The Hawaii Cacao Festival, now in its fourth year, is continuing its celebration of the little pod and educating the public about its diversity.
Sign up for guided walking tours that visit Kokolani Chocolate, Manoa Chocolate and Madre Chocolate; sample creations by local chefs; learn about the bean-to-bar movement through artisanal chocolate-making; or just visit one of the 40-plus booths. There will also be activities for the keiki and entertainment by Paul Izak & Seeds of Love.
The event runs 8:30 a.m. to noon Sunday at Kailua Elementary School, 315 Kuulei Road. Walking tours at 9 and 10 a.m. are $10 with limited tickets available.
Sign up at eventbrite.com. For information, call Pamela Boyar at 388-9696.
Chef spotlights Hawaii on TV contest
Koko Head Cafe chef Lee Anne Wong was back on television Tuesday when she entered Round 4 of "Chopped All-Stars" on behalf of her charity of choice, Conservation International Hawai‘i. The organization focuses on seafood security and sustainability.
The star chef competition grants the winning chef $75,000 to donate to a charity of his or her choice.
Wong and her competitors — Fabio Viviani, Jet Tila and Rocco DiSpirito — were presented with Asian-inspired baskets of diver scallops, taro buns, tahini sauce and salted egg, and had 20 minutes to whip up a dish that would win over judges’ palates.
Though Wong did not claim victory, she said her main objective in entering the fray was to put Conservation International — and Hawaii itself — in the national spotlight.
"I said that 90 percent of food is imported here so that people can see what’s going on," she said. "I want our causes to get heard on a national forum.
"There’s a story to be told here and issues that need to be talked about immediately."
Win doughnuts for a year and help Salvation Army
Design a tasty doughnut and help the Salvation Army celebrate National Donut Day on June 5.
The charity and Regal Bakery are sponsoring the contest, with the winner receiving a dozen doughnuts each month for a year.
To enter, post a photo showing the new doughnut flavor, ingredients or flavor idea on Instagram. Tag the photo #HawaiiDonutDay and follow the Salvation Army’s Instagram account @SalArmyHi.
Ingredients must be "shelf stable," meaning they don’t need to be refrigerated, and must not include peanuts.
Entry deadline is noon June 1.
The Salvation Army started National Donut Day 78 years ago to raise funds for and bring awareness to its social service programs.
It commemorates the World War I-era Donut Lassies, volunteers who provided writing supplies, stamps, clothes-mending and home-cooked meals to soldiers on the front lines, frying up doughnuts in their helmets.
Regal Bakery will be providing customers with a free doughnut June 5 and donate a portion of sales that day to the Salvation Army.
