Jump Down The Alley Way for Lemon Crunch Cake and Oxtail Soup

There is a little restaurant, in a bowling alley in Aiea, on Oahu, called The Alley.  This place is what you might call a hole in the wall, or a hidden gem.  Most local people do know about the place, but it took Marg the Intrepid, in Australia to clue me in.  She wanted to come to Hawaii to see the Arizona Memorial and partly for the Alley's Lemon Crunch Cake.  Now we don't hop over to Oahu all that often, and when we do go, it is not to Aiea.  However, Bob had his Kaiser eye surgery not too far away.  And we were taking advantage of Uber, so no worries about finding it. Our driver was an older Filipino gentleman who asked us how we knew about The Alley:)

A Lunch in Paris, for Cook the Books Club

The title alone is alluring, of our Cook the Books Club current selection,  Lunch in Paris, by Elizabeth Bard.  I'd like to drop everything and be magically transported to the fabled city for a visit.  If it weren't for the Parisians that is.  Sorry .... though the author and her husband are not native to Paris, so perhaps they  won't mind me venting just a trifle.  But, even the rest of France, from what I can gather, are in agreement.   On that subject, the book reminded me of a recent read by David Lebovitz, The Sweet Life in Paris.  By the time I'd finished, it was perplexing indeed why anyone would subject themselves to the place long term.  Only true love.  Good food and beauty are available in more congenial locales. Though, as long as you're not having to deal with the attitudes yourself, it can be humorous.

You have to give Bard credit for not only sticking it out, but coming up with fabulous recipes and a darn good read as well.  I love a true romance, and paired with tempting food, it is a marriage made in heaven.  She draws us along, into her difficult dilemma, torn between home and a foreign country, long held ideals now challenged by love.  What people are telling her, versus her heart, as capsulated in this quote from the book, page 109:

"There were many things he wanted to do, many things we could do together.  But I felt deep down that if I wasn't prepared to spend the rest of my life with the man in front of me right now - the poorly paid French civil servant with no tie, an unheated bathroom, and a principled grudge against the Coca-Cola Corporation - I had no business marrying him at all.

And then there was Paris - beautiful, slightly inaccessible Paris, like the girl who lures you close with her ruffles and her scent, then leaves you in the doorway, cold and alone, with the barest hint of a good-night kiss.  I felt like I was standing on the doorstep of a culture, and I wasn't sure if anyone was ever going to let me in.  I couldn't just say yes to Gwendal.  I had to say yes to Paris too."

Can she make changes to previously held beliefs about the meaning of life, and what constitutes success?  Both she, and her husband-to-be, Gwendal, do make satisfyingly positive adjustments to one another, as well as to their respective cultures, by the story's finish.  A great read, and there's nothing like a storybook ending, though I am sure that the working out of their marriage will entail many more adjustments and compromises, as does any marriage in real life.

There was much about Lunch in Paris to inspire a cook.  Between riffs off family recipes, ideas from her experiences in a culture besotted with good food, and using local market and backyard produce, narrowing it down was the only problem.  In recent posts I have gone into my search for local, humanely raised pork, and since it is now available, I was especially drawn to their friend, Mayur's preparation of wild boar with apples.  Since we do have green mangoes here though not apples (well, yes mainland shipped ones), I thought it might be a good substitution, along with some mango liqueur, sitting in my cabinet unopened for eons, instead of Calvados, which seems to be completely unavailable locally.

Roast Wild Boar with Green Mango

The slightly tart mango, cider vinegar and Mango Fruja liqueur combined to give the tender, slow cooked pork a lovely complex flavor.  Highly recommended, and if you don't have any wild boar available, you can use Pork Tenderloin as she does in the book's recipe, on page 279.

I am looking forward to reading everyone's posts on this enticingly romantic biography.  Check for the round-up, by our host, Johanna, at the end of the month.

Hawaiian Grines - Wild Big Island Boar Sausage for Charcutepalooza

Grines is a term for food in Hawaii, in this case pork....ground.  I guess it makes sense in a way.  Finding them was the big deal, however, as I was not at all happy with the last bit of piggy we sourced.  Should have driven out to the scene of its undoubtedly sad upbringing, several hours away, down the coast to Hamakua, and checked things out  for myself.  Well, this time I was determined, one way or another to get some free range, wild and happy boar.  If I had to go hunting myself, with my trusty Glock.  Ha ha.  Just kidding folks.  I'm not into that really....  Unless sorely pressed.

I was walking away from the store yesterday when an employee came running after me, "Claudia, your pig came in."  Likely any vegetarians in the area were cringing, eyes squished closed.  So, back I went to collect my wild boar bits.

From free as a boar can be, in the forests of the Big Island, brought to the slaughterhouse by Mr. Hunter, to the store and then to me.  I cut the meat in half, ground one part for Breakfast Sausage and the rest for Chorizo, since the challenge for this issue of Charcutepalooza was grinding your own sausage.  Then added the seasonings and put both portions away in the fridge to chill up again.  We are using the authoritative book on the subject, Charcuterie, by Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn, as a guide, and I pretty much stuck with his recipes, excepting as noted below.

Lomi Lomi Salmon Stuffed Avocado and Laulaus

This month we were given the challenge/assignment by Daring Cooks to do edible containers.  First off, I made stuffed mustard cabbage leaves with a filling that included  fish and fresh corn, baked in a broth.  Since I was not all that happy with the way they turned out, it was back to the drawing board.

Renata of Testado, Provado & Aprovado! was our Daring Cooks’ April 2011 hostess. Renata challenged us to think “outside the plate” and create our own edible containers! Prizes are being awarded to the most creative edible container and filling, so vote on your favorite from April 17th to May 16th at http://thedaringkitchen.com!

My final decision was to go Hawaiian.  I have lived here for the better part of my life, though have never posted about two staples of the luau scene.  So, that had to be remedied.   Lomi lomi Salmon is made with salt salmon, and usually served as a side with Lau laus, kalua pork and poi.  Especially poi, as its blandness is a perfect foil to the intense zap of onion, lemon and salt salmon.  I thought an avocado half would serve that same purpose, while holding the salad like a little bowl.

Between the two dishes, you need to plan ahead and start early.  This salmon recipe makes a gargantuan amount, which I cut way down, buying a small package of (8 oz.) salted salmon.  I used two small tomatoes and only 1/2 an onion, and 2 green onions.  That gave plenty for 4 avocado halves.

Eat Local - Snails

 Aren't they lovely?

This is my encouragement for you all to eat these pests.  I can't, because they're a bit of trouble to prepare and I would be the only one in our family eating them.  Therefore, since my plan is to sell them, it is important that YOU EAT THEM!  Now the only problem is finding escargot lovers who would like a fairly regular supply.  BTW, the ones in my photos are young, they get much bigger. I found some interesting information about our local (invading) variety on this site, as cited below:

West Africa giant snails. archachatina marginata and achatina achatina

Snail meat is high in protein (37-51%) compared to that of guinea pig (20.3%), Poultry (18.3%), Fish (18%), Cattle (17.5%), Sheep (16.4%) and Swine (14.5%). Iron content (45-59mg/kg), low in fat (0.05-0.08%) and contains almost all the amino acids needed for human nutrition. In addition to the nutritional value of snail meat, recent studies indicated that the glandular substances from edible snails cause agglutination of certain bacteria, which could be of value against a variety of ailments including whooping cough. In folk medicine, the bluish liquid obtained when the meat has been removed from the shell is believed to be good for infant's development. It is believed in some quarters that snail meat contains pharmacological properties of value in counteracting high blood pressure.

At the imperial Court in Rome, snail meat was thought to contain aphrodisiac properties and was often served to visiting dignitaries in the late evening. The high Iron content of snail meat is considered important in the treatment of anemia and in the past the meat was recommended as a means of combating ulcers and asthma.

There is a flourishing international trade of snails in Europe and North America. In France the annual requirement is about 5 million kg, over 60% of which is imported. The estimated annual consumption in Italy is 306 million snails. In West Africa, snail meat has traditionally been a major ingredient in the diet of people living in the high forest belt. In the Cote d'Ivoire, for example, an estimated 7.9 million kg is eaten annually. In Nigeria, although the consumption figures are not available, it is clear that demand outstrips supply.

Rancher's Lamb and Eating Locally Grown Stuff

A few posts ago, I mentioned some lamb I bought at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Waimea. We were thrilled to be able to buy locally raised lamb, right from the ranchers themselves.  And, it was excellent, I might add.  Should you be interested, the source is Kahua Ranch, (808 882-4646) on Kohala Mountain Rd.  They have meat available at a local Farmers Market, which is usually held on the first Saturday of the month in Waimea, as well as Monday thru Friday at the Ranch.  Call for directions and availability.

And, going along with the concept of locally produced foods, a worker at my favorite, healthy foods store, Island Naturals, was able to put me in touch with people selling fresh, local pork products.  Things are looking up around here.  If you're an omnivore.  And, I am.  Our neighborhood CSA, Ke Ola Farm, is doing more veggies now (not only greens) and I've been really happy with the last boxes....