I originally began this post as my Wacky Wednesday Post... but made some changes. lol  So - yesterday (Wednesday) I posted a photo of my green drink of the day.  Now - if you have been following me a while, you will know that while I normally eat reasonable well and healthy - I'm still trying to lose some weight.   Honestly, my biggest problem is that I am so busy - I often times don't find time to eat... it has never been eating unhealthy or over eating.  So I have decided to incorporate 1-2 of these drinks in my daily routine.  I'm still getting used to them, though it is not the taste that is the problem, they taste great... it's about finding the time to actually get it done.

For yesterday's drink I used: Spinach, Banana, Body by Vi Protein Shake, Water and Coconut Oil
Click on the video embedded below to see how and what I did (I briefly show you) and make your own.  You can also click here to watch the video.  

March's Favorites and Current Obsessions include a wide variety of goodies.  I'm not going to really get into detail in this post since my video is a little lengthy... but I talk a lot about each product and why I love them so. :) Check it out and click on the video link here if you can't see the embedded version.

Sparkles & Glitter to all my lovelies!
xoxo
Honey

INGREDIENTS

• Vegetable oil cooking spray
• 8 cups baby spinach
• 1 cup couscous
• 1 lb medium shrimp, shelled and deveined
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1 large mango, peeled and diced
• 1 medium avocado, diced
• 1 medium tomato, diced
• 1/4 cup chopped red onion
• 1/2 jalapeño chile, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

PREPARATION

1. Heat grill. Fold four 18-inch-long pieces of foil in half; unfold and coat inside with cooking spray. Place 2 cups spinach in center of 1 half of each piece of foil. Combine couscous with 1/4 cup water; divide evenly among packets, placing on top of spinach. Combine shrimp, 1/4 cup cilantro, oil and 1/2 tsp salt in a bowl. Divide shrimp evenly among packets, placing next to couscous. Fold foil to close and crimp edges to seal; place on grill; close lid; cook until packets are fully puffed, 10 minutes. Combine remaining 1/4 cup cilantro with remaining 1/4 tsp salt, mango, avocado, tomato, onion, jalapeño and lime juice in a bowl. Carefully cut foil to open; stir contents; garnish with salsa before serving.
   

THE SKINNY - 397 calories per serving, 10 g fat (1 g saturated), 52 g carbs, 8 g fiber, 25 g protein

Last night for dinner (pictured on the left above), I combined my homemade Alfredo Sauce (minus the cream cheese), which you can find here along with my homemade Pesto (pictured above on the Right).  I was asked several times for the recipe, but realized I did not have it - so instead of doing a recipe on my Alfredo/Pesto, I figured I would share the Alfredo recipe and then add my Pesto recipe and you can combine them together.  

So - here is my Pesto recipe, Enjoy!

Ingredients / Supplies needed:

• About 3 Tablespoons of chopped/minced garlic (about 9 cloves if using fresh)
  
• 6 cups Fresh basil leaves - make sure you are packing them into the cups
  
• Kosher Salt or Garlic Salt & Pepper - I like to add these to taste, but on average you are using approximately 1 Teaspoon.  
  
• Great Quality Olive Oil - I will use approximately 1 3/4 cup
  
• 1 cup fo freshly grated Parmesan cheese - if you don't have fresh, use deli parmesan cheese, it will make all the difference, compared to the regular bag cheese you get in the store.
  
• About 1/4 - 1/2 cup pine nuts
• If you are looking for a little extra crunch... you can add in Walnuts.  About 1/4 of a cup.
  
• You can also opt in to add a tad bit of nutmeg - just a pinch for some added flavor.

Directions and what to do:

• Pull out your food processor or magic bullet.  I use my Ninja.
  
• Place the Nuts of your choice and garlic into the food processor bowl / unit.  If you want a little bit of extra nuttiness, you can opt to use both pine nuts and walnuts.  I omit the walnuts because I've been allergic to them most of my life - while I am no longer allergic, I'm a creature of habit.
  
•  Process for 30 seconds.
  
• Stop the processor and add in your basil leaves and seasoning (salt & pepper).
  
• Then turn on processor and while running slowly pour in your olive oil.  If you have a Ninja or bullet like I do.  I like to put in a little bit of the oil, process for a second and then consistently stopping and adding in the oil.  It can be a pain in the butt, but it works the same.  If I'm using my Food Processor, I will add through the tube a little at a time while processor is on.
  
• Continue until the pesto is a nice puree, everything will be well combined and fine.
  
• Add the parmesan and puree again, about a minute.
  
• You can serve cold or warm over pasta or use as a dip
  
• Store your pesto in the fridge or freezer - but make sure that you put a drizzle of olive oil on top so there is a thin layer on the top.  (It will not only help in preservation, but keep it nice and smooth (got that tip on Food network. lol)
  

If you use or share this recipe, please be sure to link back to my post and give credit. 


To make the homemade Alfredo / Pesto Sauce, simply make your Alfredo Sauce and then as it comes to the point just before serving, scoop in approximately 1/2 cup of the homemade Pesto.  Stir until combined and serve with your favorite pasta.  You can easily feed a family of 5 with the recipes provided. 

Ooh... a foodie post for my Work From Home Mommy Survival Guide, which I will shorten to call:  WFHM-Survival Guide.  I get asked all the time... how do you continue to cook a home cooked meal and still manage to work from home?  The fact is - honestly, I truly do not know how I do it... but I do know that by adding Kid Friendly meals that can be cooked in 30 minutes or less really does help.  And, of course - by Kid Friendly, that also means that from time to time, you can include your children in the prep work or cooking all together. 

My boys love to eat and they love to be involved in the food preparation process, especially my eldest.   Since he is now 9 years old, he is always eager to help out or even take charge in the kitchen from time to time.  Just the other day - he volunteered to make me a sandwich since I had been working so hard that day.  He made me a ham, turkey and roast beef sandwich with cheese on wheat toast.  Kids love to help out and by giving them some direction and a little bit of guidance in the kitchen, the options are endless. 

I love a great pasta... so to add some texture as well as color and flavor, I love to sneak in some things like Capers and Sundried tomatoes, mushrooms and even zucchini and other veggies.  The flavors come together well and the kids love the taste.  It also allows them to get accustomed to certain flavors so when you try to feed it to them on a regular basis... they will recognize the flavor as something they enjoy.  Even if cooking your meal (like pasta) from scratch, it literally can take the same amount of time as if you were doing so from the jar... and I love the fact that it gives my children a brighter and larger palette when it comes to food as well as the fact that you don't have as much or any preservatives when you are making your sauces from scratch.  You can easily get a pasta dish on the table in less than 30 minutes if you are prepared and of course, your little helper can help you stir the pot too.

I'll have more of these posts and videos as well coming up that will show you how I prep easy snacks and meals for my kids for days we are on the go or just hanging out at the park.  

It's been a really long time since I last did a Restaurant review.  I just really haven't had the chance to take the time and write my thoughts down in a while regarding the placed my hubby and I have been or those that we have taken the kiddos.   On March 16th - I posted on my Instagram about being out with my hubby and kids and enjoying a great dinner.  Let me start off by saying... any dinner with these guys make for a perfect night... because company is surely awesome - but the meal itself was pretty great as well.  

We had been over on the West side and decided since the day was coming to an end, that we would go and have dinner there as well.  We stopped off at Fleetwood's, but they were serving Happy Hour and there was nothing that our sons could have an enjoy there, so we ventured over to The Melting Pot, to find out they had closed down the restaurant a lot sooner than I had expected.  So... we decided we would head over to Mala (owned by Chef Mark Ellman).  They also were serving Happy Hour and the hostess said that he had a very large party coming in.  Because of this, he didn't want us to feel rushed.  We decided that we would try out Honu Seafood & Pizza Restaurant for the first time, the sister Restaurant of Mala.  Now, my hubby and I have eaten at Mala several times before... and we had hoped we would be dining at a similar flair.  

As we walked in - the decor was a bit different.  In my opinion, in comparison to Mala, it looked a little more contemporary with a beach feel but I liked that it seemed much brighter on the inside than what Mala did.  I liked the fact that when we walked in, we were greeted instantly and while it did not look like a "kid friendly" restaurant, my children were not treated as such.  The Hostess was sweet to the boys and even reached behind her hostess counter and grabbed out 3 little turtles (honu in Hawaiian) and handed them to the boys.  They were magnetic turtles and really not meant for children to play with because they were so fragile, but the fact that they did have that as well as crayons, coloring paper and a kids menu meant a lot to me.

We were sat right on the ocean front, which the boys absolutely loved and our waitress came over quickly to let us know what they were serving.  It was also Happy Hour here at Honu, so we ordered a pizza (the italian sausage - which is not pictured) and we waited while they started dinner so we could order off of the dinner menu.

Considering how the restaurant looked, they really were pretty kid friendly.  The waitress was sweet, constantly accommodating the boys and the wait staff and bust boys were there every second the boys dropped something from the table... napkin, fork, toys.  I really appreciated how polite they were and how the activeness of my sons did not get them frazzled, which can often happen in a restaurant that is much more upscale then say... A Dennys, IHOP or even Macaroni Grill.  Because of that itself, dining there was pretty enjoyable.  

Now - let's talk about food.  We ordered a number of different things, the Italian Sausage Brick Oven Pizza (which we ordered for the kids to snack on), the Margherita Brick Oven Pizza (which we ordered for the kids to have as well as whatever was left to take home), The Ahi Bruscheta (which my hubby and I always get at Mala, so that was a must have), The Opakapaka Dore Style (which was my dish) and the Kobe Burger (which my husband ordered for him).   

The pizzas were both delicious.  I especially loved the fresh arugula with a drizzle of olive oil on the Italian Sausage Pizza ($19.00).  It gave a bit of a bite from the arugula but an added freshness that made it pretty awesome.  The italian sausage had great flavor and did not over power the cheese, which happens often when eating that type of pizza.  We all enjoyed it.   The Margherita pizza ($16.00) was also a hit, although the boys were pretty full by the time we started on it.  We ended up taking home all but one slice - though it didn't make a difference because it was gone before the end of the night.  I rather enjoyed that one the best, the crust was pretty good and I love Margherita style pizzas in general.  It had San Marzano tomatoes, Fresh mozzarella and fresh basil.  When we got home to eat it however, the basil tasted a litte stringy... though I attest that to being a few hours old.

Our Ahi Bruscheta ($27.00) is always a winner when we order it, so I'm not going to get into much detail about it except that if you eat at Mala or Honu, order it... you will love it!  It includes Edamame puree (which is the only one I can say tastes just as good as mine), flax seed toast, Olowalu Tomatoes (island grown) and a 20 year old balsamic (which makes it awesome) - all topped with some greens and of course, fresh seared ahi tuna on top. Delish!

My dinner dish was just wonderful and I am working to perfect that cream sauce so I can recreate it:  I had the Fresh Fish (Opakapaka) served Dore Style ($41.00) with capers, lemon, butter, dill pollen, vegetables and turkish quinoa.  I love quinoa and it was absolutely wonderful... definitely a great dish choice if you are a fish lover like me.

My hubby had the Snake River Kobe Burger ($19.00).  It was serviced with Apple Bacon, carmelized onions and frites and he chose white cheddar as his cheese.  He did like it, but as a burger purest, he had wished he asked them to keep the onions off.  He did order his burger medium rare and it came a little more on the medium well side - but for the most part, it was okay and he ate it.

All in all - it was a pretty enjoyable dining experience.  The boys enjoyed themselves and we had a nice dinner out and enjoyed the time with one another.  We will definitely visit Honu again and hopefully this time we will be able to see a turtle or two in the ocean near our table... which is why they called the restaurant Honu.  That area is known to have turtles in the water consistently.  Having grown up right across the street - I have seen many of them from the old Naoki's and Local Motion when I was a kid.  Both of those places now no longer there and are the locations for Mala and Honu.  The kids would have loved to see that so I'm sure we will make it that way again and enjoy another meal there.

I know this blog post was long - but I wanted to share with you the experience I had at what I think is a pretty great spot to visit if you haven't already.  I enjoy doing my Restaurant reviews... and wanted to include Honu in that selection.  All in all, they definitely get 5 Stars in my book and I'll be back again!

Bon Appetite,
Honey

The first thing you will want to do when making Corned Beef is to ensure that you cook it long enough till it is tender.  If it is fresh corned beef and soaked in it's brine, you should already have it's seasoning that comes with it.  There are several ways to do this... You can 1.) cook it in a stew pot for hours until it's tender or 2.) you can use a crock pot and let it go for a few hours.  This meal is perfect for mothers who love crock pots because you can add all the veggies when you get home and pre cut everything.  

Once your corned beef is tender - you will want to have the following ingredients cut up and ready.  I like to cut them up stew bite size:  Potatoes, Carrots and Cabbage.  Add Potatoes and Carrots in the pot like you would a stew.  You can decide to add what ever flavoring you want at this point.  I will either add a table spoon of Dijon mustard (or hold off till the end when I'm plating), but I always season with Salt, garlic salt and pepper as well as a little Onion powder.  10 minutes before the dish is to be served, add in your cabbage.  I always hold off on cooking the cabbage with all of the ingredients till the end, because that way it will not upset your diners stomach.  Cabbage can tend to cause a lot of gas in some people, so this will really help in that.  You can also soak your cabbage in water for an hour to help as well.  You can decide to drain the liquid and leave it as something chunky if you want as well.  You will want to cook all of your veggies until they are fork tender and then serve.

I like to serve my corned beef in a bowl over hot white rice and then take a spoon of dijon mustard and plop that on the top of it all.  Whom ever is eating it can decide if they want to mix it in their entire meal (which is what I do) or use it as a little bit of dipping sauce.  Bon Appetite!

Supplies if cooking for 5 people:

• 1 - Corned Beef Brisket.  If you are planning to make this during St. Patrick's Day - you will find these on sale.  I will usually buy between 2.50 and 3.00 lbs of brisket to feed 5 people.
  
• 3-5 Small / MediumYukon Gold potatoes (this way you do not need to peel them)  
  
• 2 - Small / Medium Red potatoes (it adds to the flavor and gives your dish a little bit of a bite)
  
• 2 - Large carrots chopped or 1/2 of a bag of baby carrots (small bag) chopped
  
• 1/2 head - Cabbage (chop this up so that it is bite size
  
• Salt, Pepper and other flavors to taste
  
• Dijon Mustard, I love to use Grey Poupon
  
• White Rice (I normally cook about 3 cups of white rice for a party of 5-6 people)

I know this is not my usual type of recipes... but I figured I would share the best I could.  I hope you enjoy this and if you try it yourself... please be sure to let me know. :)  

Bon Appetite and Best Wishes from my kitchen to yours!

Songs / Artists...
Katchafire
Common Kings
Kotch

Movie...
Set it Off

Food...
Young Coconut, Dried (Phillipines Brand)
Brookside Dark Chocolate Acai Blueberry
Greek Yogurt Parfait, made by the Hubby :D

Jewelry...
Love Bangle Bracelet from Shoplately
Love Collar Bracelet from Shoplately

Hair Products...
Shea Moisture Coconut Hibiscus Smoothie
Shea Moisture Coconut Hibiscus Souffle
Coconut Oil

Body Products...
Coconut Oil
The Body Shop Strawberry Body Butter

Lip Products...
Milani's Color Statement Lipstick in: Violet Volt
Milani's Color Statement Lipstick in: Sangria
Milani's Color Statement Lipstick in: Raspberry Rush (honorable mention)

Makeup Palette...
Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette
Lorac Pro Palette (honorable mention)

Eye Brow Palette...
Wet n Wild Ultimate Brow Kit

Mascara...
Urban Decay Super Curl, Curling Mascara
Maybelline Plush Volume Express Mascara - Waterproof
Wet n Wild Mega Impact Mascara

Eyeliner...
Mally Sparkle liner in Black

I hope you enjoyed my favorites for this month.  I am so sorry that I am late... It was a crazy couple of weeks.
Have a wonderful March!
xo
Honey

I always get asked to share my recipes that I make for dinner and I normally post them frequently, but have been so busy this past month, I have kind of flaked in that department.  So, here I am playing catch up. :)  Tonight's dinner was something I had been craving for a while now.  I took inspiration from one of my favorite Hole in the Wall eateries called: Honokowai Okazuya.  They make a similar dish there... though, I must admit - I will not be eating there for a while... because mine tasted SOOOOOO.... much better! lol  When I cook, I normally eye ball or just guesstimate everything I put in it... so I am going to give you the basic ingredients needed and how to put it together... but the amounts will be something you may have to try out and test drive yourself.  I apologize, I should really start measuring my ingredients, but I always cook and create on a whim. 

Ingredients:

• Ono or any white fish like Halibut or Mahi Mahi (Ono - Wahoo, Mahi Mahi - Dorado, or even Red Snapper)
  
• Butter - about 2 blocks
  
• White Wine, I like to use Chardonnay
  
• Sundried tomatoes - I like to get the one that is dried in sun and already has italian herbs in the oil
  
• white cap mushrooms
• capers
• zucchini
• white rice or your choice of starch
• Garlic Salt, Salt and Pepper (to taste) 
• 1 whole lemon

How to:

1. Get your starch cooking - if you are making white rice, get it cooking.  If you are making pasta, you can start getting your water ready to boil.
2. Start by pouring your wine into a sauteed pan (make sure it is deep enough).  Cook on Medium heat until it reduces, usually till there is half the amount of liquid as when you started.
3. While the win is reducing - Season your fish then start pan frying your White Fish.  You can add some EVOO and use this as your lubricant to cook the fish.  Do not mess with it or it will flake and break apart - your fish will let you know when it is ready to be flipped.
4. Add cold butter to your wine a little at a time.  I normally cut in 1/4 of a cup sizes and slowly add in the butter... whisking/stirring it in so that it thickens.
5. Add your capers and sundried tomatoes and then season your sauce with garlic salt or salt and pepper (to taste).
6. In a separate pan (a small one is okay) start heating up a little butter or some EVOO (for your stir fry veggies).  Cut up your vegetables julian style or how ever you would like.  Add the cut veggies (mushrooms/zucchini) to the pan and stir fry for just a few minutes until tender.  Remove from stove.
7. As your sauce starts to thicken, cut your lemon in half and squeeze the juice into your sauce.  You can also decide to hold off on the lemon and squeeze it over your plated dish.
8. You can start plating by first adding your starch and then the stir fry veggies.  Add your fish and then pour the sauce over your fish and some onto your starch if you would like. 

Dinner is Served.  You can go ahead and pair this dish with an awesome glass of white wine or what ever dessert you would like.  This dish is super easy to make and something like this would be sold for over $20 in a restaurant here in Hawaii.  Now you can make it all yourself.  I love creating new recipes and this recipe is very similar to my pasta shrimp scampi one, so you can easily take this sauce as it is versatile and use it in combination with other seafood dishes.  It taste great with chicken too.

Happy Eating and Enjoy!

Disclaimer:  This recipe is one I have created and tried on my own many times.  You are welcome to omit the alcohol from the recipe if you would like.  Also - my little verbiage about having a glass of white wine with dinner of course is a suggestion for adults of legal drinking age.  Please drink responsibly.  If you do use this recipe or share on your site/blog, social media, please credit this recipe and image back to me.  Thank you! :) xo Honey

Spring is almost here... I can already feel the change in the weather and because of this - I'm already planning recipes for fun Spring time dinners and meals.  I found this awesome recipe on one of my favorite sites: Right at Home (click for link) And I could not wait to post it.  So many of my friends are experiencing heavy winter months with lots of snow, which I do not get here in Hawaii... so I wanted to share a recipe that would definitely make them look forward to the beautiful green trees, flowers and the sounds of song birds.  This recipe is fun, festive and definitely bright.  It is perfect for any time of year - but most definitely a great fresh meal for Spring and Summer Months.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do sharing it with you.  Scroll below and see what Right at Home has in store for you - you will definitely love the simplicity of this recipe and how fast and quick it is to put such a bright and beautiful display together.  And - if you're feeling the Winter Blues... try and prepare this now and see if you can add a little Spring Sunshine to your dining room table. :)  Recipe & Ingredients posted below.

A little note from Honey's Kitchen... Fresh ingredients can be hard to come by this time of year, especially for vegetables like tomatoes.  If you can't find Fresh ingredients, definitely substitute for canned or frozen.  By adding your favorite spices, you can surely make it taste fresh and delicious.  

• Prep time: 10 minutes
  
• Cook time: 5 minutes
• Serves: 4

Ingredients
Strawberry-Tomato Salsa

• ¾ cup strawberries, cut into small dice
• ½ tomato, cut into small dice
• 2 tablespoons finely diced red onion
• ¼ Serrano chile, minced, optional
• 1 tablespoon cilantro, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt

Fish Tacos

• 4 tilapia filets, approximately ¼ pound each
• 1 teaspoon of your favorite taco seasoning
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 8 6-8-inch flour or corn tortillas, heated according to the package directions
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 1 cup shredded lettuce or green cabbage
• 1 lime, cut into small wedges

Directions
1.) Prepare the salsa by mixing together the first seven ingredients in a medium bowl. Set aside.
2.) Dry the filets with a paper towel. Sprinkle with taco seasoning and set onto a plate. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Pour in olive oil. When the oil is hot, gently add the fish to the pan, cooking for approximately 5 minutes and turning once.
3.) Remove fish from the pan and break each filet into two pieces. Serve in a tortilla topped with strawberry salsa, avocado slices, and shredded lettuce or cabbage with a lime wedge alongside.

chef’s notes You could also make the salsa with mango or peaches. Simply substitute ¾ cup of either chopped fruit for the strawberries.

This recipe is from: http://www.rightathome.com/Food/Recipes/Pages/fast-fish-tacos.aspx?sid=email&cid=rah201303&rid=129127805