Kauai Coffee

I've been amiss lately - so busy with life and fun that I've totally neglected posting some pictures and talking about the inspiration of our latest trip to Hawaii! Let me back up a bit...we went to Oahu in May to proudly attend our daughter's graduation from the University of Hawaii!

It was such an awesome event and we are so proud of Melissa for her accomplishments and Ben for all of his support - they are a beautiful couple and GREAT team! We love you guys and are so very proud of you!

We had lots of family fun on Oahu and then headed over to Kauai for a little relaxing time of our own. We stayed at an amazing spot right on the beach - our sliding glass door opened to the ocean. It had the best view and was the most relaxing spot!

Mostly we just unplugged while on Kauai. We did a little bit of "tour-ing" that I wanted to share with you. One of the places we visited was the Kauai Coffee Plantation. This was an adventure unto itself. We did a self-guided walking tour that was super fun!

This is a picture of some green coffee beans. I kinda knew how they grew, but it was fascinating to see the plantation.

Rows and rows of coffee trees/bushes - here's a link to learn a bit more, click here.

There were lots of cool things to see along the way. Not sure what was happening here? I think Dan made a new friend along the tour! What are they doing....telling secrets perhaps? 😀

The tour ended with all the coffee tasting we wanted! We really enjoyed the coffee, coffee ice-cream, a short walk around the museum and here's one more photo I had to share - an antique coffee grinder!

Well the reason I'm giving you the tour of Kauai Coffee today, is because coffee is the focus of my newest recipe. We brought some coffee home to enjoy and wanted to find a special way to use it. I pondered that while stirring these tasty Chocolate Spoons into a great cup of coffee!

What I created was my version of an amazing sandwich I enjoyed from a food truck called The Green Pig - pulled pork sandwich. Using freshly ground coffee grounds, a few spices and the slow cooker it creates tender & succulent meat and the coffee lends a slow roasted flavor to the meat! Delicious!

After simmering all day in the slow cooker, the house was filled with amazing aromas! I made a coleslaw to top it with and toasted some buns, because this is a big sloppy sandwich and the bun needs to hold up to all that flavor! Once the pork came out of the slow cooker, I reduced the sauce into the best topping for the sandwich - oh my.....is this ever good!

Want the recipe? Click here to grab it and print it off for dinner this weekend!