Newcomb's Ranch

After an afternoon of snowshoeing on Mt. Waterman, why not stop at Newcomb's Ranch for a hearty meal? First of all, after snowshoeing you'll definitely want a hearty meal. Second, Newcomb's Ranch is the closest restaurant by a long shot. Third, it's delicious. Our group had fish and chips, broccoli-cheese soup, chicken tortilla soup, chili, and a steak sandwich. Everyone walked away happy, and the prices (while not cheap) were reasonable for the portion size and quality.

Nesting

I've been doing a lot of cooking over the past week, in spite of (because of?) being sick. I made homemade chicken soup, although I used boxed vegetable stock, and I made slow-cooker BBQ pork, although it also relied on a store-bought ingredient--the BBQ sauce. (Big fan of KC Masterpiece, BTW)

Last night was our usual grilled salmon--marinated briefly in Worcestershire sauce and topped with Old Bay or the generic equivalent--cheesy mashed potato casserole, and broccoli.

Tonight will be a bit of a cop-out, because although I want to cook, I'm still getting over this sinus infection and couldn't think of anything I specifically wanted to make after getting home from work. Therefore we will be having spaghetti, with our usual array of jarred sauces.

I'd like to use the slow-cooker more during the week, but mine runs hot, which would result in burned dinner by the time we got home. People have suggested leaving it on a timer, but I keep hearing horror stories about houses burning down because of slow-cookers. And why would it be good to leave the food sitting out for several hours before the timer kicks on? I guess it would be less bad this time of year than in the summer, but it doesn't seem like a great plan.

Oh well. At least there's spaghetti and jarred sauce.

Sick Day

You know what's good for lunch on a sick day? Buy a can of Campbell's Healthy Request Tomato Soup. Make it with milk instead of water, and add dashes of the following: cayenne pepper, black pepper, dried basil. Cook. Mmm-mmm-good.

Happy New Year!

New Year's Eve was very low-key at our house, with one friend joining us for what turned out to be an evening of conversation and South Park. The menu:

chili (ground beef, no beans)
cornbread casserole (good, but needed to bake longer in the center)
make-your-own brownie sundae based on Ghiradelli brownie mix, Dreyer's ice cream, and homemade hot fudge sauce

Now there's chicken soup cooking slowly in the slow cooker, so we'll be eating left over comfort food for the rest of the week.

Golden Oreos

I like them.

The Scent of Red Mango

Today I stopped by Red Mango in Westwood. This is far superior to Mr. Snowberry; the big clue is that I'll actually go back to Red Mango.

It's not exactly like Pinkberry. The yogurt seems creamier, and it's not quite as tart. However, it's still distinct from ice cream. And the pineapple was fantastic.

Their website tells me that one of the stores is coming to a strip mall near me. That's good news.

More Eats on Kauai

I need to catch up on our Kauai eats.

First, more on garlic shrimp. Savage Shrimp, on the corner of Lawai Road and Hoonani Road in Poipu, is housed in a lunch truck. It may move in the next two years, depending on what happens with the shopping center that is supposed to be built across the road--but for now, the truck can be found mid-day, with Susan dishing up freshly cooked shrimp in a handful of preparations. We had the Garlic Scampi and the Bahia Scampi, both of which were delicious. It's worth noting that the prices are a tiny bit higher than indicated in the Roadfood.com review, but only by a dollar or two. Portions are generous and flavorful.

Next, Hamura Saimin. This is a small place on shabby Kress Street in Lihue, but it's good for a cheap bite. The menu is small, but the Special Saimin is quite good. Try the lilikoi pie--light and fluffy. At one end of the restaurant is Halo Halo Shave Ice. Their hours are limited, but the shave ice is vastly superior to the mainland Sno-Cone and its kin. We had it plain, without ice cream at the bottom, and found it very refreshing--just the thing for a hot day. The serving was big enough for both of us, so keep that in mind when ordering.

The Camp House Grill in Kalaheo offers enormous, messy breakfasts with spicy-but-not-too-hot gravy in the morning and big, tasty burgers in the afternoon and evening. Be sure to have pie. They excel at pie.

If you're in Hanalei (and why wouldn't you be? It's delightful), try Polynesia Cafe. Their plate lunches and fish sandwiches are quite good, and they'll provide you with fuel for hiking (at least part of) the 11-mile Kalalau Trail, which begins at Ke'e Beach and provides cliffside views of the Na Pali coast. Even if you only make it to the first overlook, you'll have worked off your lunch and seen truly spectacular scenery.

That's it for Kauai, unless I remember something else that I just have to share. Eat hearty.