MINI CHEESECAKES

 I bought Wilton's Mini Springform Pans.  They are great for mini cheesecakes.  I think I will make mini cheesecakes for my dessert swap this year and give away the pan as the container.  They come three to a pack for about $11. 

HAPPY BOSSES DAY

I was treated to flowers, balloon and lunch from my team. 

DUMPLINGS ALL DAY WONG

 Lee Anne Wong was a great teacher for dim sum.  She demonstrated how to make pork stuffing and Edamame stuffing.  Then she demonstrated all the different folds and we had to make our own.  The best part was cooking and eating them.  She has a great cook book, Dumplings All Day Wong.  This book is filled with recipes, pictures and step by step instructions.  

Lee Anne is a celebrity chef from New York and went to the French Culinary Institute.  She was a contestant on the first season of Top Chef.  She became culinary producer of that show for 6 seasons.  She has been on shows such as Chopped, Iron Chef, Unique Eats and Unwrapped. 

KOKO HEAD CAFE

 Cornflakes French Toast and Ohayo Eggs.  That was what we wanted to try at Koko Head Cafe.  It's a restaurant in Kaimuki, created by Chef Lee Anne Wong of Top Chef fame.  There's a 20 minute wait but well worth it.  The french toast was crunchy on the outside but inside was a moist custard bread.  Topped with applewood bacon and whipped butter, it was amazing.  They Ohayo eggs were creamy with cheese and topped with nori and furikake.  They were very unique dishes.  I will definitely go back.

ANA MAHALO GOLF INVITATIONAL

 I played in the ANA Golf Invitational at Kapolei Golf Course.  The course was in excellent condition since the PGA Seniors Championship was just held there 5 days earlier.  I didn't win anything but it was still a great day followed by an excellent dinner at the Plaza Club downtown.  Golf and Steak and Lobster...what could be better than that?

CHICKEN ROLL

 I created this chicken roll with spinach, mushrooms, mozzarella cheese, wrapped with Prosciutto.  After wrapping the rolls, place in a baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Top with Marinara sauce and serve with pasta.  It's a great light and easy meal.  You can prepare it ahead of time for those week night dinners.

KNIFE SKILLS CLASS

 I have always wanted to learn how to chop, slice and dice better.  Cook Space Hawaii offers cooking classes, so I took the Knife Skills Class.  I learned so much and it has really helped my knife skills.  After slicing the onions, we made French Onion Soup.  With the diced vegetables we made a healthy vegetable stew with herb bouquet.  I learned to cut an orange and with the sliced wedges, made a refreshing salad with sliced mint.  I am so proud of myself and had a blast.

 Chef Kevin Lee demonstrates the peeling of an orange and extracting of the wedges with no membrane.

 French Onion Soup

 Orange wedges with mint

Healthy vegetable stew