Garlic & Soy Pork Tenderloin

I have been on a kick of reading cookbooks, seeing a recipe I like, then just guessing the amounts & such of the ingredients.

This is adapted from The South Beach Cook Book, Garlic & Soy Pork Chops

Garlic & Soy Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients

Low Sodium Soy Sauce

Garlic, minced & powdered

paprika

one pork tenderloin

Place pork tenderloin in oven safe dish. Marinate with soy sauce, garlic & paprika. I let mine marinate for about 2 hours, I would say at a minimum 30 mins.

Cook at 375 until the inner temperature reaches 170 degrees. I am a stickler for cooked pork, I have a paranoia about.

I served this with some "Fried" Rice. (ha like fried rice is on my diet plan)

Ingredients

Brown Rice, cooked

peas, cooked

carrots, cooked

low sodium soy sauce

egg whites

In a heated frying pan, add egg whites & cook. Then add brown rice, carrots & peas. Add some soy sauce, about 1 Tbsp. Cook until heated through, continually stirring.

Homade Marinara Sauce

So many tomatoes, so little time... Just kidding. I finally had some time on Saturday to make homemade marinara sauce. I have never made this so I researched Cooking Light for some recommendations, at which I was so surprised to see how many recipes called for canned tomatoes. Uh, so, I have about 6 lbs of fresh tomatoes, how many canned is that??
Anyway, I finally hunted a recipe down but totally changed it after I read it, using the thought process behind it though.

Ingredients

about 3 lbs tomatoes, any kind: roma, beefsteak, whatever is in your garden

garlic, minced, however much you want

onion, chopped

Fresh Herbs: Parsley, Thyme, Oregano, Basil , Rosemary (again anything in your garden)

In a large pot, bring water to a boil. Drop the tomatoes in about 5 at a time, cook until the skin starts to peel away. Take them out & immediately douse with cold water. Repeat until you are through all the tomatoes. Let me cool a bit so you don't burn your fingers. Pull the skin away & chop the tomatoes.

In a large sauce pot, drizzle with olive oil. Heat to medium to medium-high. Add chopped onions & garlic. Cook about 3-5 minutes. Add tomatoes, bring to a boil. Reduce & simmer for about 10 mins. Add all the herbs. Simmer until you are ready to eat.

Some side notes: I let it simmer for about 4 hours. I also noticed the sauce was really thin, so I had to resort to some tomato paste to thicken it up.

I served this with some turkey-meat balls.

Turkey Meat Balls

approx. 1 1/2 lbs ground turkey meat

some egg whites

about 1 Tbsp breadcrumbs

S&P

Mix it all together & make some balls. Place on a baking sheet & cook on 375-400 for about 20 mins. I wanted mine to have a nice brown outside, so I did 375 for 15 mins & 400 for another 10.

And... this all is diet friendly! Now if you aren't on a diet, I recommend serving this with some spaghetti & cheesy garlic bread. Yum I can almost taste it.

Makeshift Mexican

I miss Mexican food! I want me an enchilada or chimichanga! In an effort to curb the craving, I made tomato & avocado salsa, black bean soup & cheese quesadillas.

Tomato & Avocado Salsa from the South Beach Cookbook

2 large or 4 small tomatoes, chopped

1/4-1/2 cup avocado, diced

1 small onion, chopped

1 green chili, seeded & chopped

fresh parsley, minced

fresh cilantro, minced

Lime juice

Red Wine Vinegar

Mix it all together, let sit for at least 15 minutes if not more.

Serve on top of black bean soup or as a side to the quesadilla.

Black Bean Soup

I forgot that back in college this restaurant/pub had the best black bean soup. I loved it! I probably had it once a week. I saw a recipe for black bean soup in my South Beach cookbook, but i took the easy way out :-) I didn't use dry beans & soak them & whatnot. So below is really my recipe for Black Bean Soup.

2 cans black beans

Chopped celery

chopped onion

2 garlic cloves minced

a little bit of lemon juice

black pepper

celery seeds

Saute celery, garlic & onion until soft.

Blend one can of black beans until smooth (in a blender or food processor). I added a little bit of water to make it more like soup.

Add blended black beans & other can of black beans to celery/onion/garlic mixture.

Add celery seeds, lemon juice & black pepper.

Simmer about 20 mins.

Cheese Quesadilla, Diet Style
2% Mexican Cheese Shredded
Whole Wheat/Whole Grain tortillas

In a pan, spray with Misto, place on tortilla in the pan, sprinkle with cheese, season with taco seasoning or whatever you like. Top with other tortilla, spray with misto. Flip about 1/2 way through.

So tired of cooking...

I mean really, breakfast lunch & dinner. This is wearing me out people! I can't keep up with expectations of my customers (my husband is the only one). I am trying new things, but I really just want to make chicken saltimbocca or even penne vodka. Someday, Someday...

Last night I tried to make a mango-ginger salsa. I planned to serve it over grilled chicken that was seasoned with red pepper. I thought mixing the HOT with the SWEET would taste good. I am sure it did, I just didn't have the energy to eat yesterday, plus I think my mango was too ripe. I have never cooked with mango but this was a little mushy. Can you see it? Does it look mushy?

Of course I left the recipe at home but it goes something like this:

1 cup mango

1/2 to 1 cup tomatoes

1/2 onion chopped

fresh ginger minced

dry sherry- 2 Tbsp

White Vinegar- 1 1/2 Tbsp

1/4 cup lime juice

1 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar

Mix it all together & let it sit for a bit so the ingredients can mesh.

Now, on the plus side of all this, my camera took AWESOME pictures tonight!!! So even though I didn't particularly like the dinner (this is probably more b/c I am tired of cooking & eating rather than how it tastes) it sure looks pretty yummy!

Oh I seasoned the chicken with cayenne pepper & cumin & served with fresh steamed cauliflower.

Pan Seared Salmon/Tuna

But the Ahi Tuna was on sale, so it turned out to be pan seared ahi. I pretty much think any recipe that calls for fish of some sort can be used for all fish. This was very good. I like that in this diet, I am forced to try new things. Now I have had ahi before, but I have never cooked it. My new goal is to try to cook all types of fish, so post your fish recipes here! I have shark & ahi out of the way, wonder what will be next!

Ingredients
Cooking spray
4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets (about 1 inch thick)**
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoon thinly sliced shallots
1 1/2 cups presliced mushrooms**
2 cups fresh spinach
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Preparation
Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Sprinkle fish with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Add fish to pan; cook 5 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Remove fish from pan, and keep warm.
Add oil and shallots to pan; sauté 1 minute. Add mushrooms in a single layer; cook 2 minutes (do not stir). Cook an additional 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add spinach; cook 30 seconds or until spinach wilts. Remove from heat; stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt, rind, and juice. Serve over fish.

**NOTES** I used ahi tuna as mentioned above. This should be cooked rare to med-rare, so I think I seared it maybe 3 minutes on each side. I sliced my own mushrooms, let me tell you, it was tough :-)


I served this with some garlic & olive oil couscous.

Tomatillo Shrimp Fajitas

We are finishing up week 2 on the diet plan & creativity is getting tough. I know I canhave fajitas, but I didn't want just plain ole fajitas. I found this recipe on Cooking Light & was intrigued by the tomatillo salsa. This was super fast to throw together too.

Tomatillo Shrimp Fajitas
Ingredients
Cooking spray
1 1/2 cups red bell pepper strips
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic**
1 small red onion, vertically sliced**
1/2 cup bottled green salsa
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 pounds peeled and deveined large shrimp
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add bell pepper, garlic, and onion; sauté 4 minutes. Stir in salsa, coriander, salt, and shrimp; sauté 2 minutes or until shrimp are done. Arrange about 1/2 cup shrimp mixture down center of each tortilla; sprinkle each tortilla with 1 1/2 teaspoons cilantro.
**Notes** I used white corn tortillas b/c thats what I had in the house. I used a regular onion, i was out of red onions & I added some mushrooms because my husband & I love them. I also minced my own garlic.

These were pretty tasty, for diet food, I think I would have liked a little more spice to them, maybe add some cayenne pepper.

Lots of rain= giant garden

Not that I am complaining, I love my garden! We have so many tomatoes & our herbs are plain crazy. The basil & sage are taking over the garden. So last night, with my new found love for pesto, I was looking around the kicthen & thought, I swear someone stuffed tomatoes with pesto, I must have read that on someone's blog. So if I stole your idea, I apologize in advance.

I had chicken defrosted & planned to grill b/c it was close to 100 degrees yesterday. Yes we are having random storms, then it heats up-its great for the hair I tell you. Anywho, I turned to Paul Purdomme again for a little flavor on the chicken (Meat Magic Seasoning).

Tired of broccoli & green beans, I had two heads of cauliflower so I cut one up & steamed them.


Then I made the aforementioned, Pesto Stuffed Tomatoes. All this I did by eyeing it so I dont have any real measurements.

Pesto
about 2 cups of fresh basil
2 handfuls of pine nuts
2 garlic cloves, chopped but not finely chopped
some parmesan cheese
some olive oil
Salt & Pepper

In a food processor, put in all basil leaves & puree. Add the rest of the ingredients & puree. If it looks thick, just add some more olive oil.

Tomatoes
I cut off the tops, & gutted them :-) I filled them about 3/4 full of pesto.

Then topped them with a mixture of breadcrumbs & parmesan cheese. I cooked these on the grill.
They were wonderful!

Cold Breakfast

As I raved about the quiche, I can also say, you can't have it 3-4 days in a row. This is a nice easy mix up to having eggs every morning. My P90X support teammate provided us with this recipe. Thanks Pfifer!

Apple Museli

Ingredients: (2 servings)
1 Large Apple - peeled and cored

1 to 1/2 C Oats (quick oats work fine), uncooked

1/2 C lowfat or nonfat plain yogurt

honey to taste

Directions: Grate apples with grater into medium bowl. Add oats, and yogurt. Stir gently to combine ingredients. If mixture is too thin, add more oats, if mixture is too thick add more yogurt. I really do this by feel drizzle in honey to taste for sweetness. You can also substitute vanilla nonfat yogurt and skip the honey.

**Notes** i just chopped the apple up, I am lazy. I added some cinnamon to it also. And I prepare it in the morning as opposed to the day before.

Big Breakfast Packs Power

Its a good thing I LOVE breakfast! I especially love eggs & my husband is a big fan of hot breakfasts as opposed to cold ones. I don't mind getting up early to make omelets & such, but sometimes, I just want to take it easy. This recipe follows our diet & is a great quick, and well rounded, morning meal. I baked it on Tuesday night & just slice out a piece in the morning & heat it up in the microwave. I serve it with a cup of strawberries & 1/2 cup of 1% cottage cheese.

Crustless Broccoli and Cheese Quiche (from Cooking Light)
Ingredients
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup vertically sliced onion
1 garlic clove, minced
5 cups broccoli florets
Cooking spray
1 1/4 cups 1% low-fat milk
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Swiss cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
4 large egg whites, lightly beaten
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté 1 1/2 minutes. Add broccoli; sauté 1 minute. Spread broccoli mixture into a 9-inch pie plate coated with cooking spray. Combine milk and next 8 ingredients (milk through eggs) in a large bowl. Pour milk mixture over broccoli mixture; sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes or until top is golden and a knife inserted in center comes out clean; let stand 5 minutes.

**NOTES** We cant have egg yolks, so I used 8 egg whites total. I also have an overflow of fresh tomatoes from our garden, so I chopped some up & added them into the mix. I am not a huge fan of swiss cheese, so I mixed swiss & cheddar (all reduced fat/2%).

硬花甘蓝和牛肉混乱油炸物

What does that say you ask??? Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry! Since stir-fry seems to be THE meal of choice on P90X, I needed to be a bit creative. I am sure I will come to love stir-fry over the next 90 days...

Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/2 red onion sliced
1 Tbsp garlic minced
1 lb top sirloin steak
1 Tbsp Sesame oil
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, minced
4 cups broccoli

Heat soy sauce in the pan, add onions & garlic until opaque.
Add beef & saute. Stir together oil, vinegar, & ginger. Add to the saute mixture
Blanch broccoli in boiling water, then add to the meat mixture.
**Notes** you can serve this over soba noodles, I couldn't find any. Also, I had some left over yellow pepper so I tossed that in there. And I didn't have quite enough steak, so I added some peanuts for extra protein.

Bumpy Chicken

Last week I was catching up on my blog reading, something I hadn't done in awhile & came across http://cookingcutie.blogspot.com/2007/07/bump-bump-bump.html

After a week on our new diet & exercise program, I needed some new ideas for meals for this week. Our diet will get old very quickly if I don't mix it up a bit. Chelle's recipe had the perfect portions of the foods we get to eat so, we tried bumpy chicken on Monday night.

Bumpy Chicken
2 cups finely chopped mushrooms
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp reduced-fat mayonnaise
1 tsp. balsamic vinegar
Salt
1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. In a non-stick frying pan, stir mushrooms, onions and garlic over medium-high heat until mushrooms begin to brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, place chicken breasts in a 9x13 baking dish coated with cooking spray and bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
4. When the mushroom mixture is done, remove it from the heat. Stir in the mustard, vinegar and mayonnaise.
5. Spread the mushroom mixture over the chicken and continue baking the chicken until chicken is no longer pink in the center of the thickest part. Add salt to taste.

I served this with brown rice cooked in chicken broth, and broccoli that were steamed. Also, I misread the recipe & used 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar. It was pretty bland though I must say, if I were to make it again I would season the chicken before I cook it & probably add some fresh herbs to the mushroom mixture. I also took Chelle's advice & didn't chop the mushrooms, I just sliced them, then cut them in half.

Yah Man-Pork Tenderloin Island Style

I have a new found love for pork tenderloin. I don't think I will ever go back to pork chops. Pork tenderloin just tastes so juicy! After this diet is over, I think my first meal will be Elly's Pork Milanese! But until then, grilled or baked pork tenderloin will do.

Island Pork Tenderloin

16 oz pork tenderloin (lean)

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp chile powder (not to be confused with chili powder)

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

1/2 Tbsp garlic, chopped

1/4 cup of brown sugar (on a diet you ask?? yes I swear!)

1/2 Tbsp Tabasco

1. Preheat oven to 350

2. Mix all ingredients, salt through cinnamon, together & coat pork with the spice rub

3. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in skillet over high heat & the pork tenderloin. Turning about every 4-5 minutes

4. Stir together brown sugar, garlic, Tabasco & pat on top of tenderloin. Place pork in roasting pan & cook until done.

**Notes**I used a dutch oven so I wouldn't have to dirty two pans, yes lazy I know. I also didn't have any Tabasco sauce on hand so I used some cayenne pepper to give it some spice. I am a little leary on pork & deciding when it is done, so I use a meat thermometer. Also, to keep the juices in the meat, let it sit for about 5-7 minutes before cutting it. I used a little of the cumin vinaigrette to top it off. (see previous post)

I was pretty tired of broccoli as our main veggie with each meal, I decided to change it up with some zucchini.

Sauteed Zucchini
zucchini
a little EVOO
any spices you like
grated Parmesan cheese

Heat oil in a skillet, just enough oil to coat the pan. Slice zucchini. Add zucchini to pan, cook for about 5 minutes, tossing & turning along the way. Add your spices. Since I have an herb garden I just went out a grabbed some. I think we had rosemary, oregano, thyme & sage. Cook until zucchini is almost done, then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Homemade Dressings

One of the things I like about p90X is that I am forced to make things I would normally short cut. I have never made my own salad dressings. Since this diet is pretty strict, they give you recipes on what you can have. I didn't take pictures, b/c really, salad dressings are not pretty unless they are on a pretty salad. But here are the recipes & some suggested pairings.

Balsamic Vinaigrette
1 1/2 cups balsamic vinegar
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
6 Tbsp Dijon mustard
4 tsp shallots, chopped
4 tsp fresh basil, chopped
2 tsp olive oil
black pepper to taste

Whisk all ingredients in a small bowl. Store covered in the fridge. Makes approximately 16 2 Tbsp servings. I have used this on a steak & spinach salad. It really brings out the flavor of the steak. My salad had artichoke hearts as well & they just soaked up the vinaigrette.

Cumin Vinaigrette
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 Tbsp orange juice
1/2 Tbsp dijon mustard
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp EVOO

Whisk together until emulsified. Makes approximately 4 Tbsp.
I used this on a island pork tenderloin by itself, as well as with the pork tenderloin in a salad. Sweet & spicy all at the same time.

Pesto Sauce
1 cup pine nuts
4 cups fresh basil
2 Tbsp garlic, chopped
1 cup lo-fat Parmesan cheese, grated
1/3 cup white cooking wine
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 tsp salt

Heat skillet over medium-high heat, toast pine nuts until golden brown. In a food processor, puree basil, nuts & garlic. Add parm cheese, wine, lemon juice & chicken broth until blended. Add salt to taste. Serve with pasta, chicken or seafood.
**Notes** I was expecting more of a pesto from this rather than a pesto sauce so I was a little disappointed at how runny it is. I'd probably reduce the liquids by 1/2.

Stay out of the water!

My karma theory is that if I eat shark, I should not swim for at least 6 months. I dont want karma to come & bite me in the a$$, literally! I made shark forgetting that I will be in Florida in a few weeks-every keep their fingers crossed!

Menu for a Saturday Night at Home:
Roasted Red Pepper Soup
Mako Shark
Tomato Lentil Cous Cous

Roasted Red Pepper Soup
1 cups white wine
1/2 onion, chopped
3 roasted red peppers
1 cup celery, chopped
1/2 Tbsp garlic, minced
1 plum tomato, chopped
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 cup fat-free, lo-sodium chicken broth
1 Tbsp Thyme (fresh or dried)
pinch of salt & pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375, cut red peppers in half, spray with Misto (olive oil) & place in over for about 30 mins (I think)
2. Heat wine in a large heavy soup pot. Add onions, celery & peppers. Cook for 3 mins. Add garlic, cook for another 2 mins. add more wine if you need to.
3. Add tomatoes, tomato paste & broth. Cover & bring to a boil. Reduce heat & simmer for 25 minutes.
4. Puree soup in a blender. Return to pot, add thyme, s&p; heat through.

Tomato Lentil CousCous
Made by Far East, follow directions on box. I omit olive oil anytime I make couscous.

Mako Shark
Fire up the grill! I seasoned the shark with Paul Purdomme's Seafood magic, put in on the grill, about 7 mins each side.

Delicious! I will be making shark again sometime!!

Turkey Burger without any friends...

Look at these sad burgers, they have no friends :-( I will say this is a big downfall to the diet, I would have liked to put this on a nice toasted bun.


Ingredients:
Ground turkey
Worchestire sauce
Dijon Mustard

Mix this up with your hands, place on grill, cook until finished.
I topped it off with lo-fat Swiss cheese & decided to grill some onions so it had some company.

Shrimp Stir-Fry

Since DH & I are on different calorie intakes, the amounts vary between him & I, but I will just post the recipe for mine.

Ingredients
6 oz shrimp, peeled & deveined
1/4 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
1/2 tsp rice vinegar
1/4 cup fat free low sodium chicken broth
1/2 tsp garlic, minced
1/4 tsp fresh ginger, minced
1/2 cup red onions, sliced in wedges
1/2 cup broccoli florets
1 1/4 cups snow peas
1 1/2 cup mushrooms, halved
1/4 cup yellow bell pepper, cubed
1/4 cup canned water chestnuts, sliced

1. Rinse shrimp & drain well
2. heat soy sauce, rice vinegar & 2 Tbsp of chicken broth in saute pan over medium heat. Add garlic & ginger, saute until tender.
3. Add all veggies to pan & continue to saute, stirring, adding more broth if needed. Add shrimp when the veggies are 1/2 way cooked.

Top with 1 Tbsp Sesame Seeds & 1 oz cashews.
Notes: This was my first experience with fresh ginger & I LOVED it! I can't wait to use it again!

Salmon with lemon dill sauce, wild rice & steamed broccoli

Salmon:
Me: 6 oz Salmon
DH: 8 oz Salmon
I just grilled these on the George Foreman.

Lemon Dill Sauce:
1/4 cup shallots
1 cup white wine
1 cup fat free, low sodium chicken broth
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp lemongrass, minced*
1/2 Tbsp fresh dill

1. Spray saute pan with Misto & saute shallots until soft, moisten with wine if necessary
2. Add remaining wine & reduce by 1/2. Add chicken broth & reduce by 1/2 again.
3. Blend mixture in blender until smooth
4. Add lemon juice & simmer over low heat for 30 minutes. Stir in dill.
**Ok I never found lemongrass at the store, also, I was a bad chef & didn't read the directions beforehand. I didn't have 30 mins to wait, so I decided to take about 1 Tbsp of lo-fat mayo & 2 Tbsp of the sauce, mix it together & serve it with the salmon.**

Wild rice was from Rice-a- Roni, I just steamed fresh broccoli.

New Diet & Work Out Program

After viewing the bathing suit pictures in Maui, DH & I decided to start a workout & diet regimen. For those of you who watch infomercials, you will know this one :-)
P90X
We started on July 9th & the first week was rough, just trying to get organized after vacation was hard enough, scheduling a new workout & cooking regimen added some serious stress. But we made it!
This program is designed to build & tone muscle, not lose weight. We burn a lot of calories, so we tend to eat a lot as well. (I am at 1800 calories a day, DH is at 2400. I hope this part of the blog will help others see that a diet can be fun for a cook.

Happy 4th of July

We spent the 4th in Maui this year, watching the sunset on a champagne cruise & viewing the firework display on the beach over dinner at Pacific'O-who could ask for more?

Pacific'O Maui

The best part of this restaurant was the view, we weren't too impressed with the dinner, it wasn't as great as Roy's, but still very good.

I had a salad to start, its their house salad:
From our farm with love. tender greens garnished with bleu cheese and bacon crumbles soy citrus vinaigrette


For our main entress I had the "HAPA/HAPA" TEMPURA
(Award winning dish - Best Seafood - Taste of Lahaina) Two sashimi blocks of fresh fish wrapped in a sheet of dry seaweed, quickly fried medium rare tempura style, white miso dressing, lime basil sauce.

Mike had the KONA WINDS
Fresh fish seared with house spices, served over wilted O'o Farm grown arugula and bean sprouts. Topped with warm avocado, Maui onion salsa, goat cheese, macadamia nuts, and soy bacon vinaigrette.

That's all from the island of Maui.
Aloha & Mahalo!

Our underwater friend & Roy's at Kihei

We had a little friend while scuba diving at Lanai.

This turtle was so cute! He swam around us & played for awhile.
Moving onto the food..

Mike & I decided that this was, by far, the best meal we had on the island. We went to Roy's Restaurant in Kihei. Created by Roy Yamaguchi, deemed Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine, had such a mixture of flavors, it was great!


We started off with a light appetizer that consisted of a beef rib, ahi tuna & an egg roll. Sorry for the dark pictures, restaurant ambiance.
Beef Rib

Ahi Tuna

Egg Roll


We had Macadamia Nut Mahi Mahi in a lobster sauce:

and this one was a special & for the life me, I can not remember what it was. I think its a blackened yellow fin tuna:


And for dessert we had Macadamia Nut Tart



And Molten chocolate cake. I don't have a picture of the molten cake, but it is on his website.

So if you do make it Hawaii or have a Roy's in your area, definitely go!

More Aloha...

Here's the hubby drinking a new fave: the Lava Flow. Its a pina colada with strawberry puree.


The Old Lahaina Luau
We decided to take in a traditional luau while in Maui. It was really cool. We did the traditional mat seating.

Here is the Kalua Pua's crazy how you can cook a pig under the ground. (Its pig cooked in an underground oven called an "imu")

Before...


After:


The meal consisted of the Kalua Pua'a, Poi, Ahi Poke, Sweet Potatoe, Pulehu steak, chicken long rice, island style chicken, maui style mahi mahi, stir fry vegetables, local style fried rice, island crab salad, taro salad, pohole salad & lomi lomi salmon.


After diner they bring over a few plats of dessert, my favorite was the macadamia nut tart. Just lik pecan pie, but made with macadamia nuts.

And man can these girls move their hips!