We had the pleasure of introducing our East-meets-West cuisine to a new community, and to use the incredible produce, meat and dairy (especially the dairy!) from local farms in Wisconsin. Huge thanks to the UFC, Glass House & Bradbury’s for making this happen, and for contributing far more to this menu than it may seem. Here’s what we cooked:

Menu

Lamb, Mint & Cilantro Soup Dumplings

Kidney & Organ Confit Steamed Buns with Pickled Carrots & Hot Mustard Mayo

Smoked Chicken Wings with Korean “Buffalo” Sauce & Fermented Tofu “Blue Cheese” Dressing

Snug Haven Frost-Sweetened Spinach Salad with Soy-Bacon Vinaigrette, Candied Kumquats, Lardo and Tea Leaf Eggs

Homestyle Udon Noodles with Duck Sausages, Pickled Shiitakes & Black Pepper Meat Sauce

Sassy Cow Sweet Cream Ice Cream with Apple & Candied Ginger Tempura

homemade udon, duck sausages and pickled shiitakes piled high

steamed buns with kidney & organ confit

Korean hot chili “Buffalo” wings

spinach salad with kumquats and tea leaf eggs

The dinner received a lovely write-up from a local reporter from the Daily Page, whom we did not even know was in attendance. So rather than sum up our thoughts on the courses, we’ll let her review do the talking, as it so thoroughly describes them as well as captures the friendly, social atmosphere that we’ve always enjoyed ourselves at dinners hosted by the Underground Food Collective. Cheer

Our collaborative dinner will be hosted by the Glass House Supper Club at Bradbury’s on February 28th. It will be a cozy, intimate six-course dinner and tickets are now available for it here. Once in Wisconsin, we’ll be sourcing our food from local farms that UFC and Glass House has established great relationships with, as well as the Saturday Farmers’ Market in Madison. We can’t tell you how excited we are to bring hapa flavors to a new region, and new, local foods, just like UFC has been doing each time they cook in Brooklyn. (Above photo: from Underground Food Collective’s winter dinner held at the Meat Hook, January 17th.)

Next stop in Madison, we’ll be serving a big group dinner for about 100 members of the Slow Food University of Wisconsin chapter. Slow Food UW has been holding Monday Family Dinner nights each week for a while (along with a host of really great sounding events – see their blog), with guest chefs often coming to create the menu and serve.

Speaking of which, those menus are still in the works and we’ll be posting more info here soon. In the meantime, you can also catch the Hapa Kitchen at the book launch party for co-founder Cathy Erway on February 18th. We’ll be making some of our favorite “hapa tapa”-style snacks, revamped for just the occasion — some ideas tweaked from recipes in Cathy’s book, The Art of Eating In, and others just off-the-wall nods to all flavors half-Chinese/half-New Jersey, like the author herself. At least, I think that’s what Akiko is up to on this… Get your tickets for that foodfest here!

Saturday, October 24th.

An Evening of True Izakaya in Two Parts:

Part 1: The Dinner (7:00-9:30pm)
Izakaya Inspired Six Course Asahi Tasting Menu
$75 ticket includes a seat at a private dinner prepared by Hapa Kitchen with Asahi beer pairings and free admission to The Party afterwards.
Seats are extremely limited and will sell out quickly.
Advance online purchase required:
http://lovingday.bigcartel.com/product/loving-day-benefit-dinner-ticket

Part 2: The Party (9:30-midnight)
Featuring Asahi, Japanese Tapas, and Music
$20 ticket includes Asahi open bar and tapas by Hapa Kitchen in a private loft space.
Tickets are limited and will sell out quickly.
Advance online purchase required:
http://lovingday.bigcartel.com/product/ticket-for-iza-hapa-loving-day-fundraiser-party-featuring-hapa-kitchen

Both events will take place in the same private location in Manhattan’s West Village. The exact location will be emailed to you after you purchase your ticket. You must be 21 or over, proper ID required. All ticket sales are final.

This event has been generously sponsored by:

Asahi Beer USA
Thank you to Asahi for their continued support, and for donating three delicious varieties of Asahi for this event.
http://www.asahibeerusa.com/

Hoosic River Poultry
Thank you to Hoosic River for donating top quality local meat and poultry for this event.
(518) 686-5564

Sang Lee Farms
Thank you to Sang Lee for donating wonderful organic and specialty produce for this event.
http://www.sangleefarms.com/

Hapa Kitchen
Thank you to Hapa Kitchen for bringing their unique culinary expertise to this event.
http://www.hapakitchen.com/

All proceeds from these events will benefit Loving Day. Our mission is to fight racial prejudice through education and to build muticultural community. Learn more at http://www.lovingday.org

Can’t make it to the event? You can still help make Loving Day a national movement by making a tax-deductible donation in any amount. You can use any major credit card. Thanks for your generous support!

Online Donation Form:
https://www.fracturedatlas.org/site/contribute/donate/loving%20day

Loving Day is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of Loving Day may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

Loving Day and Hapa Kitchen host a multicultural community fundraising dinner, whose timing coincides with the national outrage surrounding the denial of a marriage license for an interracial couple in Louisiana.

Ken Tanabe, founder of The Loving Day Project (http://www.lovingday.org) in conjunction with Hapa Kitchen (http://www.hapakitchen.com) is pleased to announce a fundraiser to support the Loving Day Project on October 24, 2009.

“While this event was planned far in advance of an interracial couple being denied a Louisiana marriage license,” says Loving Day founder Tanabe, “this incident only furthers our resolve, 42 years after Loving v. Virginia and the legalization of interracial marriage in the United States, to continue fighting prejudice through education and building multicultural community. We are so happy to be partnering with our friends at Hapa Kitchen to raise awareness and to celebrate our multiracial heritage.”

Hapa Kitchen co-founders Akiko Moorman and Cathy Erway add, “We are so honored and happy to collaborate on an event with Ken Tanabe and Loving Day. At Hapa Kitchen dinners, we celebrate the mixed heritages of our members from all the different Asian countries through the use of local, sustainable, and seasonal food; partnering with Loving Day is like the interracial marriage of all interracial marriages. We welcome everyone to our dinners; multiracials and monoracials alike!”

The October 24, 2009 dinner is an Izakaya-inspired, six-course dinner inspired by and paired with Japanese beer. Organic, sustainably-raised chicken, pork, duck and rabbit for the dishes is being provided by a local farmer who will be giving a talk during dinner; organic produce will be provided from a local multiracial-owned owned farm.

Tickets for the dinner and afterparty are available through the Loving Day online store at http://lovingday.bigcartel.com/

Those who wish to make a donation to the Loving Day project can do so online:

http://www.fracturedatlas.org/donate/loving%20day

Loving Day is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of Loving Day may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

About the Loving Day Project

The annual Loving Day celebrations commemorate Loving v. Virginia (1967), the Supreme Court case that legalized interracial relationships in America. The project uses digital media to provide educational resources and to encourage people nationwide to host their own celebrations on or around June 12th. Loving Day teaches people about the history of interracial couples in America. Loving Day Celebrations are an annual tradition that will one day make the Loving case a universally recognized civil rights landmark.

Loving Day Contact

Ken Tanabe
+1 (212) 361-9756

ken@lovingday.org

www.lovingday.org

About Hapa Kitchen

Hapa Kitchen does food events to promote Hapa heritage in conjunction with local, sustainable, seasonally food. Founded by Akiko Moorman and Cathy Erway during an inspirational trip to the inauguration of our first Multiracial President, these ladies have been striving to create a new cuisine that celebrates the Hapa experience, to bring together Hapas from East, West and South Asia, and to make some seriously delicious food.

Hapa Kitchen Contact

Akiko Moorman

+1 (201) 978-1477

akiko@hapakitchen.com

www.hapakitchen.com

Hapa Harvest
A collaboration of the Hapa Kitchen at Whisk & Ladle Supper Club
Friday, October 16, 2009
8pm

Canapes
Wonton Skin-Wrapped Mini Quiches with Napa Cabbage and Chevre
Oyster Havemeyers with Absinthe

“Boulliabasse” with Dashi, Baby Carrots, Tofu and “Seafood”

Lobster Gratin with Fingerling Potatoes, Gruyere
(vegetarian option available)

Hapa Nicoise with Baby Tatsoi, Peppercress, Arugula and Tea Leaf-Stewed Eggs

“Scallop” Sponge Cake with Carrot Syrup and Raw Chocolate “Caviar”

If some of these menu items sound mysterious, it’s true, there’s a lot more to them that we’re keeping a surprise. (You can imagine the difficulty we’re having putting this menu in words!)

Wines will be paired with each course by the dear funnyman, Jonny Cigar of the Noble Rot wine club. Specialty cocktails will be shaken up at the bar by Nick. Our vegetables will be sourced heavily from The Lone Acre farm, a sustainable, organic, one-acre farm operated by one man, Dan Machin, on the North Fork of Long Island. We will probably serve some “Hapa Jacks” (popcorn and peanuts with a sweet soy glaze) at the bar.

Dinner contributions are $60, which includes five courses, wines and unlimited cocktails. The Whisk & Ladle is located in Brooklyn, and exact location and address will be announced with your reservation confirmation email. We regret that seats are very limited for this dinner, so if you do not receive a notification we are unable to seat you at this event. Please note that the dinner begins at 8pm and dessert is served around 10:30pm. To reserve a seat, please write to rsvp@thewhiskandladle.

(What’s on the plate, above: roast pork with coconut adobo sauce, black sesame, purple basil and seaweed-studded rice, heirloom pepper and cherry tomato macaroni salad, apple, kohlrabi and carrot slaw, and some cabbage and red pepper kimchee. Not shown: grilled eggplant loco moco vegetarian option. All vegetables from Garden of Eve organic farm. Pasture-raised pork from Tamarack Hollow Farm. Sixpoint provided beer for dinner.)

photo: Josh Wand

photo: Jesse Chan-Norris

photo: Jesse Chan-Norris

photo: Jesse Chan-Norris

photo: Joe DiStefano

photo: Joe DiStefano

Now that we can cross “hosting whole pig roast” off of our list of life goals, we’ll be taking a short break before announcing the next seasonal dinner event. Aloha!

It’s almost here, the Hapa Kitchen Luau, with the fabulous Finger on the Pulse DJs. With Brooklyn’s own Sixpoint Craft Ales, local organic vegetables from Garden of Eve Farm, and pasture-raised pork from Tamarack Hollow Farm.

Menu

Roast Suckling Pig Adobo

Eggplant Loco Moco
vegetarian/vegan option (no egg)

sides:
Pepper Mac Salad
sungold and cherry tomatoes, sweet hungarian peppers, italian frying peppers

Kahuna Kohlrabi, Apple & Carrot Slaw
purple basil, sesame

Frankie & Annette’s Kimchee
(all courses subject to change)

$10 gets you your choice of one main course and all three sides, plus a pint of Sixpoint. Specialty cocktails (the Hapa Tai) for extra $ at the bar. Leis not guaranteed — come with your own!

Oh, where did the summer go? Hapa Kitchen has been busy making “hapa tapas” for a couple private rooftop and beachside parties. But we’re back in Brooklyn, and teaming up with our friends Finger on the Pulse and Mean Red Productions again for a Hawaiian-inspired menu and pig roast at The Yard!
We can think of nothing more hapa-licious than this; the term “hapa” after all originates from Hawaii, and though we’re not all Hawaiian, we’d certainly like to be beach bums sipping from coconuts on the colorful islands about now. Thank goodness there’s always the Gowanus!

Menu is still shaping up, but we’ll be bringing it back to the homeland with Hawaiian favorites like macaroni salad but with a local and seasonal twist. There will be succulent pastured swine from Tamarack Hollow Farm that we’ll roast in a traditional Chinese-Cuban (“La Caja China“) box, sides with organic vegetables provided by Long Island’s Garden of Eve Farm, and Brooklyn’s own Sixpoint Craft Ales will be pouring their latest brews. Specialty cocktails with umbrellas, you bet.

A more detailed menu will be coming up in the next week, but in the meantime here’s the info:

Isn’t it hot out? We’re excited to mesh the foods of two cultures who are very good at handling that: Indian (with other South Asian inspiration), and the Caribbean. Set in a yoga studio with a live music performance before and after dinner, here’s a glimpse at the dinner in the works (date TBA).

Local Fluke Ceviche
with Kaffir Lime Juice, Red Onion and Chilies in Crisp Wonton Cups

Fresh Zucchini and Bean Masala Salad

Indian “Cubano”
with Spicy Carrots and Cucumber Chutney

Jerk Chicken
with Kaffir Lime and Rainbow Swiss Chard

Roasted Jersey Peaches
with Ghee, Gur and Freshly Cracked Seeds of Paradise

Canapes: Sweet and Savory Chickpea Flour Pancakes

with vegetarian options available

Last Tuesday we hosted a late-June dinner for thirty in a quaint Brooklyn apartment. French and Chinese fusion was the theme of the meal, with duck from D’Artagnan, local organic veggies from Sang Lee Farms and wines from Wolffer Estate Winery. A recipe for one of the canapes is at Not Eating Out in New York, and a recap of the night at The Feedbag.

Our hapa community of cooks, eaters, helpers and friends is growing. We had an incredible crew to thank for making the event a wonderful time for all, especially our hostess who gave up her home for a day. Many thanks to Kate Lauber from Wolffer Estate and Jennifer Lee from Sang Lee who offered a talk about their family’s work before the dinner. Special guest appearance/dishwashing help by Ken Tanabe, founder of the mixed-race celebration Loving Day. Here’s photo stroll by Jesse Chan-Norris:

duck liver mousse on rice cracker canapes

Jennifer Lee of Sang Lee Farms (also a hapa!)

torching the red bean creme brulee desserts

five-spice duck confit puff pastry turnovers (served with Sang Lee Farms’ Fred’s Red Pepper Jelly)

Shanghai beauties postcards with menus written on backs

some of the real beauties
(more photos at our Flickr photostream)

Au revoir, and zai jian to Paris of the East for now, and we look forward to serving more dinners soon. A teaser of upcoming events in the works:

-A South-Asian dinner at a yoga studio with a class before dinner
-A Hawaiian luau outdoors
-Hapa Tapas (and cocktails) on a roof
-A Japanese-American dinner with karaoke afterwards

Please be sure to sign up for our mailing list to receive notices to RSVP for future events, as they are first-come, first-serve.