Hawaiian Inspired Tropical Lunch Recipes

This Hawaiian inspired tropical luncheon is simple when it comes to decor and anything but when it comes to the menu! Rezel Kealoha, who has her own lifestyle blog, designed the day and created the yummy tropical lunch recipes. Lucky for us (and for you!) she’s sharing a few of them here today! From a refreshing piña colada to the perfect savory tartine, these summer recipes are easier than they look (promise!). Whip them up for your own casual lunch or special event for a taste of the tropics.

Rezel says, I styled the tabletop with tropical greenery from my backyard placed into small jars in the middle of the table. I kept the dishes and cutlery neutral, with a pop of green from the water glasses to tie everything together.

After my trip to Kauai I was inspired to host a tropical summer luncheon to kick off the summer and to have my guests escape the work day for at least two hours. In my head I knew I wanted lots of green tropical leaves and I incorporated that into the menu design. I worked with Giulissa Principe from Paper Love Me Calligraphy to set the tone of the lunch. She did a beautiful job with the water color banana leaves around the boarder and left the edges raw to maintain a rustic vibe.

I kept the menu simple by serving a signature cocktail (pina colada), a quick tart for an appetizer, a build your own Buddha bowl, and a nice refreshing Lilikoi Parfait to round out the meal.

The buddha bowl is best served at room temperature so I roasted the vegetables the day before to save time. Then, all I had to do was plate the components. My guests had a great time putting together their own bowl! Plus, it was bright, colorful and filled with healthy nourishing ingredients.

Pina Colada
Ingredients:
1 whole pineapple (pealed and cut into cubes)
16 oz coconut water
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup crushed ice
Dried coconut shavings

Mint Sprigs

Method:
Place pineapple in baking tray in one layer and roast at 350 for 30 minutes.  Completely cool and place in freezer until frozen.  It’s best to do this step the day before.

The next day, take the frozen roasted pineapple cubes and place in a blender with the coconut water and crushed ice. Blend until smooth. Divide pineapple mix into four glasses and top with 1/4 cup coconut milk in each glass.  Garnish with some coconut shavings and mint sprigs.

Quick Savory Tartines

Ingredients
1 loaf artisan bread
1 container of Kite Hill Cream Cheese
Fresh basil leaves
1 to 2 nectarines or peaches depending on the size, cut in half to take out the seed and cut into thin slices
1/2 cup pesto
salt
pepper
olive oil

Method:

Slice bread, drizzle olive oil on the bread, and toast until golden brown. Once toasted, slather on the cream cheese, top with the sliced fruit, dot some pesto on the top, and and a basil leaf. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top and drizzle more olive oil.

Lilikoi Parfait

For the Lilikoi Layer (Passionfruit Layer) – Adapted from Minimalist Baker
1 can coconut cream
1/4 cup lilikoi (passionfruit) juice. If not available you can sub any citrus juice like lemon, orange, or grapefruit
2 Tablespoons Arrowroot Powder
2 Tablespoons Maple Syrup

Method:  
Mix the juice and arrowroot powder in a small bowl until fully mixed. Place coconut cream in a small pan and mix well to break up the lumps. Once the coconut cream is smooth mix in the juice and arrowroot mixture.  use a whisk and set the temperature to medium and keep mixing until you start seeing a ribbon form on top of the mixture when you pull the whisk through. Once it is thick (will take about 10-15 min) turn off the heat and let it sit to cool for 15 minutes. After it has cooled down, transfer to 4 small jars equally. Leave on the counter until completely cool. Once it has cooled down completely, cover and place in refrigerator until its ready to serve.

To serve:
1 cup coco whip. I used so delicious coco whip.
Mint sprigs
1/2 cup dried coconut chips
1/2 cup store bought short bread cookies (I made my own but had them made already for something else)
2 fresh passionfruit
Take jars out of the refrigerator and evenly distribute the coco whip in each jar. Cut the passionfruit in half and place the pulp of each half on top of the coco whip. Top with coconut chips and crumbled cookies and a mint sprig.  Enjoy!

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Design, Styling, Recipes
Rezel Kealoha
Photography
Meg Sexton
Calligraphy
Paper Love Me

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