Microwave Cooking

Remember the 80’s when microwaves were all the rage? Everyone was taking classes at community education in using a microwave. It was really the first new thing to come along in the cooking world for a long time. Everyone was trying to roast a turkey or bake a pie in the microwave—and a hot dog went from package to plate in just over a minute. It gave us lots of snacking possibilities with the ultimate abbreviated cooking.

I have an entire shelf in my cookbook room of titles like “Favorite Recipes from the Microwave Times” (a now-defunct newsletter), “The Joy of Microwaving”, “Microwave Fruits and Vegetables”, “Microwave Baking & Desserts”, “Microwave Miracles” and that’s just a beginning.

What happened? Microwave ovens are still extremely popular, but the serious cook has learned that some foods just don’t do well in the microwave for tenderness, color and texture. Thus, for some households, the microwave oven has been relegated to popping corn and re-heating leftovers. That’s too bad because this appliance is really useful for hundreds of things if you just know what they are.

Microwaves have improved, too, since the early models. They have more or less power, depending on the size. They usually have revolving trays to insure even cooking; they have lots of automatic and useful settings, a far cry from the first microwave I owned in 1977 that had a timer dial and two speeds. (That oven did yeoman service, however, for at least 15 years).

I decided to scour my books, manuals and articles and then do some experimenting. I have always used my microwave for preparing certain ingredients—heating lemons before juicing, warming eggs for use in recipes, melting chocolate—to name a few. But I rarely use it for main dishes, desserts or other full courses.

Here is a list of useful things that the microwave oven can do:
Soften cream cheese from the refrigerator for easy spreading or using in recipes. Remove foil wrapper and heat uncovered in bowl on 50% (medium) for 1 to 1-1/2 minutes for 8 ounces.

Plump raisins quickly. Sprinkle 1 to 2 tsp. water over raisins. Cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high 30-60 seconds.

Soften brown sugar. Close plastic bag with string or plastic strip or place brown sugar in a microwave-safe dish and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high for 20-30 seconds. If you put an apple slice in the bag or dish, lumps will soften in 10 or 15 seconds.

Warm syrup for pancakes in the serving pitcher or uncapped bottle.

Get bonus juice from lemons, limes and oranges. Take from refrigerator; microwave on high for 25-30 seconds before cutting and squeezing.

Shell nuts. Retrieve whole nuts, not broken pieces by microwaving 8 ounces of nuts in 1 cup water 4 to 5 minutes on high.

Blanch almonds quickly. Microwave 1 cup water until boiling. Add almonds. Microwave 30 seconds on high. Drain and skin.

Soften butter. Heat a stick in its own wrapper (unless it’s wrapped in foil) for 10 seconds. Check for softness after 7 or 8 seconds. Place wrapped butter on a plate first in case you go a little too far.

Make corn starch puddings and pudding mixes in one bowl. Just stir every 2 minutes until pudding thickens. No scorching or lumping—and just one bowl.

Some may disagree with me on the quality of microwave defrosting. Most meats and casseroles defrost very successfully IF you are very careful about the timing. Fish is an exception—it is really hard to defrost fish completely without cooking some parts which renders a very dry fish—ugh! But for the most part, gone are the days when you come home from work having forgotten to take out meat for dinner and exasperatingly try to figure out what to have. Ground beef always defrosts well in the microwave, as do chops and chicken.

One of the most successful meals I have made in the microwave is meatloaf and baked potatoes. During the heat of the summer, we rarely have oven meals—and occasionally I get tired of the typical summer foods of salads and grilled food—so here’s a way to have a good, old-fashioned comfort food meal without heating up your kitchen:

Meatloaf

¾ cup ketchup
¼ cup brown sugar (packed)
¾ tsp. dry mustard
¼ tsp. allspice
1 ½ lbs. ground chuck
3 slices day-old bread, saturated in milk and then squeezed dry
1 egg, beaten
1/3 cup lemon juice
¼ cup chopped onion
2 tsp. seasoned salt
6 very thin lemon slices

Mix first 4 ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. In large bowl, using hands, mix egg, bread, lemon juice, onion and salt. Don’t over mix or meatloaf will be tough. Mold into a rounded flat loaf in 9-inch pie plate. Spread half of sauce over meat and arrange lemon slices on top. Cover tightly with plastic wrap; prick wrap with a fork four places to vent. Microwave on high approximately 15 -20 minutes. Remove meatloaf from oven and let stand 5 minutes. Spread remaining sauce over loaf before serving.

A Summer Lunch

It was one of those beautiful soft summer days we’ve been enjoying this year and I was up in the “Cities” visiting a dear, old friend. Mary Anne and I go back to pre-kindergarten when we discovered each other in our St. Louis Park neighborhood. In spite of many moves, marriages and various and sundry life changes, our friendship has never skipped a beat.

I was sitting at her kitchen table watching her put the final touches on our lunch which would be eaten on her porch. When she composed a salad that included grape tomatoes and cantaloupe, my curiosity was piqued—certainly an unusual combination. I could hardly wait to taste this colorful and interesting dish.

We sat on the screen porch with the summer-dressed trees, flowers and temperatures in the mid seventies and ate the wonderful salad, a magnificent frittata (recipe from Lucia’s Restaurant in Minneapolis) a lovely crisp white wine and enjoyed catching up on our lives. A perfect alliance of weather, good food and magnificent company.

Since many people eat melon with salt, the sweet and savory pairing in the salad really is a natural after all. It would be equally good served on a bed of prosciutto or other thinly sliced smoked ham.

Summer Melon Salad with Feta and Mint

4 cups cubed cantaloupe (about ½” cubes)
1 pint grape tomatoes, cut in half
4 ounces crumbled feta cheese (about ½ cup)
1 bunch watercress, stems removed, washed and drained (about 2 cups)
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp chopped fresh mint
Sea salt, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Using individual plates, or one large platter, arrange the melon and tomatoes. Sprinkle cheese over all and arrange watercress sprigs on top of that. (Or, alternatively, lay watercress on bottom and build upon it.) Drizzle with olive oil and vinegar; sprinkle with mint. Season with salt and pepper.

The frittata is more like a crustless quiche or tart, but whatever you call it, it was one of the creamiest, tastiest dishes I have tried. It is definitely going on my menu here at the inn.

Basil Frittata with Parmesan and Goat Cheese

Serves 6

2 Tbsp. butter
5 eggs
3 cups heavy cream
Splash hot-pepper sauce
½ cup grated Parmesan
½ cup goat cheese, crumbled
4 or 5 oil-cured dry tomatoes (can use ½ cup peeled, seeded and diced fresh tomato)
2 heaping Tbsp. rough-chopped fresh basil
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter an 8-inch skillet. In a large bowl, mix together eggs, cream and hot-pepper sauce. In a medium bowl, combine Parmesan, goat cheese, basil, tomato and salt and pepper (do not season egg-cream mixture). Pour half of eggs into prepared pan, sprinkle cheese mixture over eggs then cover with remaining eggs. Bake until set, 35 to 45 minutes. Remove pan from oven and let sit for 15 minutes to set filling. Slice and serve.

You didn’t think I forgot dessert, did you? When women get together for such a sumptuous meal, I think that chocolate is in order. Something very rich, but very small.

Here’s a recipe that fits the bill perfectly.

French Chocolate Cake

16 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
1 tsp. water
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. flour
2/3 cup butter, softened
4 eggs, separated

Melt chocolate with water in microwave proof pan, 30 seconds at a time until chocolate is completely melted and smooth. Add sugar, flour and butter; mix well. Beat egg yolks vigorously. Blend into chocolate mixture gradually. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold gently into chocolate mixture. Spoon into 9-inch round cake pan lined with waxed paper. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Cake will be soft but will stiffen when cool to consistency of cheesecake. Cool completely in pan. 6-8 generous servings.
(I like to serve sweetened raspberries and a little whipped cream on the side.)
If that is too much trouble, a small dish of Hagen-Daz ice cream and some wafer-thin cookies can do the trick.

Peanut Butter Cake With Chocolate-Peanut Butter Icing

Our daughter's wedding day was supposed to be Saturday, June 19, 2010. Three weeks ago she cancelled it. This is a difficult and momentous decision, especially since everything for the St. James Hotel reception was paid for already and the cancellation date long past. But—as the saying goes—better late than never.

Kindly close the curtain for a time as she copes with the inevitable mixed emotions and practical considerations. Finally she decided that since it was so late in the game and many people were coming from afar—some with tickets and reservations in place—she would throw a wonderful family/friends/reunion party. What a fabulous way to make lemonade from the lemons.

Do I have my hands full? Our part of the bed and breakfast we run (the back third of the house, upstairs and down) is being completely refurbished and the workers are running behind schedule (imagine!) We will have all our children and grandchildren in town for five days, as well as many other relatives and friends. There are several events planned for the week including a Twins game, a wine-tasting, a no-groom’s dinner, the dinner-dance on Saturday night and a two-seating brunch on Sunday. There will be 5 children under 6 and a lot of meals to figure out.

Since I am known for loving to cook, there’s no easy way out of this—I’m going to have to do some serious cooking. Things that can be made ahead are already snug in my freezer—dozens of cookies (aren’t Grandmas known for the perpetual cookie jar?), a few casseroles, hamburger patties, hot dogs, buns, and frozen lemonade concentrate. I am thinking picnics in our wonderful Red Wing parks where the children can run and play on the playground equipment.

Another thing moms and grandmas are known for are the family’s favorites. Since my children all live a long way away, they are not home often—so I always try to make each one’s favorite when they arrive. I have come up with a lot of favorites, but I still will make the wonderful Peanut Butter/Chocolate cake made famous by Marie Michel owner of the former Oar d’oeuvre restaurant (now the Brickhouse). I want to put some “brunch-y” dishes in the freezer, too—as times for these meals must be flexible and I like to make things that work for breakfast, lunch or supper.

Here is the cake recipe which I found in an old Bon Appetit magazine (1991) but I think is the same as Marie’s. Also a delicious quiche which will fit in any of the above times or even as a snack.

Peanut Butter Cake with Chocolate-Peanut Butter Icing

1 18.25-ounce package yellow cake mix (I use Duncan Hines classic yellow cake)
2 ½ cups creamy peanut butter (do not use old-fashioned or freshly ground)
¾ cup chocolate syrup
8 ounces semisweet chocolate
1 cup powdered sugar
¼ cup milk
Chopped peanuts

Preheat oven to 350 deg. Grease and flour (or spray with vegetable spray) 2 nine-inch cake pans. Prepare cake according to package directions, beating in ½ cup peanut butter. Divide between prepared pans. Bake until toothpick inserted into centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on racks 10 minutes. Turn cakes out onto racks and cool completely.

Combine chocolate syrup and semisweet chocolate in heavy small saucepan. Stir constantly over low heat until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Transfer chocolate mixture to large bowl. Stir in remaining 2 cups peanut butter, then powdered sugar, then milk. Continue stirring until smooth. Place 1 cake layer on platter. Spread top with 1 ½ cups icing. Top with second cake layer. Spread top and sides of cake evenly with remaining icing. Garnish with chopped peanuts.

Speedy Spinach Quiche

1 Tbsp. butter
1 onion, chopped
½ of a 10-oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained well
1 9-inch refrigerated ready piecrust (1/2 box)
1 tsp. flour
½ cup (2 ounces) grated Monterey Jack cheese
½ cup (2 ounces) grated Pecorino-Romano cheese (can use Parmesan)
4 eggs
½ cup lowfat cottage cheese
¾ cup half and half
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. dried dillweed

Melt butter in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and saute until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add spinach and stir until spinach is dry, about 3 minutes. Cool slightly. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Dust 1 side of crust with flour. Transfer to 9-inch pie pan, floured side down. Press into pan, sealing any cracks. Flute edges. Sprinkle both hard cheeses over bottom of crust. Top with spinach mixture. Beat eggs, cottage cheese, half and half, salt, pepper, nutmeg and dillweed in large bowl to blend. Pour over spinach. Bake until filling is set, about 50 minutes. Cool slightly. Cut into wedges and serve.

Healthy Eating

Many two-income families eat out a lot. When they eat at home, they eat a lot of processed foods and convenience items. This can cause elevated levels of cholesterol and other nutritionally related illnesses. I went to my nutrition sources—and nothing really makes sense.

Jane Brody says in her classic “Good Food Book” the following:
In the meals of Mexico, India, Japan, the Middle East, China, Turkey, Greece and Italy, emphasis is on the starchy foods, using animal protein more as a condiment and as a complement to the protein in plant foods than as the centerpiece of the menu. To be sure, as affluence increases in these and similar countries, so does the consumption of animal foods, especially red meat. And along with it goes an increase in the chronic health problems that now afflict Americans.


On the opposite side of the coin, we all know about the Atkins revolution, and the other diets that also tout high protein, low carbohydrate intake as the solution to overweight and the attendant diseases caused by high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and elevated blood sugar (diabetes).

So who is right? I don’t know. But I still believe that a moderate amount of fat and protein and a large amount of complex carbohydrates makes the most sense, if only because it is the easiest one for Americans to stick with. We all know people who have lost lots of weight on the low-carb diet program, but are now just as heavy or heavier after resuming normal eating patterns. Potatoes, rice, bread and pasta are the foundational foods of comfort and pleasure for most Americans. It seems to be easier to add smaller amounts of protein than to cut out the “starchy” foods. Steering away from refined grains is the answer, I think. Eat potatoes with the skins still on and sans the butter and sour cream (or just a little). Try brown rice, whole grain breads and whole wheat pasta—they’re good. I still adhere to the anti-deprivation concept in my “Cruise Diet”: eat smaller amounts of any food you like and don’t attach moral judgments to food i.e. “good” foods and “bad” foods. Rather, start to welcome food and relate to it in a way that allows you to relax, be aware of what you’re eating, derive pleasure from the eating experience, and eat quality foods. When we succeed at doing that, we keep the cortisol and other stress hormones from causing our metabolisms to misfire and cause lots of belly fat.

Here is a delicious and “healthy” recipe from Jane Brody’s Good Food Book:

Potato Soufflé
1 and one-half pounds potatoes, peeled and cubed 2 Tbsp butter, divided
1 medium onion, chopped (about one-half cup)
One-fourth pound mushrooms, chopped (about 1 cup)
One-fourth cup grated Parmesan, divided
One-fourth tsp. salt, if desired
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 egg yolks
6 egg whites

Cook the potato cubes in water to cover until they are soft, about 10 minutes. Drain and mash with a ricer or process them through a food mill into a large bowl. Stir in 1 Tbsp of the butter. While the potatoes are cooking, melt the remaining 1 Tbsp. butter in small skillet. Add the onion and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and sauté them until they give off their liquid and begin to dry. Preheat oven to 325. Grease a 2-quart soufflé dish with butter or vegetable-oil spray. Sprinkle 1 Tbsp of the Parmesan on the bottom and sides of the dish. Set aside. Add the sautéed vegetables to the mashed potatoes along with the remaining Parmesan, the salt and pepper. Beat the egg yolks, one at a time, into the mixture. In a clean medium bowl, beat egg whites with a pinch of salt, until they are stiff but not dry. Fold one-third of the beaten whites into the potato mixture, mixing gently but well. Fold in the remaining whites. Immediately transfer the mixture to the prepared soufflé dish. Bake the soufflé in the preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes. Serve immediately.

Regional Cooking

Sometimes when you’re entering an American city by car it looks all too familiar. The green freeway signs, the tall symbols beckoning you to buy the same brands of gas, stay in the same motels and eat at the golden arches or one of the other well-known franchises. If you had kids in the car, experiencing the city for the first time and they happened to look up from their comic books long enough to glance about, they wouldn’t likely find any distinguishing features to tell them where they are.

The airports are also all the same. A well-seasoned business traveler might be hard put to tell one city from another if he only changed planes at the airport.

And yet, our American cities still have their personalities, their distinctions, their individuality, their regionalism. Especially when it comes to food. Ask almost anyone what region he thinks of when he thinks of clam chowder, boiled dinner, and clam bake. Ask about roast pork, mashed potatoes and apple pie. See how he responds when you mention Tex-Mex, avocados and…you see? When it comes to food at least, we are still distinctive.

The Time-Life series of books, Foods of the World has a general volume named American Cooking; it then has several volumes of the various regions. In American Cooking 12 gastronomic regions are listed: Alaska; Hawaii; Washington-Oregon; California; Mountain States; Arizona, New Mexico, Texas; Plains States; Midwest; New England; Mid-Atlantic; The South; Florida.

The plains States include North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma while the Midwest category is comprised of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. But I think they have it wrong. It should be divided into upper and lower Midwest. Our great Scandinavian heritage is given to the plains states and Polish and Southern cooking to the Midwest?

Nevertheless, here are some of the most well-known regional American dishes. It’s easy enough to tell what basic region these are from—and here are a few recipes to try for a regional flavor.

New England: Boiled dinner, Red-Flannel Hash, Boston Baked Beans, Pennsylvania Dutch Fried Tomatoes

South and Southwest: Pecan Pie, Key Lime Pie, Grits and Cheddar Cheese Casserole, Southern Fried Chicken with Cream Gravy, Jambalaya.

Pacific Coast: Cioppino, Avocado-Tomato Cocktail, Palace Court Salad, Dungeness crab Salad.

Midwest: Stuffed pork chops, fried Smelts with butter, clover leaf rolls, strawberry shortcake.


New England boiled dinner

4 pounds corned beef
2 pounds green cabbage, cored and quartered
12 to 16 new potatoes, about 1 ½ inches in diameter, peeled
6 small carrots, scraped
12 small white onions, about 1 inch in diameter, peeled and trimmed
6 medium-sized beets
2 Tbsp finely chopped parsley.

Place the corned beef in a 5 or 6 quart pot and cover it with enough cold water to rise at least 2 inches above the top of the meat. Bring to a boil, skimming off any scum that rises to the surface. Half cover the pot, turn the heat to low and cook the beef from 4 to 6 hours or until tender. Cook the cabbage separately in boiling salted water for about 15 minutes. The potatoes, carrots and onions may be cooked together in a pot of salted boiling water of their own. The beets, however, require different treatment. Scrub them thoroughly, then cut off their tops, leaving 1 inch of stem. Cover them with boiling water and bring to a boil. Simmer the beets from ½ to 1 ½ hours, or until they are tender. Let them cool a bit, then slip off their skins.
To serve: Slice the corned beef and arrange it along the center of a large heated platter. Surround the meat with the vegetables and sprinkle the vegetables with chopped parsley. Horseradish, mustard and a variety of pickles make excellent accompaniments to this hearty meal.

Grits and Cheddar Cheese Casserole (serves 4-6)

2 Tbsp butter
¼ cup finely chopped onion
2 cups water
½ tsp salt
½ cup quick grits
1 tsp. Tabasco
Freshly ground pepper
1 ¾ cups grated Cheddar cheese
3 Tbsp soft butter
2 egg whites

In small skillet, melt 2 Tbsp of butter over medium heat. Add ¼ cup onion and cook for 4 or 5 minutes. Meanwhile bring the 2 cups of water to a boil. Add the salt and pour in the grits slowly without allowing the water to stop boiling. Boil for about a minute, stirring constantly, then reduce heat to medium and cook for another 2 minutes. Add to grits the onions, the Tabasco, black pepper and 1 ½ cups of the cheese combined with soft butter.
Butter a 1-quart casserole or soufflé dish and preheat oven to 400. Beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Thoroughly fold the egg whites into the grits mixture. Pour into the casserole and sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese. Bake for about 30 minutes or until mixture has puffed and browned. Serve at once.

Not Your Ordinary Bridal Shower

June is still the traditional wedding month. I hear that August, September and October are giving June a run for the number one month, but there is something about the month of June that feels bridal. If the wedding is later in the summer or early fall, then give a bridal shower in June and take advantage of the season of strawberries, roses, peonies, and wonderful weather (well, usually).

And speaking of strawberries, roses and peonies, they all come in shades of that girly color, pink. Yes I know that showers these days can be co-ed, but I still prefer the traditional female get together where the “girls” can play silly games, keep the ribbons for a rehearsal bouquet, and make cutesy decorations in pink or fuchsia.

I was one of the lucky guests at just such an ultra feminine bridal shower last year at the Alexander Mansion B&B in Winona and I loved it. We drew pictures of the bride on top of our heads, made lists of the bride and groom’s preferences from color to pet names and compared them with the real thing. We laughed and drank creamy punch, loved the centerpieces wrapped in tulle and watched the bride open kitchen gadgets in—you guessed it—everything pink. We oohed and aahed over the beautiful cupcakes in a rainbow of colors and flavors, and admired each other’s shoes while we won points in another game with the contents of our purses. This is not a man’s environment, although any guy would have liked the assorted sandwiches, pasta salad and yummy salsa. The salsa is sometimes called Texas caviar and is also known as Cowboy salad. I guess that is masculine enough.

Punch is always a fun way to serve the beverage—I loved the creamy pink concoction served at the shower I attended—but they had a second choice that was even better. It was just a juice mixture to which you could add champagne. I didn’t get the recipe, but came home and came up with one I loved.

Here’s a menu that looks beautiful and “girly” and tastes delicious too. Choose either the “from scratch” method or the short and easy version:

Pink punch
Sandwich selections
Salami cornucopias
Texas caviar and chips
Pasta salad
Assorted cupcakes


Pink punch

1 750-ml bottle cranberry cocktail
1 pint pomegranate juice
1 2 ltr bottle strawberry soda
Strawberry ice ring

Pink champagne

Mix cranberry cocktail and pomegranate juice and refrigerate until serving time. When ready to serve, put cranberry mixture into punch bowl with strawberry ice ring and slowly pour strawberry soda into bowl. Open regular or pink champagne and place in an ice bucket next to the punch bowl for those who would like to add some sparkly to their punch.

Strawberry ice ring:

Fill metal ring molds with water tinted pink. Freeze until almost set. Place whole washed strawberries around ring, evenly spaced. Freeze until solid. Unmold by dipping ring into warm water briefly, careful not to let water come over the rim.

Sandwiches

Open face cream cheese and cucumber on wild rice bread
Buttered Peasant bread (hearty, seeded) with roast beef slices
Ham and very thin sliced Swiss cheese on deli rye with Durkee sauce spread

Salami cornucopias

Roll deli thin-sliced salami into cornucopia shapes; fasten with toothpicks on which a pickle slice is skewered. Mix a garlic flavored soft cheese such as Boursin with enough half and half to thin it a bit. Beat until fluffy. Carefully fill cornucopias with cheese mixture.

Texas Caviar

1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15 oz.) shoe-peg corn, drained
1 can (15 oz.) black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
5 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 large red pepper, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
½ cup thinly sliced green onions, white and green included
½ cup minced fresh cilantro

1 Tbsp. lime juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt*

Mix first eight ingredients in large bowl. Mix together lime juice, garlic cloves, sugar and salt in a lidded jar. Shake until well mixed and pour over ingredients in bowl. Serve as a salad or with chips as a salsa.

*can use low-fat Italian dressing in place of last four ingredients.

Everything was delicious and beautiful and we all had fun. The husbands that came along had been sitting around the kitchen table and all the leftovers were gone when we packed up to go home.

Graduating and Celebrating

June 11th is King Kamehameha’s birthday and is an official holiday in Hawaii. Hawaiians love holidays and don’t need much of an excuse to have a luau or feast. Here in Red Wing, we’re doing a little celebrating of our own as our high school seniors graduate and that will mean a lot of graduation open houses. I’m guessing that most people giving these parties have all their plans made, but on the off chance that some are still looking for ideas, why not have a Hawaiian theme?

The Hawaiians are a generous, fun-loving people who ooze charm and hospitality and, coupled with their enchanting natural surroundings, are natural party givers. They have a tremendously diverse population, a melting pot of the Pacific, which contributes to the unique and delicious Hawaiian cuisine. Hawaiian food is derived from the Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese and Filipinos who make up the greatest number of inhabitants; add to them smaller numbers of Koreans, Puerto Ricans, Germans Galician Poles, Russians, Norwegians, Gilbert Islanders, Italians, Marquesans, Spaniards, Tahitians and Samoans. Most of these latter groups returned home at the end of a contract period working on plantations, but all left a trace of their culture on the islands.

For the graduation party, a selection of finger foods, hors d’oeuvre, salads and desserts is the usual fare. The Hawaiian version of hors d’oeuvre is the puu puu dish. And it’s a wonderful dish—a potpourri of international delicacies that reflect the many ethnic influences of the Hawaiian cuisine. The most typical puu puu tray consists of Chinese-style barbecued spareribs, butterfly shrimps, Japanese Kumaki on sticks, Korean meat balls, Hawaiian Lomi Lomi salmon, cherries, punch, sugar-glazed pineapple chunks and fresh roasted macadamia nuts. Other goodies that can be added or substituted are dips, chips, small cold tidbits, shrimp balls and chicken wings.

Pineapple Kumaki (also known as Rumaki, but there is no R in the Hawaiian alphabet)

1 fresh pineapple, peeled, cored and cut into 1-inch cubes
¾ pound bacon slices, halved

Marinade:
½ cup soy sauce
¼ cup pineapple juice
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp vinegar
1 slice fresh ginger root, minced

Wrap each pineapple cube with half a slice of bacon and secure with a toothpick. Place in a shallow pan and cover with marinade, coating well. Marinate for 3 hours at room temperature or overnight in refrigerator. Prior to serving, roll in additional brown sugar. Bake on a rack over a foil-lined pan in a 375 deg. oven, or broil 3 to 4 inches from flame, turning until bacon is crisp. Replace toothpicks with fancy picks before serving. Bananas can be used instead of or in addition to the pineapple.

Korean Meatballs

1 pound ground beef
1 Tbsp sesame oil
2 Tbsp soy sauce
½ tsp salt
2 scallions, chopped fine
1 garlic clove, minced
3 Tbsp sesame seeds, pulverized
Dash freshly ground pepper
2 Tbsp cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten with 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
½ cup flour mixed with 1 Tbsp. paprika
Oil for frying

Mix the first nine ingredients together in a bowl. Shape into small meatballs. Dip in egg mixture then roll in flour and paprika. Heat oil in skillet and brown evenly on all sides. Serve with Vinegar-Shoyu Sauce. 25-30 meatballs.

Vinegar-Shoyu Sauce

Combine equal amounts of soy sauce and vinegar (6 Tbsp. soy sauce, 6 Tbsp vinegar). Add 3 Tbsp sugar and mix well.


Watermelon Boat Salad

Fill a hollowed-out watermelon half with chunks of watermelon, cantaloupe, honey-dew, pineapple, banana, star fruit, grapes, Kiwi fruits and strawberries. Serve a bowl of this sauce on the side:

Sauce
1 cup sour cream
¼ cup grated fresh or packaged coconut
¼ cup apricot preserves
2 Tbsp lemon juice
½ cup chopped macadamia nuts

Blend all well and chill until serving time.

Kona Chicken Salad

3 medium sized ripe pineapples
2 small cans water chestnuts, sliced
6 cups diced cooked chicken
2 cups thinly sliced celery
2 Tbsp. grated onion
1 cup chopped macadamia nuts
Dressing
Salt, pepper to taste
Strawberries and mint for garnish

Cut pineapples in half, carefully retaining the leaves. Scoop out the fruit and dice, discarding the inedible core. Drain the water chestnuts. Mix pineapple, water chestnuts, chicken, celery, onion and nuts with dressing. Add seasonings and mix. Pile into pineapple shells and garnish with strawberries and mint. Chill thoroughly before serving

Coconut Crunchies

½ cup sugar
4 Tbsp butter
1 tsp. grated lemon rind
¾ cup flour
2 eggs, unbeaten

½ cup sugar
½ tsp pineapple extract
¼ tsp salt
1 cup chopped nuts
1 cup corn flakes
1 cup coconut


Cream sugar, butter and rind; blend in flour. Press mixture into 9-inch baking pan and bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, combine eggs, extract, sugar and salt and blend well. Fold in remaining ingredients and spread over hot baked crust and return to oven for 25 minutes. Permit to cool in pan but cut into squares while hot.