Taste
Restaurant-style bread dips are easy to make at home

By Joan Namkoong
Advertiser Food Editor

Ciabatta with 'ahi poke dip is served at Hoku's, a restaurant in the Kahala Mandarin Oriental Hawaii hotel. Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser

'Ahi Poke Dip
Hoku's at the Kahala Mandarin Oriental Hawaii

• 2 cups mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup pickled ginger
• 1/2 cup green onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons white pepper
• 3/4 cup fresh 'ahi, diced

Mix all ingredients. Chill until ready to serve. The mixture can be refrigerated for up to a week, but fold in the white pepper and 'ahi just before serving.

Thai Peanut Sauce
Chai's Island Bistro

• 1/2 tablespoon Thai red curry paste
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1/4 tablespoon sesame seed
• 1/2 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1/4 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

In a saucepan, heat curry paste, coconut milk and sesame seed. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 10-15 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and blend well. Remove from heat, cool and serve for dipping.

Tomato Feta Relish
Palomino

• 3 cups canned pear tomatoes, drained
• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons fresh julienned basil
• 1/4 cup chopped Kalamata olives
• 2 tablespoons diced Maui onion
• 1/3 cup feta cheese in large crumbles
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar

Drain tomatoes well and crush by hand. Fold in remaining ingredients and serve.

Chili Pepper Aioli
Alan Wong's Restaurant

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 cup olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

In a blender, combine the mustard, garlic, egg, egg yolk and lemon and puree. With the machine running, slowly add the olive oil until incorporated. If the mixture becomes too thick, thin with a little water. Season with salt and pepper. Keep refrigerated.

For Chili Pepper Aioli, add 1/8 teaspoon cayenne to 1/4 cup aioli.

— Recipe from "Alan Wong's New Wave Luau" by Alan Wong with John Harrisson (Ten Speed Press).

Focaccia
Ryan's Bar and Grill at Ward Centre

Chef Bill Bruhl couldn't give the exact recipe for his focaccia, but he suggested home cooks could make a basic French bread and add the toppings that give his focaccia its distinctive flavor. You could even use a frozen bread dough.

• 2-pound batch of French bread or frozen French bread dough
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
• 4 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
• 4 teaspoons minced fresh sage
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Oil a 12-by-18-inch sheet pan with olive oil. Flatten and roll dough out on a floured surface until it's about the size of your sheet pan.

Place dough in pan, pulling corners and edges gently to fill the entire pan.

Drizzle dough with olive oil and garlic, spreading with a spatula to spread it evenly across the entire surface. Sprinkle rosemary, sage and salt over the top.

Bake x20-25 minutes or until top is light golden in color. Remove from oven and gently spread butter over the bread. Allow to rest for 20 minutes before cutting and serving.

Leftover breads often get made into bread pudding. At the Hawaii Prince Hotel, chef Goran Streng makes a Poha Berry Bread Pudding topped with a creamy rich Anglaise sauce. You could substitute another fruit jam for the poha berry jam. At Diamond Head Grill, chef Elmer Guzman makes a savory bread pudding that includes kalua pig and cheese, which he serves with sauteed won bok and a macadamia nut crusted pork chop (a one-pounder). No doubt this savory concoction could go with lots of things. And of course, you don't have to wait for leftover bread to make these delicious goodies.

Poha Berry Bread Pudding
Hawaii Prince Hotel

Leftover French bread, Danish pastries, croissants, dinner rolls, about 1 pound

• 1/2 cup poha berry jam
• 1 quart milk
• 1 cup sugar
• 8 eggs
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Break breads into pieces and place in two 9-by-13-inch pans. Mix in jam.

Combine remaining ingredients, blending well. Pour mixture into pans through a strainer. Allow mixture to soak.

Place baking pan in a larger pan filled with warm water. Bake at 350 degrees for about 35-45 minutes. To test for doneness, insert a knife and if it comes out clean and dry, then it's done.

Anglaise Sauce

• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup egg yolks (about 5-6)
• 6 tablespoons sugar
• 1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat milk and cream in a heavy saucepan. Mix egg yolks and sugar in a separate bowl. When milk is almost boiling, pour it into the egg/sugar mixture, whisking vigorously. Return mixture to the saucepan and add the vanilla bean. Cook mixture until it thickens, stirring constantly with a spoon. Mixture should reach 170 degrees. Strain mixture into a bowl and cool.

Kalua Pig Bread Pudding
Sam Choy's Diamond Head Grill

• 4 tablespoons oil
• 1 1/2 pounds onion, sliced (about 5-6 onions)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh minced garlic
• 1 pound oyster mushrooms, sliced
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds cubed day-old bread
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 11 cups milk
• 5 eggs
• 12 ounces Parmesan cheese, shredded
• 1 pound kalua pig

Heat oil in a large saute pan. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is wilted. Add mushrooms, salt and pepper and cook until tender. Cool.

In a very large bowl, mix together the cream, milk and eggs. Add bread and soak until bread is well soaked. Add cooled mushroom mixture. Fold in Parmesan cheese and kalua pig. Place in individual molds or in a large casserole dish. Bake in a 250-degree oven for one hour.