If you'll have a crowd in front of the TV for tomorrow's big game, you've got your work cut out for you today. And not least on your to-do list is designing a menu that won't leave your guest's New Year's diet resolutions deader than Steelers' hopes for a Super Bowl XXXIX berth.
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| Keep a grip on your health resolution.
Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser
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Try these ideas:
I Go recipe-shopping on the Internet. (Plug key words and the word "recipe" into Google — for example "lowfat bean dip recipe.") Build a menu of munchies that is centered around high-nutrition foods like beans and vegetables so that, along with fat and carbs, there will be lots of fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals — vegetarian bean chili, a bean and corn salad with herbs and a vinaigrette dressing, or homemade bean dip. (Roughly mash drained, rinsed, canned red or black beans; sauté some minced garlic and onion in a teaspoon of vegetable oil; add beans and spice with chili powder, chopped tomatoes, salsa and add just a little grated, reduced-fat Monterey jack cheese).
• Go ingredient-shopping in a natural-foods store, where you can buy whole-grain and vegetarian versions of foods that are usually a waste of calories, such as crackers. Use whole-wheat pasta and sausage or ground "meat" made from textured vegetable protein to make lasagna or a casserole. Buy some hummus in the deli and perk it up with a squeeze of lemon and additional garlic.
• Think outside the bag. For mindless munching, serve boiled edamame or boiled peanuts (high in sodium but still nutritious); whole-grain crackers or breads with low-fat spreads (i.e. nonfat cream cheese with sun-dried tomatoes and capers); hiyayakko (cold tofu with ginger-bonito flake relish); whole-grain tortillas or other flatbreads; unbuttered popcorn, arare or senbei.
• Stock up on charcoal, marinate lean meats (flank steak or skinless chicken breast) or fish steaks, or spice up lean hamburger and plan to grill the halftime meal. This will at least get everyone up and moving.
• Make the versatile recipe below, which can be a salad or a salsa, depending on how you cut up the ingredients. For salsa, dice. For salad, cube. The secret of this slightly spicy dish, which pairs well with most Mexican foods, is the use of the red sauce from canned chipotle en adobo — dried, smoked jalape?os packed in adobo sauce, a fiery, red Mexican pepper sauce. You can find these in most supermarkets.
Fresh, Maui-grown sweet pineapple would be great for this; slice leftovers and broil or grill for dessert with reduced-fat ice cream or frozen yogurt. You can buy roasted red pepper strips in the Italian sections of most supermarkets so you don't have to roast them yourself.
Kate Lawson of the Detroit News contributed to this report.
- Wanda Adams, Advertiser Food Editor
Avocado and pineapple salad/salsa
Dice or chop 1/2 cup pineapple and 2 peeled and seeded avocados.
Roast 1 red pepper and dice or chop it. Toss the pineapple, avocado and red pepper with 1 tablespoon of liquid from canned chipotle peppers, the juice of one-half lime,
1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 tablespoon vegetable oil,
1 teaspoon lemon zest,
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped. Makes 4 servings.
Nutritional analysis per serving:
220 calories, 17 grams fat (3 grams saturated fat), 18 grams carbohydrates, 0 cholesterol, 480 milligrams sodium, 3 grams protein, 9 grams fiber.
Lions, dragons to make a roar over Year of Rooster today in Chinatown
Last week's Night in Chinatown got waterlogged by the rain, so organizers are trying again today on Maunakea Street, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., with food, entertainment, lion and dragon dances and New Year's items for sale. The parade begins at 4 p.m. from the state Capitol, down Hotel Street and to River Street.
The Chinatown Cultural Plaza is hosting its own celebration of food, entertainment and lion dances from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. today.
And there's another festival at the Ward Warehouse, from10 a.m. to 3 p.m. today.
The Farmers' Market at Kapi'olani Community College is celebrating Chinese New Year and Mardi Gras, with a Chinese lion dance and a Cajun-themed breakfast by Don Murphy of Murphy's Bar & Grill. Hours are from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. today at 4303 Diamond Head Road.
The festivities continue tomorrow at Pearlridge Center (10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.); Aloha Tower Marketplace (1:30-4 p.m.); and Wahiawa Shopping Center and Wahiawa Town Center (5-7:30 p.m.). Admission to all is free.
Cat house
This three-story cat condo designed by architect John Black will be among the auction items at the Hawaiian Humane Society's annual fund-raiser, "Tuxes & Tails: Bone Appétit," at 6 p.m. today at The Royal Hawaiian hotel's Monarch Room. It's a fancy affair, with tickets at $250 each, and includes French wines and dinner. 946-2187, ext. 225.
Plant, produce sale today in Pearl City
New and seasoned gardeners are welcome at today’s Plant and Produce Sale by the Pearl City Urban Garden Center, next to the Home Depot store on Kamehameha Highway.
Hours are 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is free. Park at the diamondhead end of Home Depot. (808) 453-6050.
Second day of Punahou Carnival today in Makiki
Traffic advisory, people advisory: Expect Makiki to be very crowded today as the Punahou Carnival, which began last night, continues today from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on the campus at Punahou and Wilder streets.
This year's theme is "A Pirate's Life for Me." Admission is free. (808) 944-5752.
Cherry Blossom Heritage Festival happening today on the Big Island
The 12th annual Waimea Cherry Blossom Heritage Festival, with exhibits, demos, entertainment, food, mochi- making (pictured), the Japanese tea ceremony, a bon dance, taiko, and craft fairs, takes place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. today in Waimea on the Big Island.
The opening ceremony and dedication begin at 9 a.m. on the lanai of the Kahilu Theater.
Other participating sites include Kamuela Hongwanji, Church Row Park, Parker Ranch Historic Homes, Top Stitch, YMCA Hall and Parker Ranch Center.
Admission is free. (808) 961-8706.
Making yourself at home
H is for Honolulu Stained Glass Studio.
O is for Organized Living.
M is for Martin & MacArthur.
E is for Efficient Windows Collaborative.
All together, and with dozens of other participating vendors, they spell home — our individual nesting grounds and the focus of the Building Industry Association of Hawai'i's Home Building & Remodeling Show, continuing today and tomorrow at the Blaisdell Exhibition Hall.
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| Vern Yip |
The 11th annual show offers a variety of workshops and a celebrity guest: Interior designer Vern Yip, of TV's "Trading Spaces," will take part in question-and-answer sessions at 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. today in the Hawai'i Suite.
Other events and workshops include:
• The 3rd annual Steel Man Competition, in which steel framers compete against each other, in the Blaisdell parking lot facing Ward Avenue. Completed projects will be donated to nonprofit organizations. 8 a.m.-1 p.m. today.
• Chef demonstrations. Noon today with Gordon Lum of Gordon Biersch, 4 p.m. today with Richard Viernes of Centerplate and Paradise Cove, 6 p.m. today with Kelvin Ro of Diamond Head Market & Grill, 1 p.m. tomorrow with Patrick Yamaguchi of Centerplate and Blaisdell Center.
• The Keiki Zone, with games, coloring books, crossword puzzles, storytelling and water-conservation tips for kids. Kids must be accompanied by adults. 3-6 p.m. today and noon-3 p.m. tomorrow.
| BIA Home Building & Remodeling Show
10 a.m.-9 p.m. today and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. tomorrow
Blaisdell Exhibition Hall
$4 general; free for ages
12 and younger when accompanied by paying adult; $1 for ages 55 and older tomorrow only; coupon for $2 discount off regular admission is downloadable at www.bia-hbrs.com |
• Senior Remodel It Right seminar, sponsored by American Savings Bank and the BIA-Hawaii Remodelor Council. 10:30 a.m. tomorrow.• Cooking Trends for Today's Lifestyle, a seminar about innovative products and energy efficiency, sponsored by the Kitchen Distribution Center. Noon tomorrow.
New products are part of the show. Consider:
• The national premiere of Matsushita's top-selling residential security systemsin Japan. Distributed by Jet-Hawaii.
• Maintenance-free putting greens, and lawn turf that looks like real grass. At the Island Collections booths.
• The Gio Collection by Mitchell Gold is a moveable furniture collection with wheels that make for easy arranging and rearranging. From Pacific Home, a new home-furnishings store.
• A Bosch dishwasher that reportedly is so quiet, a light beams on the floor to let you know it's running. From Kitchen Distribution Center.
Looking for bargains? New and scratch-and-dent items — including bathtubs, windows, doors, light fixtures and general construction material — will be sold at reduced prices at the BIA & Base Yard Hawaii tent sale. Proceeds will benefit Base Yard Hawaii, which helps low- and moderate-income homeowners repair or build their own homes.
