Today is awesome. Why? Kim from Cravings of a Lunatic is here as a guest poster – and not only that! We swapped blogs today! Head over to her blog to see what I have cooked up! Kim is funny (Read her blog if you don’t know it. If you don’t giggle helplessly after half a post, something might be wrong with you!), caring, full of energy and kindness. She also cooks up the most decadent, delicious desserts and other splurge-worthy meals. So let me hop back to her MY blog and give the floor to our favorite Lunatic
Hi folks. I am so happy to be blog swapping with Kiri today. For those who do not know me I am Kim, the lady who runs the asylum at Cravings of a Lunatic . When I heard Kiri was looking for guest bloggers I was thrilled to offer myself up. Kiri is a kind hearted, supportive gal who I am so happy I met through blogging. She has such a unique blog and writes about food I had no idea existed. I learn so much when I stop by her place to visit. I adore her so much. So of course I wanted to guest post for her. There was one catch, I wanted to swap with her. I had done this once before with a friend and loved it. The idea behind a blog swap is trading places for the day. It’s great fun and a bit more exciting than the guest post thing. Now the issue became “healthy” and “travel”. I generally do not do healthy food often on the blog. Mine is full of treats and splurge foods with the occasional good for you meal tossed in to keep you on your toes. I also do not travel frequently. Most of my travels have been in Canada where I live, and through the States. Then it occurred to me I could go back to my golden days and share my trip to Hawaii with you and gear my food to that trip. I actually wanted to do a fish dish for you folks but I live in the culinary black hole where some food items are hard to find. This time of year it’s even tougher to find speciality items. So I consulted with a friend of mine who lived in Hawaii named Sam who blogs over at Little Ferraro Kitchen . We tossed around ideas and I told Sam I remember a coconut dessert that blew my mind. She sent me a link to a traditional version of it and that is when the ah ha moment came to me. So huge thanks to Sam for her help and inspiration.
So this is a traditional Hawaiian dessert. We had it at the Luau we went to when we visited Oahu. That night was so much fun. We took a bus tour over to the venue and I swear the bus tour was as much fun as the luau. We had a hilarious guide who had us do all kinds of inappropriate things in the window of the bus while we passed other tour buses. Was quite fun. Nothing scandalous, I’m not that crazy. When we arrived at the Luau I was blown away by how gorgeous the dancers were. No sooner I was mesmerized by them doing things with flames that would send me running in the opposite direction. We enjoyed the show, and had the most amazing food I’d ever had in my life. The pork was out of this world. There was so much food I could barely stand it. It was this little coconut dish that caught my eye. I normally do not like anything custard like or flan like. But this one intrigued me. I remember being scared to try it. Took me forever to get up the nerve. When I did I will admit the consistency is a bit odd but the taste is wonderful. It is so flavorful and the coconut just melts in your mouth. So I made the cake version of this dish and I also did the standard squares you see in Hawaii. It is called Haupia. And it is a wondrous thing to behold. It is almost like jello. It looks strange and you won’t be quite sure but trust your Lunatic, you’re going to want to try this. The recipe comes from Roy Yamaguchi and I made just a couple of minor adjustments to it. I sure hope you like it. I know we sure did.
Haupia Cake:
Source: Roy Yamaguchi
Ingredients for the Sponge Cake:
1 cup of cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs plus 2 yolks
1/2 cup coconut sugar ( you can use regular sugar, the original recipe uses it)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons butter
Ingredients for Haupia:
4 cups unsweetened coconut milk
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
Garnish:
Coconut
Directions to make the Sponge Cake:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Use non stick spray on a 9 inch pan, or line it with parchment paper.
Now sift your flour and baking powder in a small bowl. Set aside.
Now in a mixer whisk your eggs and yolks for about 4 minutes until they are thick.
Now you add your sugars and beat for another 4 to 5 minutes. It should be fluffy at this point.
Now add the flour mixture and beat on medium speed until it just combined. Leave on the stand mixer.
Now you want to take your water and butter and place them in a saucepan. Boil until the butter melts.
Add this butter/water mixture to the mixing bowl and beat it in with the other ingredients until it is combined.
Now pour this batter into your prepared pan and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool.
Now cover with plastic wrap and stick in the freezer, the recipe calls to do it overnight, I did it for about 4 hours.
Directions for the Haupia:
Place the coconut milk, sugar and 1 cup of the water into a saucepan. Bring this to a boil.
In a bowl or jar, mix the remaining 1 cup of water with the corn starch.
Add this mixture to the saucepan and make sure you stir until it boils again and thickens. (tip- if it does not thicken enough add a little more water and corn starch to it)
Remove from heat. If waiting awhile to put cake together transfer the liquid to a double boiler and keep warm.
Putting the Haupia Cake together:
Take your sponge cake from the freezer and cut it in half. I found using a bread knife worked really well. I used the counter edge as a guide to keep myself straight and not make the cake lop-sided by cutting it at a weird angle. The two layer should be as even as possible.
Now pour about one third to one half the haupia mixture from the saucepan over top of the first layer.
Now place the second layer on top and secure. I used toothpicks to keep it from sliding around.
Now pour more of the haupia mixture over top of the cake. (tip- I saved some to pour into a jar to make the haupia squares)
Stick this in the fridge for 3 or 4 hours.
Now you can garnish with coconut. (Here’s another tip, leaving it in the fridge that long makes it set and the top becomes dry, not moist. So the coconut will not stick. What I did is take about 1/2 cup of confectioners sugar and about 2 to 3 tablespoons of coconut milk and mixed it up like a glaze. I then brushed this over top of the cake and then put the coconut garnish over top so it would stick.)
Serve immediately or stick back in the fridge.
For the separate Haupia Squares:
I left a little of the haupia mixture so I could make a small batch of the squares. All you need to do is pour it into a jar or square bowl. Then stick it in the fridge for 3 to 4 hours with the cake. When you remove it it slices up like soft butter. Cut it into cubes and serve with the cake or solo. Enjoy!
I promised some Hawaii photos as well. I did not realize how few photos of ourselves we took. Most of them are the scenery. Here’s a few to amuse you. Makes me nostalgic. I love Hawaii like no place on earth.
 |
| The view of Diamond Head from our room at sunset! |
 |
| Waimea Falls |
 |
| Germaine’s Luau |
 |
| The hair is awful after motoring around the island all day in a convertible! |
 |
| Okay so maybe the hair was just bad cuz it was the 90′s. |
Thanks so much to Kiri for letting me take over your blog today. I hope I haven’t scared off too many readers. Make sure you pop by my blog Cravings of a Lunatic to see what Kiri whipped up for you today as well. You will not be disappointed.
For those who would like to see more of me you can follow my blog , or follow me on facebook , twitter , or pinterest . Feel free to stalk me anywhere you like.
Okay. I take back everything I said. Kim is evil. She knows I have a huge weakness for coconut and will make this cake and devour the whole of it stat. It’s a conspiracy! But seriously, Kim, this looks amazing. Thank you so much for guest posting and introducing me to this wonderful dessert!
I want to try and have guest posts here on a fairly regular basis, since I have enjoyed guest posting for other blogs and think it’s a great way to find new blogs and/or readers. If you would like to guest post here, please email me at healthyfoodietravels@gmail.com!
Today is awesome. Why? Kim from Cravings of a Lunatic is here as a guest poster – and not only that! We swapped blogs today! Head over to her blog to see what I have cooked up! Kim is funny (Read her blog if you don’t know it. If you don’t giggle helplessly after half a post, something might be wrong with you!), caring, full of energy and kindness. She also cooks up the most decadent, delicious desserts and other splurge-worthy meals. So let me hop back to
herMY blog and give the floor to our favorite LunaticHi folks. I am so happy to be blog swapping with Kiri today. For those who do not know me I am Kim, the lady who runs the asylum at Cravings of a Lunatic . When I heard Kiri was looking for guest bloggers I was thrilled to offer myself up. Kiri is a kind hearted, supportive gal who I am so happy I met through blogging. She has such a unique blog and writes about food I had no idea existed. I learn so much when I stop by her place to visit. I adore her so much. So of course I wanted to guest post for her. There was one catch, I wanted to swap with her. I had done this once before with a friend and loved it. The idea behind a blog swap is trading places for the day. It’s great fun and a bit more exciting than the guest post thing. Now the issue became “healthy” and “travel”. I generally do not do healthy food often on the blog. Mine is full of treats and splurge foods with the occasional good for you meal tossed in to keep you on your toes. I also do not travel frequently. Most of my travels have been in Canada where I live, and through the States. Then it occurred to me I could go back to my golden days and share my trip to Hawaii with you and gear my food to that trip. I actually wanted to do a fish dish for you folks but I live in the culinary black hole where some food items are hard to find. This time of year it’s even tougher to find speciality items. So I consulted with a friend of mine who lived in Hawaii named Sam who blogs over at Little Ferraro Kitchen . We tossed around ideas and I told Sam I remember a coconut dessert that blew my mind. She sent me a link to a traditional version of it and that is when the ah ha moment came to me. So huge thanks to Sam for her help and inspiration.
So this is a traditional Hawaiian dessert. We had it at the Luau we went to when we visited Oahu. That night was so much fun. We took a bus tour over to the venue and I swear the bus tour was as much fun as the luau. We had a hilarious guide who had us do all kinds of inappropriate things in the window of the bus while we passed other tour buses. Was quite fun. Nothing scandalous, I’m not that crazy. When we arrived at the Luau I was blown away by how gorgeous the dancers were. No sooner I was mesmerized by them doing things with flames that would send me running in the opposite direction. We enjoyed the show, and had the most amazing food I’d ever had in my life. The pork was out of this world. There was so much food I could barely stand it. It was this little coconut dish that caught my eye. I normally do not like anything custard like or flan like. But this one intrigued me. I remember being scared to try it. Took me forever to get up the nerve. When I did I will admit the consistency is a bit odd but the taste is wonderful. It is so flavorful and the coconut just melts in your mouth. So I made the cake version of this dish and I also did the standard squares you see in Hawaii. It is called Haupia. And it is a wondrous thing to behold. It is almost like jello. It looks strange and you won’t be quite sure but trust your Lunatic, you’re going to want to try this. The recipe comes from Roy Yamaguchi and I made just a couple of minor adjustments to it. I sure hope you like it. I know we sure did.
Haupia Cake:
Source: Roy Yamaguchi
Ingredients for the Sponge Cake:
1 cup of cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs plus 2 yolks
1/2 cup coconut sugar ( you can use regular sugar, the original recipe uses it)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons butter
Ingredients for Haupia:
4 cups unsweetened coconut milk
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
Garnish:
Coconut
Directions to make the Sponge Cake:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Use non stick spray on a 9 inch pan, or line it with parchment paper.
Now sift your flour and baking powder in a small bowl. Set aside.
Now in a mixer whisk your eggs and yolks for about 4 minutes until they are thick.
Now you add your sugars and beat for another 4 to 5 minutes. It should be fluffy at this point.
Now add the flour mixture and beat on medium speed until it just combined. Leave on the stand mixer.
Now you want to take your water and butter and place them in a saucepan. Boil until the butter melts.
Add this butter/water mixture to the mixing bowl and beat it in with the other ingredients until it is combined.
Now pour this batter into your prepared pan and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool.
Now cover with plastic wrap and stick in the freezer, the recipe calls to do it overnight, I did it for about 4 hours.
Directions for the Haupia:
Place the coconut milk, sugar and 1 cup of the water into a saucepan. Bring this to a boil.
In a bowl or jar, mix the remaining 1 cup of water with the corn starch.
Add this mixture to the saucepan and make sure you stir until it boils again and thickens. (tip- if it does not thicken enough add a little more water and corn starch to it)
Remove from heat. If waiting awhile to put cake together transfer the liquid to a double boiler and keep warm.
Putting the Haupia Cake together:
Take your sponge cake from the freezer and cut it in half. I found using a bread knife worked really well. I used the counter edge as a guide to keep myself straight and not make the cake lop-sided by cutting it at a weird angle. The two layer should be as even as possible.
Now pour about one third to one half the haupia mixture from the saucepan over top of the first layer.
Now place the second layer on top and secure. I used toothpicks to keep it from sliding around.
Now pour more of the haupia mixture over top of the cake. (tip- I saved some to pour into a jar to make the haupia squares)
Stick this in the fridge for 3 or 4 hours.
Now you can garnish with coconut. (Here’s another tip, leaving it in the fridge that long makes it set and the top becomes dry, not moist. So the coconut will not stick. What I did is take about 1/2 cup of confectioners sugar and about 2 to 3 tablespoons of coconut milk and mixed it up like a glaze. I then brushed this over top of the cake and then put the coconut garnish over top so it would stick.)
Serve immediately or stick back in the fridge.
For the separate Haupia Squares:
I left a little of the haupia mixture so I could make a small batch of the squares. All you need to do is pour it into a jar or square bowl. Then stick it in the fridge for 3 to 4 hours with the cake. When you remove it it slices up like soft butter. Cut it into cubes and serve with the cake or solo. Enjoy!
I promised some Hawaii photos as well. I did not realize how few photos of ourselves we took. Most of them are the scenery. Here’s a few to amuse you. Makes me nostalgic. I love Hawaii like no place on earth.
Thanks so much to Kiri for letting me take over your blog today. I hope I haven’t scared off too many readers. Make sure you pop by my blog Cravings of a Lunatic to see what Kiri whipped up for you today as well. You will not be disappointed.
For those who would like to see more of me you can follow my blog , or follow me on facebook , twitter , or pinterest . Feel free to stalk me anywhere you like.
Okay. I take back everything I said. Kim is evil. She knows I have a huge weakness for coconut and will make this cake and devour the whole of it stat. It’s a conspiracy! But seriously, Kim, this looks amazing. Thank you so much for guest posting and introducing me to this wonderful dessert!
I want to try and have guest posts here on a fairly regular basis, since I have enjoyed guest posting for other blogs and think it’s a great way to find new blogs and/or readers. If you would like to guest post here, please email me at healthyfoodietravels@gmail.com!