Tropical Quinoa Salad Recipe

Tropical Quinoa Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup quinoa

  • 2 cups water

  • 1 cup diced pineapple

  • 1 cup diced papaya

  • 1 cup diced mango

  • 1/2 cup diced cucumber

  • 1/2 cup diced bell pepper

  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

  • 1/4 cup fresh lime juice

  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil

  • Salt to taste

Instructions:

  1. Cook the Quinoa:

    • Rinse the quinoa under cold water to remove any bitterness.

    • In a medium pot, bring 2 cups of water to a boil.

    • Add the quinoa, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the water is absorbed.

    • Fluff the quinoa with a fork and let it cool.

  2. Prepare the Dressing:

    • In a small bowl, whisk together the fresh lime juice, coconut oil, and a pinch of salt or pick up one of our Sattvic Kitchen Dressings.

  3. Assemble the Salad:

    • In a large bowl, combine the cooked quinoa, diced pineapple, papaya, mango, cucumber, and bell pepper.

    • Add the chopped cilantro and mint.

    • Pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently to combine.

    • Adjust salt to taste.

  4. Serve:

    • Chill the salad in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld.

    • Garnish with extra cilantro and mint if desired.

Enjoy your fresh and vibrant Tropical Quinoa Salad, perfect for a light and nourishing meal!

Additional Tips:

  • Feel free to add or substitute other tropical fruits available at the Napili Farmers Market.

Ten reasons to eat locally grown food - if you need any at all:)

We, at the Napili Farmers Market, truly believe in the importance of buying and eating locally grown produce, especially in Hawaii, as currently, 85% of our food comes from out of state, despite the fact that Maui has the land and the resources to become self-reliant in our food supply. Please, find ten reasons below to buy local food.

Locally grown food:

  • tastes better and it is full of flavor because locally grown crops are picked at their peak of ripeness
  • is better for your health since it's full of nutrients and hasn't travelled thousands of miles
  • preserves genetic diversity
  • is safe because there is no hundred steps between you and the source
  • supports local families and local economy
  • builds community
  • keeps your taxes in check
  • supports a clean environment and benefits wildlife
  • reduces global warming by eliminating the need for transportation from a long distance
  • is about the future

Lilikoi... maracuya... grenadille... what?! PASSIONFRUIT! :)

Lilikoi (a.k.a. passionfruit or Passiflora edulis in Latin, or maracuja in Spanish) is one of the most beloved fruits in Hawaii but a lot of people are reluctant to try it because it looks like nothing that they have seen before. So here comes 10 facts about lilikoi, so next time when you're on West Maui, you won't think twice to visit the Napili Farmers Market and pick up some of these mini flavor bombs! 

1. While lilikoi's exact origin is unknown, there are several theories about where it came from. It might have been native native to southern Brazil through Paraguay to northern Argentina but according to others, it might have come originate from Australia.

2. The passionfruit is a pepo, a type of berry that has a hard outer rind without membranes within the fruit.

3. Lilikoi is a vigorous vine species of passion flower which often grows over 20 ft in a single year.

4. Several distinct varieties of passionfruit with different exterior appearances exist. The most common varieties are yellow (golden passionfruit) and purple (purple passionfruit). The yellow passionfruit is generally bigger, up to the size of a grapefruit, the purple passionfruit is smaller than a lemon and has a richer aroma and flavor.

5. Other names for passionfruit: maracuya (Spanish), grenadille (French), maracujá (Portuguese) and, of course, lilikoi (Hawaiian).

6. The flower of the passion fruit is the national flower of Paraguay.

7. Passionfruit is widely grown in several countries of South America, Central America, the Caribbean, Africa, Southern Asia, Vietnam, Israel, Australia, South Korea, Hawaii and mainland United States in Florida and California.

8. Raw passionfruit is 73% water and has significant amount of vitamin C: 100 grams fresh passionfruit contain 36% of the Daily Value of it.

9. Besides being eaten raw, lilikoi is used in desserts, drinks, sauces and glazes, ceviche, liqueurs, ice cream, yoghurt, mochi, shave ice, cookies, made into butter or jelly.

10. Last but not least, how to pick a good lilikoi? We know that it's weird but the browner and more wrinkled they are, the better they taste. Trust us! :)

Everything that you haven't known about macadamia nuts

Photo Credit: marekuliasz/iStock/Getty Images

You have probably tried macadamia nuts in your life, maybe raw or roasted, perhaps chocolate covered ones or in cookies but do you know where they are come from and why you should eat them on a regular basis? If not, you might find these facts interesting. 

Macadamia nuts, one of the healthiest nuts, originated in Australia. They are named for John Macadam, a Scottish born physician and chemist who promoted the nuts' cultivation in Australia.

Macadamia trees were imported to Hawaii in 1881 as a windbreak for sugarcane, which was a major commercial export for Hawaii at the time. The first commercial orchards of macadamias in Hawaii were not planted until 1921. 

Most of the world’s macadamia nuts are now grown on the island of Hawaii, approximately 90% of the world’s supply. The USA is the largest consumer of macadamia nuts in the world (51%) with Japan following at 15%.

From the Proteacea family of plants, evergreen macadamia trees can reach 40 feet in horizontal as well as vertical spread. Only 2 of the 9 species of macadamia trees produce nuts that are edible. Macadamia nuts are not picked from the tree but are fully ripened when they fall and are then harvested. They are a tough nut to crack: it takes 300 lbs per square inch to break the macadamia nut shell, hardest of all nut shells. 

Macadamia nuts are higher in good, monounsaturated fat and lower in protein than a lot of other nuts we eat, like almonds and cashews and have been demonstrated to help reduce overall cholesterol levels. Other healthy nutrients in macadamia nuts include the amino acid l-arginine, vitamin B1, and magnesium, and they’re an excellent source of manganese and thiamin. 

At the Napili Farmers Market we carry raw macadamia nuts and macadamia nut butter as well which contains only raw macadamia nuts and is heavenly delicious! You can put it on toast with sliced bananas, make desserts with it, put a little bit of it in your morning smoothie or just have a spoonful if you have a sweet tooth:)

 

 

Experimental cacao nibs fermentation in the works

maui cacao

Almost everybody likes chocolate and cocoa powder but do you know where they are from or how they look like before processing? Or what does processing mean?

Theobroma cacao, also called cacao tree and cocoa tree, is a small (13–26 ft tall) evergreen tree, originally native to the deep tropical regions of Central and South America. Cacao also grows in Hawaii so sometimes it is available at Napili Farmers Market. Its seeds, cocoa beans, are used to make cocoa mass, cocoa powder, and chocolate. Processing basically means fermentation, drying and grinding, then further procedures, depending on the desired product.

As an experiment, we are about to ferment some cacao nibs then hopefully dry them out, then go from there! This is what we've done so far:

We opened the pods, took the beans out, made a heap of beans on a banana leaf then we covered them with another banana leaf and left them in a flat and dry spot where they will ferment for a couple of days. More photos and progress to come! :)

These are the final photos of our cacao... We fermented the cacao nibs for 3 days - at first, the nibs became a little bit darker and smelly, then the smell started slightly resembling to chocolate and the pulp slowly disappeared, then the nibs started to dry out (1st pic). We kept the nibs on the roof (literally) for a week, protected from rain but in the sun, and they turned darker and drier (2nd pic). As the final step, we ground the nibs in a coffee grinder - you can see the cacao powder in the last photo. It is not as fine as a store-bought cacao powder would be but it's all natural, locally grown and homemade and that's hard to beat!

So next time if you see cacao pods at the Napili Farmers Market, don't be afraid to purchase some! It might take 2-3 weeks until you have your own cacao powder but it's definitely worth it. 

How to use a breadfruit?

We just love breadfruit! It is a fruit that "acts" like a vegetable and so versatile! You can roast it in the oven, fry it, boil it, mash it, make pudding with it, or you can make an awesome breadfruit curry with it, like this one below (right photo).

Breadfruit is very rich in starch which transforms to sugars when very ripe so if your breadfruit is already brown or yellow and soft or squishy (that means the fruit is ripe), you better make a dessert with it instead of a savory dish. If your breadfruit is firm and green, then it's still rich in starch and resembles to the taste of freshly baked bread or potato. Breadfruit or in Hawaiian 'Ulu, is seasonal: you can find it from November to June. Look for it at Napili Farmers Market on the beautiful West Side of Maui!

curry.jpg

Breadfruit - yellow pea curry
ingredients:

one medium breadfruit - cut into small pieces
8 oz yellow peas
one medium onion - sliced
2-3 cloves of garlic - sliced
2 green chillies - chopped (according to your taste, you can reduce or raise this amount)
few curry leaves - if you don't have any, don't worry
3/4 tsp turmeric powder, or fresh turmeric if you have
2 tsp ground coriander
3-4 couple tsp curry powder - according to your taste
1 tsp pepper
a piece of fresh ginger - grated
two cans of coconut milk
oil
salt

Start with the peas: boil them in 8 oz water with a pinch of salt and curry powder in a small pot. You may have to add more water, check it in every 5 minutes and add water if needed.

Place the curry leaves, turmeric and curry powder in a pot and dry roast them until they get fragrant. Put a little water in the spices, mix it well and put the onion and garlic in it. Saute the mixture for a couple minutes, then put the breadfruit pieces in it. Saute it again for a couple minutes. Add the chilies, the grated ginger, the pepper, salt to taste and the coconut milk to it, stir it well and leave it boil. If the breadfruit is ready (taste it, if it's soft, it's ready), add the peas, bring it to a boil once then you are ready. Serve it with rice or naan.

How to cut a breadfruit? Click here if you would like to know!

Super-easy, delicious on-the-go breakfast: banana-oatmeal muffin

This recipe is really simple and totally foolproof. Even if you are not big in baking, you should try it because it is not only delicious but healthy, vegan, sugar and gluten-free as well! Makes a perfect on-the go breakfast. And you can buy half of the ingredients at the Napili Farmers Market! :)

Ingredients:  
1/2 cup almond or macadamia nut butter  
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (4-5 bananas) + 1 extra banana, sliced  
3 cups old-fashioned oats  
1 1/2 cups plain unsweetened almond milk (or coconut, soy, your choice)  
1/4 cup maple syrup or honey  
1 tsp vanilla extract  
1/2 tsp kosher salt  
1 cup chopped macadamia nuts 

How to make it:  
Preheat oven to 375 and position a rack in the center. Thoroughly grease a muffin tin with coconut oil.  
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir until combined. Spoon into muffin cups. Top with a few chopped mac nuts and a slice of banana.  
Place tin in the oven and bake until oatmeal cups are firm to the touch, about 20-25 minutes (it might take a little bit longer, depending on your oven)  
Wait a couple of minutes for oatmeal cups to cool before running a knife around the edges and removing them from the tin. Enjoy!

Creamy kabocha squash, ginger and fennel soup for chilly nights

Believe it or not, evenings and nights can get chilly in Hawaii too, at least on the West Side of Maui in the 'wintertime'. When the wind and rain come and it feels good to stay at home, under a blanket, a delicious, warm soup can warm you up:) Try this spicy, vegan fall soup recipe! You can buy squash, ginger, onion, fennel and Cayenne salt at the Napili Farmer Market!

Ingredients:

  • 1 kabocha squash, halved and seeds removed (butternut or acorn squash would work, too)
  • 1 large sweet Maui onion, sliced
  • a few cloves of garlic, chopped
  • 1 small fennel bulb, sliced
  • 1 big piece of fresh ginger (about an inch big), peeled and chopped
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2-3 tablespoons of coconut oil
  • 5 cups filtered water
  • salt and Cayenne pepper to taste
  • 1 can coconut milk
  • curry powder to taste (we used about 1-2 tablespoons)
  • turmeric powder to taste (we used about 1-2 teaspoons)

 

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 375° and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (in our experience parchment paper doesn't always work and you want to be able to 'peel' the foil off of the squash)
  • Rub some coconut oil over the cut side of squash and place cut side down on baking sheet and place in oven.  Cook the squash until it's tender - about an hour but it depends on the size of it. Let the squash cool off then scoop squash out into a bowl and set aside.
  • Heat coconut oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add sliced onions, sauté until they are soft, add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.  Add the fennel and ginger, and cook for about 5 minutes - until you can smell good scents:) Add the kabocha, bay leaf, water, salt, pepper, turmeric and curry powder. Add the coconut milk, stir thoroughly and cook the soup for roughly 30 minutes.
  • When soup is ready, puree it in a blender or food processor until smooth.  
  • Transfer soup back to the pot, bring to a low simmer and taste for seasoning, adjust if necessary.
  • Serve with chopped fennel fronds, roasted pumpkin seeds and ground pepper. 
  • Enjoy!