not an avacado girl at all.  The hubby got the pork quesadillas and they were good and the size of the quesadilla was decent but he said for what he paid ($18.99) there wasn’t enough pork to justify paying extra for it.  That black stuff on top is a black bean puree which is a good idea but kind of freaky looking. 

In the end, we ended up paying $60 with tip for something that was supposed to be appetizers and a drink.  For $9 more we could’ve gone to Haliimaile General Store and gotten appetizers, fancy drinks, a big dinner and dessert.  As with many big time celeb restaurants, you seem to be paying for the name on the door, small but tasty portions.  It’s up to you if you want to spend that much for that little food.  I do have to mention to server we had was super nice and funny and made the bill a little easier to take.  If you’re on a budget, maybe go in and order a Waborita and take pics of each of you holding it or if that is even too much to justify, you can always get your picture taken outside in front of the door.

It needs to be mentioned however that Sammy Hagar will dedicate his profits from this restaurant to local community children’s charities through the Hagar Family Foundation. So kudos to him for that!

All prices are subject to change.
Located in the Maui Kahului Airport between past ticketing and before the gates.

Dates & Times & Locations:

Sat. Nov. 15th @ Maui Humane Society 10am - 2pm
Sun. Dec. 7th @ Lee’s Pet Grooming, Kahului 10am - 2pm
Thurs. Dec. 11th @ Maui Humane Society 3pm - 7pm
Sat. Dec 13th @ Lahaina Gateway Shopping Ctr 10am - 2pm

The alphabet contains 12 letters: 5 vowels (a, e, i, o, u) and 7 consonants (h, k, l, m, n, p, w). To simplify pronunciation, sound consonants as in English and break up words so they are easy to say (ie- Humuhumunukunukuapua’a would be pronounced humu-humu-nuku-nuku-apu-a-a)

Pronounce vowels as follows:

a - a in above; e - e in set; i - ee in see; o - o in some; u - oo in moon.

Pronounce vowels marked by a glottal stop (`) quickly ie- o`o sounds like oh-oh! in English.

Stress rising dipthongs (ae, ai, ao, au, oi, ou, eu, ei) on the first letter and end with a short e, i, o or u. ie- oi sounds like oy in soy, ending with a short “i”.

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 2/3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed bananas
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan. In large bowl of electric mixer,
cream butter with sugar, eggs, and vanilla at high speed for 1 1/2 minutes. Sift flour with baking
soda and salt. Add flour and remaining ingredients to creamed mixture. Mix at low speed for
about 1/2 minute. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour. Makes 1 loaf (12 servings).

#1. Name a food you like that uses a red sauce or anything red in it.

Cheese and onion enchiladas.  You’d be surprised how hard it is to find a place that does them as good as Chi Chi’s did so I have to make my own but a very close 2nd is Maui Tacos.  DROOL!

#2. Name a food you like with whipped cream in it or on it.

I like Cool Whip.  I know it’s bad for you but I don’t care.  Slap it on a pie of any kind, particularly banana cream and I’m a happy haole!

#3. Name a food you like with blueberry in it.

Either blueberry muffins or pancakes.  I’m not a big blueberry fan though unless the little candy like blueberry bits found in Jiffy mixes count and I highly doubt they do! 

#4. Share a recipe for pasta or dessert or a beverage.

With Fall here it’s time for a gourmet hot chocolate at home.  Get some Ghirardelli Hazelnut hot cocoa, a good healthy squirt of Hershey syrup, a few mini marshmallows and a dollop of whipped cream.  Talk about heavenly and it tastes just like those places you’d pay $4-5 per cup but you get more mileage out of having it on hand and more money in the pocket!