Beachy Hawaiian Thanksgiving Pu-Pu’s

Beachy Hawaiian Thanksgiving Puu-Puu’s

Great Appetizers for the Night Before

Our menu written on a Hawaiian shirt notepad.

For this particular year I wanted something a bit beachy to have out at the condo that was also a bit Thanksgivingy. I know that’s not a word but you get the idea. So this is what Gordon and I came up with, sort of a beachy Hawaiian Thanksgiving theme.

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You can also check out our

Beachy Thanksgiving

Beachy Thanksgiving

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I would like to dedicate this page to our 1987 selves in Honolulu, Hawaii, living in condemned military housing. It was Veronica’s first Thanksgiving in our little brown house on Valkenburg Street. Valkenburg was the Captain of the U.S.S. Arizona.

Julie, Gordon, and Baby Veronica

We were so poor that we qualified for a free Thanksgiving care package. It included a whole Turkey, and some canned goods. Not from the military. Thanks to the charity and generosity of the Hawaiian State, we had a great Thanksgiving. And our little Veronica had a great first Thanksgiving. What you see on our table is our wedding china and crystal, filled with Iced Tea. The only decorations we had were some paper pumpkins and our candles in our wedding brass candlesticks.

Mahalo Hawaii,

Julie and Gordon

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Macadamia Nut Chocolate Coffee Martinis

You can’t have pu-pu’s without something to drink with them.

Macadamia Nut Liquor

This is something that Gordon created for me. I knew that I wanted to use our Macadamia Nut liquor, but I didn’t know what else may go with it. So Gordon put chocolate flavored macadamia nut Hawaiian coffee with the macadamia nut liquor and created this very nice drink.

Another version would be to add some chocolate macadamia nut coffee and half and half to the chocolate and macadamia nut liquor.

Now to go with our sweet martinis are some savory puu-puu’s.

Maui Onion, Bacon and Feta Cheese Tarts
Maui Onion and Spinach Tarts
Sweet Potato and Taro Chips

Doesn’t it all look delicious?

Silk flower leis and a hand carved wooden tray. Not to mention an outrigger canoe. My Hawaiian version of the Mayflower.

Gordon, happiest in the kitchen.

Maui Onion, Bacon and Feta Cheese Tarts

This recipe will make 18 tarts.

2 Maui Onion or Vidalia will also work (sliced)
1 tbsp sugar or brown sugar
1 package puff pastry (2 sheets)
1 package bacon
8 oz Fetta Cheese

Saute the onions in butter with a touch of sugar to bring out more of the onions natural sweetness.

Greasing a cupcake pan with a cooking oil spray. Laying chilled puff pastry onto a cutting board and using a biscuit cutter to make round disks. Poke holes in the center of the puff pastry disk to ensure the pastry in that area doesn’t rise.

Add the disks of dough to the cupcake pan poking tiny holes into the dough. Next add the delicious caramelized onions.

Top the onions with some crumbled up bacon. Any sort of bacon will do. Here Gordon added some microwave bacon.

Then top off with crumbled Feta cheese.

Chill all the pastry prior to baking in the freezer for a bit will help the pastry rise better.
Bake in the oven at 400F’ for 20 minutes or until lightly brown on the bottom of the pastry.

Maui Onion Savory Tarts
They are so light and flaky.

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Now for the spinach and artichoke tarts on Filo Dough.

2 packages frozen chopped spinach (squeezed dry as possible)
1 package cream cheese
1 8oz jar marinated artichoke hearts (drained and chopped)
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes
2 tbsp black olives
2 cloves garlic (roasted)
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.

1/4 cup Bread crumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Between the layers of Filo dough you can sprinkle some seasoned bread crumbs to give the dough some extra texture/crunch.
Your spinach and artichoke mixture, photo top left. Filo dough brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with bread crumbs, photo top right.

Next add your layer of the spinach mixture to the filo dough.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Then roll the dough.

Next just slice at bout 1inch thickness and place on a baking sheet. Preheat your oven to 400’F and bake for about 20 – 30 minutes.

Below is a second way to make this. Roll the outside of the dough in bread crumbs, then slice, put on a cookie sheet and bake as directed above. I happen to like this way much better. I thought they looked prettier and tasted better.

Use the same ingredients as above and spread the mixture the same way on one sheet of puff pastry. Roll the pastry then spray with olive oil and sprinkle seasoned bread crumbs on the outer edge to give it added texture. Slice to 1 inch thickness and bake at 400F’ for approx. 20-25 min.