Let’s Talk Food: What’s happening around town

Volcano Arts Center M’Arti Gras

Volcano Arts Center’s annual gala event, Love of the Arts, theme for 2016 is Mardi Gras. The event will be full of excitement, entertainment and wonderful cuisine by Volcano caterer Conard Eyre.

Delectable New Orleans dishes include jambalaya, shrimp and grits, succulent beef basted with praline butter, Antoine’s classic Caesar’s salad and handmade truffles. Champagne and fine wines will be served with the food.

There will be silent and live auctions of fine jewelry, gift certificates from restaurants, hotels, adventure tours and much more. Beautiful artworks also are available from artists Meg Barnaby, Liz Miller, Gregg Smith and many others.

Mark your calendar for 5-9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13, at Hale Ho‘omana at Volcano Arts Center, Old Volcano Road. Tickets are $55 for Volcano Art Center members, $60 for nonmembers and $65 at the door. You can get your tickets at www.volcanoartcenter.org or by calling the VAC administration office at 967-8222.

Hawaii Community College’s Culinary Department

Hawaii Community College’s Culinary Department’s second-year students are opening up The Bamboo Hale. Last week, they featured the foods of Spain. Starting today through Friday (Jan. 29), the foods of France will be featured. You have a choice of the specials of that country or can choose from the European menu which is:

Choice of one:

• House-cured gravlax, fines herbes (crispy potato, crème fraiche and capers).

• Roasted Hamakua mushroom risotto (pickled tomato, pesto and shaved parmesan).

• Roasted beet and lemon-herb goat cheese salad (arugula, macadamia nuts, balsamic vinegar and olive oil).

Choice of one:

• “Baked potato” soup (sour cream, cheddar cheese, garnished with chive oil drizzle).

• Italian sausage soup (kale, white beans, zucchini and tomatoes).

Choice of one:

• Slow-cooked basil-infused seafood (island fish, shrimp, scallops and basil Butter), $17.50.

• Tomato-braised Cornish game hen splits (house-made pasta with thyme, shallots and lemon zest, fennel and parmesan), $15.

• Grilled Big Island tenderloin of beef with red wine jus (roasted garden vegetables and mushroom saute, pommes purees, marrow butter), $20.95.

• Rosemary roasted leg of lamb (tabbouleh salad, feta spanakopita, minted tomato, caper relish), $16.95.

Desserts ($4): Belgian chocolate torte, citrus caramel sauces (house-made vanilla ice cream and tuile cookies), baklava-inspired dessert (Waimea lavender ice cream and citrus candy).

Beverages ($1): Coffee, hot tea, iced tea.

Hours are 11 a.m.-1 p.m. As it is a popular place to have a wonderful lunch, call 934-2591 for reservations. Bring cash or check, no credit cards accepted, and bring lots of tip money. Tips earned are used to help defray costs of the second-year students’ annual excursion to Oahu.

KTA Super Stores 100th year celebrations

This Saturday (Jan. 30), KTA Super Stores’ Downtown Hilo store will be celebrate Founders Day from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. with prime rib plates, hot dogs, shave ice and free cake. The Waiakea Ukulele Band, Filipino dancing, taiko drumming, karaoke and Cary and Friends will be entertaining throughout the day. There also will be food demonstrations and giveaways this Friday at the Downtown KTA Super Store.

The Waimea KTA Super Store will be celebrating throughout the month of February, the Keauhou store in March, the Waikoloa store in April, the Kailua-Kona store in May and the Puainako store in June.

KTA Super Stores is a very special store to many who remember the kindness of the Taniguchi family, especially when there was a strike. Families could charge and pay when the strike was finished, so KTA made sure everyone was fed even through hard times. My parents never forgot the kindness of the Taniguchi family, which started with Koichi and Taniyo Taniguchi and is carried on through the generations that followed. Our parents always taught us to never forget that kindness and always patronize KTA Super Stores.

Here’s a recipe from KTA’s sponsored cookbook, “Aunty Audrey’s Big Island Eats,” in the KTA Ohana chapter from Buyer Merle Unoki (who is my cousin).

It would be great for a dip for Super Bowl Sunday.

Asian Spiced Eggplant Spread

Serves: 10

Serve with crackers, crudites or slices of crusty French bread

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

2 medium eggplants (round, not Oriental)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 garlic clove, peeled, smashed with the flat side of your chef’s knife

1 (one-inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced

1 stalk green onion, washed, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1/2 to 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup cilantro leaves, trimmed and washed

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

While the oven is heating, toast the sesame seeds in a small dry frying pan over low heat, stirring constantly, until they are golden and fragrant; this will take about five minutes. Set aside.

Scrub the eggplants and cut off the stems, but don’t peel them. Slice them into quarter-inch thick pieces.

Lightly oil two baking sheets and arrange the eggplant slices on the sheets in a single layer.

Lightly brush both sides of each slice with a little olive oil. Slide the sheets into the preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the eggplant are fork-tender. Don’t turn the slices.

While the eggplant is baking, peel and smash the garlic, peel and slice the ginger, clean and chop the green onion and trim and wash the cilantro leaves.

Remove the fully cooked eggplant, let it cool, chop it coarsely.

When all the ingredients are ready, turn on your food processor and feed the garlic, ginger and green onion into the chute. When they are minced, add the roasted eggplant, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, crushed pepper, salt and pepper.

Add the cilantro leaves. Puree until smooth.

Email me at audreywilson 808 @gmail.com.