We don’t get a lot of rain where we live in Pukalani, so today’s rain was welcome. The morning sky was a mix of blue, gray clouds & sun breaks; the wind was soft. Big winds are a frequent occurrence in Pukalani, winds so big it’s a wonder that plants have any foliage & that any of us have a hair left on our heads. But they aren’t the sustained winds that come with a storm. We are waiting for Flossie, the Tropical Storm that is currently headed for Maui, to arrive. Right now, the rain is falling a little harder & the palm fronds are swaying gently. A few birds are chirping here & there, but we aren’t hearing the usual afternoon bird symphony of chirps & tweets. We hear an occasional cock-a-doodle-doo from a neighborhood chicken.

We spent the morning preparing for Flossie. The smart thing to do if you think you may lose power is to make some food so you are ready if it happens. Having lived in the Pacific Northwest for over 20 years, we are experts at getting ready for a power outage; we experienced many. A big difference is that when the power goes out on Maui, it isn’t freezing cold outside. We have plenty to eat, so I just prepared a few things to make our day just a little tastier. I made cornbread using Bob’s Red Mill Blue Cornmeal, which I hear is more nutritious than yellow cornmeal, these oatmeal muffins and Passato of Vegetables , one of our favorite soups {good hot or cold}. Today is cool enough to enjoy the soup hot, and warm enough to eat it cold, should we be sans power. Fingers crossed that the power stays on!

Blue Cornbread {adapted from Moosewood Cookbook}
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup melted unsalted butter
1 cup buttermilk
1 large egg
1 cup blue cornmeal {of course you can use yellow}
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Whisk together honey, buttermilk, egg & butter. In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients to dry & mix well.

Bake in a greased 8″x 8″ pan at 425 degrees for 18 minutes or until toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs. I love it with butter & molasses.

More rain has arrived, along with thunder! And now there is lightning! Time for hot soup.