Articles
“Sitting on the veranda watching a storm bringing relief to the parched plantsâ€
“Black Krim tomatoes are the only tomato even to consider eating from the out of season imports! “
Kathi Martin
August 2023
Krim tomatoes originate from the Crimean peninsula including Ukraine. A plump medium size heirloom tomato ranging in color from nearly black to a deep purple or a tawny dark brown. Their flavor is sweet with a salty after note.
Available at specialty produce markets, organic farm markets, or from local growers.
Seeds and plants are available at specialty nurseries and on line.
 At My Kitchen Table has moved to Hawaii !
The last few of years have been a series of fits and starts and ever shifting priorities that have rearranged everyone’s lives, my own included. I found myself longing for the easiness of my day to day life I left behind in the tropics. A plan was quietly fermenting for an eventual return. So when a window of opportunity finally arrived I jumped at the chance and booked a flight to Honolulu.
Once again I was” figuratively” packing up “my kitchen table and heading back to the Asia Pacific. A serendipitous offer for a place to live in the middle of Honolulu’s ethnically diverse Chinatown was a cooks dream. I have been exploring every imaginable Asian cuisine in the street, as well as restaurants, shops, and markets all within a few short blocks of my own kitchen.
Luckily I also live directly across the street from Sing Cheong Yuan Bakery at 1027 Maunakea Street where you will find Honolulu’s most popular Char Siu Manapua (Hawaiian) Char Siu Bao (Cantonese) steamed buns filled with Asian barbecued pork. Crowds queue up at the door every morning at 7am sharp!
Char Siu Baoare Chinese steamed buns filled with barbecued pork have got to be my favorite alternative wake up and smell the coffee
breakfast, be it in a Chinatown coffee shop in New York, LA, Honolulu, or from my local 7 Eleven back in Chiang Mai! Steamy hot billowing white clouds of dough bursting with the aroma of barbecued char siu pork along with a seriously strong cuppa java with a pinch of Hawaiian salt kick starts the day Asian style.
You may also want to try making your own char siu bao at home. It requires a few easy steps but well worth the effort as well as an open invitation to get creative with seasonings and flavors added to the filling.
I posted a recipe for Char Siu Bao back in 2014 (Clicke here for recipe) which you might enjoy, especially if they are not available where you live.
Honolulu’s Kekaulike Market place at 1039 Kekualiki Street in Chinatown isÂ
Open daily. Best to get there early for local produce, meats, poultry, seafood, herbs and spices, woks, kitchenware’s, and you name it.
Hawaiian favorites as well as the ethnic cuisines from all over Asia are all available right here in Honolulu’s Chinatown.
Chinatown also has a burgeoning art scene well worth exploring!
Join in on the fun !
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to be had here in Hawaii!
 Aloha !
Today I want to share some of Wayne Thiebaud’s painterly confections which are as buoyant and beguiling as any baked creation you could ever possibly imagine!
Wayne Thieboud was a founding member of the Pop Art movement of the 60’s, along with Andy Warhol, Roy Licktanstein, Robert Rouschenberg, Jasper Johns, and others. His paintings stand apart and quietly occupy their own space. I like to think of him as the Morandi of pop art.
      Wayne Thiebaud died on Christmas day this past week  at 101 .Â
Corn muffins with grilled corn, jalapenos, and cheddar
Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix is as American as apple pie. It is just one of those staples that everyone has turned to in a pinch at onetime or another. Myself included during my art school days when cooking was limited to quick serviceable meals that had nothing to do with cuisine. That was to came along later in my life.
That said, Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix is a staple created by Mabel White Holmes back in 1930. The Holmes family still owns the company and he original cheerful blue and yellow packaging has remained mostly unchanged ever since. Whenever I see a box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix on the shelf I just can’t resist picking one up! Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix has been a dependable partner for countless quick yummy corn muffin hacks I’ve whipped up over the years.
Summer is after all about grilled meals and corn muffins are always a perfect comfort food accompaniment! The recipe that follows is a tried and true favorite of mine that requires very little time to make and these muffins are always a huge hit.
Corn Muffins with grilled corn, jalapenos, and cheddar cheese.
Makes 8 muffins
Grease a muffin tin with melted butter
preheat oven to 450 f / 245 c
Ingredients:
- 1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin mixÂ
- 1large organic egg
- 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons cultured buttermilk
- a pinch of salt
- 1 cup grilled corn kernelsÂ
- 1or 2 grilled jalapenos, skin and seeds removed, and minced
- ¾ cup coarsely grated cheddar cheese, divided
Place the corn muffin mix in a mixing bowl and make a well in the center. Add the egg and whisk briefly. Then whisk in the buttermilk and salt. Fold the ingredients together just until they come together using a wooden spoon or silicone spatula.
Add the corn and jalapenos and fold them into the batter without over mixing. A few lumps are fine.
Then fold in ½ cup of the cheddar cheese and set the batter aside to rest for 15 minutes.
Fill each muffin cup ¾ full and top off with the remaining cheddar.
Bake for 15 or 20 minutes until the muffins are lightly golden brown.
Serve warm, with pats of butter (optional)
