Dying is expensive

By • February 25, 2013 • Musings, The Daily Dish

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I had dinner with a dear friend who recently lost her husband.

While she had expected the restless nights, the loneliness, the moments of overwhelming sadness, she didn’t expect the cost.

See, they didn’t plan on him dying so young. So they didn’t buy any funeral plans or put money aside for the kind of tragic event you don’t usually want to think about.

And she was shocked when she went to the mortuary to plan the funeral and found out that everything — from cremation to the urn the ashes come in — was so expensive.

Funeral costs can exceed $10,000, especially when you factor in catering, hall rental and flowers. That’s a huge expensive on top of your pain, grief and loss. And how can you say no or skimp on the funeral of someone you love? It’s hard. (Here are some tips from Smart Money on how you can save on costs.)

It’s a difficult situation to find yourself: you’re dealing with the death of your loved one, you want to make his funeral special, the funeral director is ringing up the costs and it’s starting to exceed the cost of a year of college tuition. What do you do?

Not to sound morbid, but I’ve asked a lot of my, ahem, older friends what their end-of-life plans are. Do they want to be cremated? Do they want their ashes scattered at their favorite surf spot? Do they want a traditional funeral or a big party? And how much is all of this going to cost?

It’s better to know now then be surprised — or surprise your survivors — later.

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FUUD: HASR Bistro in Chinatown

By • February 22, 2013 • Food

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When Grand Cafe & Bakery closed last July, I was devastated.

It was my go-to place for lunch whenever I was in downtown, mostly because it was located right outside the municipal parking lot I always use.

(Grand Cafe has since moved to HiSAM. Thank God.)

In its place, however, was a new bistro concept by Terry Kakazu, whose boutique wine shop, HASR Wine Co., is right next door.

And it’s aptly named HASR Bistro.

It’s country-side French food meets upscale dining but at affordable prices. Or something like that.

But the draw, at least for foodies, is the restaurant’s executive chef. Hawaii-born Rodney Uyehara, whose opened such notable eateries such as The Bistro at Century Center and The Beachhouse at the Moana Surfrider Hotel, is at the helm at HASR.

I was just happy something opened in that space. I mean, it’s right outside the parking garage!

So I went with a friend on a recent weekday to check out the menu I had heard raves about.

Here’s what lunch looked like:

HASR Bistro

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Last fall HASR Bistro took over the space vacated by Grand Cafe & Bakery.

HASR Bistro, 31 N. Pauahi St. Hours: 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Monday through Sunday, 2:30-5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, 5:30-9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Phone: (808) 533-HASR.

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Bored at work? Maybe that’s a good thing

By • February 20, 2013 • Musings, The Daily Dish

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When I worked in an office, man, it was hard to stay focused.

I usually get my work done pretty quickly, then I have nothing to do. So I look around for something — clean the office fridge, re-arrange my desk, un-jam the copier.

But sometimes there’s just nothing to do.

Being bored at work is uncannily common. Just about everyone can relate to that feeling of sheer boredom. You’re stuck with tedious, maybe repetitive tasks, you’re reading annual reports or pouring over statistics or — worse! — you’re stuck in a meeting.

Believe it or not, being bored could actually be a good thing.

According to new research presented at the annual meeting of the British Psychological Society Division of Occupational Psychology in January, boredom often leads to daydream, which can then lead to an increase in productivity. (As long as you’re not daydreaming about Chris Hemsworth. Not very productive.)

“Boredom at work has always been seen as something to be eliminated, but perhaps we should be embracing it in order to enhance our creativity,” study researcher Dr. Sandi Mann, of the University of Central Lancashire, said in a statement.

“What we want to do next is to see what the practical implications of this finding are,” Mann added. “Do people who are bored at work become more creative in other areas of their work — or do they go home and write novels?”

I go home and bake, apparently.

So what do you do when you’re bored at work? And does playing “Angry Birds” seem to enhance your creativity?

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What’s with bars and pork chops?

By • February 19, 2013 • Food

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Ever notice just about every bar you walk into in Hawaii has some form of pork chops on the menu?

From the famous pan-fried island pork chops from Side Street Inn to the platter of the sautéed version from Kaimuki Grill to the somewhat obscure 8 Fat Fat 8‘s version.

Pork chops are king in Hawaii.

And I have no idea why.

Maybe it’s because of the almost cult success of Manago Hotel’s famous plate of pork chops — sans gravy — that has locals salivating for a succulent chop of pork prepared in any which way, from pan-fried to sautéed to plunged into a deep fryer.

Since 1992 Colin Nishida has been serving his popular pork chops at Side Street Inn on Hopaka Street near Ala Moana Center. He sells 300 to 400 pounds of pork chops a week — at a platter is $22! (See his recipe at the end of this post.)

I’m a fan of pork chops myself — but not a rabid one. And I never understood how people can lovelovelove this dish so much they actually have arguments over who’s got the best chops.

Then I ate the pork chops from Champions Sports Bar on Keeaumoku Street.

IMG_3388A few of us sampled the bar’s new menu the other day — and all of us were surprised at just how good these chops were.

Juicy. Peppery. Just like the kind your mom would make.

They were pretty spectacular.

(The sports bar serves more than just pork chops, by the way. We loved the popular furikake chicken, ahi poke and bacon-wrapped asparagus.)

Got a favorite pork chop spot?

***

Side Street Pork Chops

Ingredients:

2 T. garlic salt
2 T. pepper
1-1/3 c. flour
2/3 c. cornstarch
4 7-ounce fresh island pork chops, about 1-1/2 inches thick
1 c. cottonseed oil

Directions:

Combine garlic salt, pepper, flour and cornstarch. Coat chops well in the mixture. Heat oil in a skillet. Fry chops about 10 minutes, turning frequently until browned. Cut meat from the bones and slice the chops into bite-sized pieces. Serve over shredded cabbage with ketchup on the side. Include bones for gnawing. Serves 4.

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Weekend Dish: Blueberry & Cream Cheese Muffins

By • February 17, 2013 • Food, Weekend Dish

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I love the combination of blueberries and cream cheese, like those decadent (and expensive) scones from Diamond Head Bakery I can’t seem to get enough of.

For a few weeks, I’ve had a package of frozen blueberries in my freezer, just for this purpose. But I never got around to baking anything with them.

Until I found an article I had clipped from a recent Glamour about a cookbook by food writer Jane Hornby. She had just published “Fresh & Easy: What to Cook & How to Cook It” (Phaidon Press, 2012) and the Glamour team was raving about it.

IMG_0980And in it — so kismet — was a recipe for what appeared to be fairly simple and straightforward blueberry and cream cheese muffins.

It was exactly what I needed — and I already had all of the ingredients in my kitchen. (Yes, I actually had unsalted butter!)

No step-by-step photo gallery this time. No need. The recipe is really pretty simple.

Enjoy!

Blueberry & Cream Cheese Muffins
Courtesy of Jane Hornby (“Fresh & Easy: What to Cook & How to Cook It”)

Ingredients:

7 T. unsalted butter
3 T. vegetable oil
1 c. low-fat plain yogurt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 T. baking powder
Just under 1 c. of superfine sugar (I used regular sugar)
1/4 tsp. salt
6 oz. blueberries (I used frozen blueberries)
4 oz. cream cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a muffin pan with cupcake wrappers.

Melt butter in a medium nonstick pan over low heat. Remove from heat and whisk in oil, yogurt, vanilla and eggs. Sift flour and baking powder into a large bowl, stir in the sugar and salt. Then make a well in the middle.

Pour the yogurt mixture into the flour well. Lightly fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients using a rubber spatula until the mixture has just come together. Pour in the blueberries, working them into the batter with very little stirring. The mixture will be lumpy.

Spoon half the batter into the baking cups. Then add about 1/2 tsp. of cream cheese on top of the batter, then add remaining batter. Add another 1/2 tsp. of cream cheese on the top of each muffin. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until golden. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack and let cool completely.

Makes 12 to 18 muffins

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