PO‘IPU — Bam! Bam! Bam! A couple of swift whacks from a rubber mallet wielded by Morris Wise turned a bag of Hula Baby Biscotti into the foundation for a crumble crust. “This is exactly what I was looking for,”
PO‘IPU — Bam! Bam! Bam! A couple of swift whacks from a rubber mallet wielded by Morris Wise turned a bag of Hula Baby Biscotti into the foundation for a crumble crust.
“This is exactly what I was looking for,” said Melissa McFerrin, the Kaua‘i County Farm Bureau executive administrator. “I needed something more than just eating biscotti out of a bag.”
Morris Wise of Hula Baby Biscotti, a Kaua‘i Made product, teamed up with Chris Spinosa, a chef at Gaylord’s restaurant, to present a pair of easy to make (and eat) desserts during the live chef’s demonstrations Wednesday at the Kaua‘i Culinary Market at The Shops at Kukui‘ula.
“Everything we use in the recipe can be found at the community markets,” Wise said. “The lilikoi came from one of the vendors at the weekly market.”
Wise, partnering with Ko baking, a new bakery concept where traditional American style products have a Kaua‘i spin, offered two dessert items — Easy Lilikoi and Lemon Curd Dessert and Ko’s Pear and Pineapple Fruit Tart with Hula Baby’s Biscotti Crumble Crust.
Spinosa explained Ko baking is similar to how grandma, or tutu, used to take a recipe and incorporate what was out in the back yard, or what some neighbor dropped off to share.
Wise said Hula Baby Biscotti is available at both The Kaua‘i Culinary Market, which runs from 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesdays in Po‘ipu, and also at the Kaua‘i Community Market at the Kaua‘i Community College on Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Both weekly markets are presented in partnership with the Kaua‘i County Farm Bureau.
Additionally, Hula Baby products are also available at Living Foods in The Shops at Kukui‘ula, Hilo Hattie’s, The Wine Shop in Koloa, Kojima Store in Kapa‘a, Banana Joe’s in Kilauea, ABC Stores in Kapa‘a, Robin Savage Gifts in the Ching Young Village in Hanalei, and at Aloha Spice in Hanapepe.
“These are just a few of the places where it’s available,” Wise said. “It should be enough to get people started on enjoying what can be done with Hula Baby Biscotti.”
He said Hula Baby only recently formed a partnership with Ko Baking and products from that partnership should be appearing on their tables shortly.
Wise added that a benefit from getting Hula Baby Biscotti and Granola from their market tables is the availability of samples to help with shoppers’ decision-making.
Using ramekins, or little dishes which are readily available at the discount stores, Wise and Spinosa quickly assembled the key ingredients, including lilikoi, fresh lemons, pineapple and pears from a supermarket. It also pairs well with pineapple.
Visit Hula Baby Biscotti on its Facebook page or at the Kaua‘i Made website for more information.
Visit www.kauaicountyfarmbureau.org for more information on the farmers markets coordinated by the Kaua‘i Farm Bureau.
Ko’s Pear and Pineapple Fruit Tart with Hula Baby’s Biscotti Crumble Crust
Filling
1 fresh pineapple
3 ripe pears
1/4 cup sugar
3 Tbs corn starch
1/4 cup pineapple, pear, or other fruit juice
Remove the top and the bottom portions of the pineapple. Remove the side skin. Cut vertically down the length of the pineapple, slightly rotating the pineapple after each cut. Continue to work your way around and around the pineapple until all of the skin and eyes have been removed. Quarter and core the pineapple. Peel the pears, slice in half and remove the seed pod.
(Spinosa suggests adding the core of the pineapple to either a bottle of vodka, or rum)
Slice the fruit so slices are all relatively the same size and measure out 6 to 8 cups and add to a bowl. Toss the sliced fruit, sugar, corn starch and juice until all of the slices are well coated.
Place the fruit in a 9×9-inch baking dish, or into individual ramekins.
Crumble
1 package, or 4 ounce, of Hula Baby White Ginger Biscotti
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 rolled oats
3 Tbs butter, softened (room temperature)
Break up biscotti in bag with meat pounder or rolling pin until the biscotti are broken apart, but not completely crumbled (about 6, or 7 hits). Blend in softened butter and sugar.
Spread crumble evenly over the prepared dish, or ramekins, and lightly press to keep the topping from falling off during baking.
Baking
If using ramekins, place them on a sheet pan.
Put the tarts in the oven, preheated to 350 degrees, and bake 25 to 35 minutes for ramekins, or 40 to 45 minutes for the 9×9-inch baking dish. Bake until the crumble starts to brown and the fruit filling is beginning to bubble well.
Remove from the oven and let cool 10 minutes before serving.
The tarts can be made ahead, left at room temperature, then warmed for 10 minutes in a 250-degree oven prior to serving.
Easy Lilikoi & Lemon Curd Dessert
Crust
1 package, or 4 ounces, of Cococanana biscotti from Hula Baby Biscotti, or a personal favorite flavor.
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbs butter, softened
Break up biscotti in bag (Wise assured the bag won’t break) with meat pounder, rolling pin or heel of a shoe until completely broken down. A food processor can be used for an even finer crust.
Place crumbs in a small bowl and blend in softened butter and sugar with a fork.
Divide and press into four 6 to 8 ounce ramekins to form a thin crust.
Bake for 10 minutes in a 350-degree oven.
Chill until set, or about 20 minutes.
For an easy crust, there is no need to bake. Simply chill after pressing into ramekins.
Curd
1/2 cup lemon juice from 1 to 2 lemons. Reserve lemon zest for garnish.
1/4 cup lilikoi juice from 1, or 2 ripe lilikoi, or passion fruit.
3/4 cup sugar
3 large eggs
6 Tbs unsalted butter
Whisk eggs and sugar together well in a small bowl until there is no separate white and eggs are completely denatured.
Whisk in lemon and lilikoi juice.
Pour liquid into a small 2-quart saucepan, add butter and cook over medium heat, stirring continuously with whisk.
Cook until liquid is thick enough to hold marks from the whisk or coat the back of a spoon, and bubbles are just appearing on the surface. Do not boil.
Pour into prepared bowls, cover surface with plastic and chill until set.
Garnish
1 cup whipping cream
2 Tbs Koloa Rum
1 Tbs Sugar
1 to 2 Tbs lemon zest
1 package, or 4 ounces, of Hula Baby Hawaiian Ginger granola, or favorite flavor.
Whisk together until thick enough to hold shape.
Spoon whipped cream on top of curd.
Garnish with lemon zest and sprinkle with Hula Baby Hawaiian Ginger Granola.
