Handcrafted Ready-to-Bake Cookie Dough from Dough Boi

Fresh out of the oven!

For Mother's Day, I wanted my kids to bake me cookies from a recipe I found off the internet. When I told my daughter, she enthusiastically said OK, but when I told my son, he asked for my second choice. So when I was introduced to Dough Boi, a mom who handcrafts ready-to-bake premium cookie dough, I knew this would make a great gift from non-bakers like my son.

You can see the weekly flavors on Instagram @doughboi_hi and DM your order. I picked up my order from Mililani. The dough packs of 10 ready-to-bake balls of cookie dough come neatly packaged in a cute container and can be kept in the freezer. You get 2 dough packs for $25.

I tried the chocolate chip, macnut with white chocolate, and chocolate with white chocolate. I knew I was going to love the chocolate chip, but I was surprised that I really enjoyed the other two flavors as I am usually not a fan of white chocolate. The combos are just so tasty! The cookies are soft with crispy edges and perfectly sized.

Two packs for $25

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

These dough packs are definitely a gift I would love to receive so I was happy to gift them to people that I knew would enjoy them. I love having one in my freezer so that I can enjoy freshly baked cookies with no mess anytime the sweet craving hits.

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Last Call for Menehune Macs at Hawaiian Chip Company

The last of the hand scooped chocolate gift boxes!

Although I have never visited the Hawaiian Chip Company's retail location, I knew that's where they sold their delicious fresh made-to-order taro and sweet potato chips. What I didn't know was that they are also home to Menehune Mac's hand-scooped chocolates. They are currently down to their last boxes and will not be restocking them.

If you want to get a last taste of Hawaii history, make sure to visit to pick up a box. The Aloha Chocolate Gift Box includes two layers of 24 individually wrapped pieces in a gift box with ribbon and bow. Customers can select an assortment of all flavors of Milk Chocolate Mac Nut, Pineapple Snow Mac Nut, and Dark Chocolate Mac Nut. The Menehune Mac 8 Count Chocolate Gift Box includes two layers of handmade chocolates in a gift box ready to share. The 8 Count Gift Box is available with one chocolate flavor per box.

Graduation season is upon us! Individually wrapped chocolates are perfect to use in a candy lei!

Retail location has many chip options!

Macadamia Nut Milk Chocolate Bars will still be available.

Thank you to the Hawaiian Chip Company for the media invite. All opinions are honest and entirely my own.

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Visit Maui: Patticakes Bakery

While on Maui, I saw Patticakes Bakery cookies in a shop, and wondered if there was an actual bakery we could go to.

I Googled and saw the bakery was just a few minutes away.  The door was covered, and it was hard to tell if it was open for business, so I opened the door and saw a commercial kitchen.  I was surprised and a little embarrassed to have walked in during the middle of operations, but asked one of the employees if we could buy cookies, and I could!  She talked about how they don't have a storefront and I could indeed buy cookies, and most purchases are done online for pick-up.  
 

I bought some cookies for omiyage as well as for the family.

If you love crispy, bite-sized cookies, you will love Patticakes Bakery cookies!

I'm team chewy, but these cookies were yummy!  The flavors were really balanced, and it was not uncommon for me to eat two at a time - they were just so good!

They also make all sorts of other goodies, such as banana bread and brownies. Pre-order via their website, or find them in shops around Maui!

Patticakes Bakery
1464 Lower Main St STE 104

Wailuku, HI 96793

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Okonokai

I stopped at the Mililani Farmers Market for the first time in months, and was surprised to see Okonokai - it was the first day for the vendor!  I've seen posts come through my social media about the crackers made with limu, so I was excited to try them.

I was already familiar with the limu lepe-o-Hina used in the crackers, since we use the limu at Na‘au.

I bought all three flavors - Sea Salt, Spicy Gochujang, and Miso Cheezy.

My fave was the Sea Salt.  The crackers were thin with a nice snap, and just enough salt and umami.

I also bought some of the dried seaweed - perfect for soups or salads.

Follow Okonokai on IG to find out where to get them, or you can also purchase online!

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Maui Cookie Lady's "Christmas In July" Cookie Box

We would like to thank The Maui Cookie Lady for gifting us this Cookie Box for review purposes.

 

The Maui Cookie Lady, known for massively sized cookies that are also massive in taste, generously gifted us a box of their "Christmas In July" cookie box, which is currently on sale for $20, which comes out to only $5 per cookie. At first you may be thinking "only", but when you pick up one of these cookies, you'll see why $5 is a great per-cookie price.

The Christmas in July sampler box comes with four GIANT 6 ounce cookies, all individually wrapped.

Cinnamon Roll - White Chocolate Drops, Raw Sugar, Notes of Caramelized Sugar and Rolled in Cinnamon Sugar

It's a Wonderful Whiskey Life - Scratch Made Baileys Truffle inside a velvet “Hot Cocoa” cookie with Jameson Whiskey, Hawaiian Sea Salt and topped with crushed candy canes

Butter Rum Triple Chunker - stuffed with three types of chocolate (White, Dark and Milk) and has creamy smooth buttery richness of Buttered Rum flavor

Butter Rum Triple Chunker (The Original)

Butter Rum Triple Chunker (The Original)

Scrooged -Stuck at Home - Kahlua, Candied Pecan, Browned Butter Pecan Truffle, Butterscotch, Semi Sweet Drops, Hawaiian Sea Salt and Topped with Kahlua Chocolate Drizzle

These cookies are seriously rich and loaded with flavor!

The most festive cookie is the "It's a Wonderful Whiskey Life" - if you like peppermint flavor, this is the cookie for you. You can also definitely smell and  taste the whiskey!

The Butter Rum Triple Chunker is one of their best sellers and more traditional in flavor. It comes closest to a regular chocolate chip cookie.

My favorite cookie of the four was the Cinnamon Roll, because, well, I love everything cinnamon! 

But don't get me wrong, all of the cookies were amazing and decadent! 

What I like most about these cookies is that they are handmade in Maui, in small batches, incorporating local ingredients and flavors as much as possible. They also have a 2-3 week shelf life (unopened), which can be prolonged if you put the unopened cookies in the freezer right away.

All products offered by The Maui Cookie Lady are carefully designed and crafted by the owner, every detail is well thought out. 

And if cookies aren't your thing, try their Tropical Melt-A-Ways. These great tasting butter-based mints melt in your mouth, and come in a variety of tropical flavors such as Mango, P.O.G., Lilikoi, and Mac Nut Coconut.

The Maui Cookie Lady's storefront is located in the heart of historic Makawao, so be sure to add this to your list of places to visit the next time you're on Maui. Can't get to Maui? They ship! 

Visit themauicookielady.com for more information!

_____________________________________

THE MAUI COOKIE LADY

3643 Baldwin Avenue

808-793-3172

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HI Spice

Last year, I met a lot of local entrepreneurs at a Mana Up event, including the founders of HI Spice.  Crafted in Maui, HI Spice delivers hot sauces in flavor combinations that incorporate various types of chilies with local ingredients, such as liliko`i, pineapple, papaya, and guava.  

The hot sauces run the spectrum of the heat scale, so it's easy to find a hot sauce no matter what your spice level tolerance.

I ended up buying a 4-pack of hot sauce with the Build-Your-Own 4-Pack option.  I chose:

Jalpeno Lime, Dragon Fruit, Pineapple, Smoked Habanero.

They all had nice flavor profiles, but if I had to choose a fave, it would be the Dragon Fruit (seasonal).  It's low on the heat scale, but the mild sweetness of the dragon fruit went well with the Thai chilies. 

They were all really good, however, and I would order them all again (I love spicy!). 

Check out the HI Spice flavors at https://www.hispice.com/.

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Tiny Isle Truffles

I love finding small, local businesses that produce sweets (everyone who knows me knows just how huge my sweet tooth is).  An online search brought me to Kauai's Tiny Isle website, and when I saw they crafted truffles, I was sold! 

They craft truffles with premium grade organic cacao powder and cacao butter, along with Kauai vanilla and Kona sea salt. 

They come in four flavors, along with a seasonal fifth flavor: 

• Salted Coconut Caramel
• Macadamia Nut
• Kona Sea Salt
• Cosmic Coconut
• Strawberry Creme (seasonal)

They are $2.95 a piece, or you can order them in multi-packs.  They even have a Truffle Case of 30 pieces at a 15% discount!  

I ended up getting the Truffle Case so I could share with some friends.  

The Salted Coconut Caramel was my fave.  I loved the saltiness of the salted caramel, along with the sweetness of the coconut.  It was such a pleasant combo.  

The truffles are decadent and rich.  A single piece is pretty huge, and it can last you a while if you nibble on it whenever the craving strikes, like I did.  

You can also chop or grate them to add to smoothie bowls or ice cream!  YUM!

For more information on Tiny Isle truffles or other products, visit their website https://tinyislekauai.com/.

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Hawaiian Chip Company + Menehune Mac Chocolate Dipping Kit

This month, Hawaiian Chip Company will release a new chocolate dipping sauce to celebrate its acquisition of another well-known local brand, Menehune Mac!

I was fortunate to receive a kit, which included a container of the new chocolate dipping sauce made just for chips, as well as Hawaiian Chip Company taro and sweet potato chips.

The chips are great on their own, but dipping them in chocolate takes them to the next level!

It's the perfect combination of sweet & salty, and the kids can get it on the fun and dip and decorate to their hearts' desire (we added some salt, spicy kiawe salt, and sprinkles that were included in the kit).

The acquition of the brand will also result in a bigger retail space for Hawaiian Chip Company, as well as a chocolate factory and bakery!

Visit Hawaiian Chip Company to find out more on their product offerings.

Hawaiian Chip Company
1928 Republican St

Honolulu, HI 96819

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House of Mana Up 6-Month Accelerator Program

Not too long ago I had received a House of Mana Up Subscription Box (the subscription makes a great gifts, and is such a fun way to discover new and exclusive products made by Hawai`i makers and crafters).  House of Mana Up not only offers products through their website, retail store, and subscription boxes, but they also offer a 6-month accelerator program to assist entrepreneurs with everything from sourcing funding to social media.

Just recently I was fortunate to have been invited to the House of Mana Up headquarters to meet some of Cohort 6.  

I had a chance to chat with some of them about their products, as well as about what they've learned through the House of Mana Up Accelerator Program.  

Owners of `Ohana Nui, Pono Potions, and HI Spice showcased their products, and I was able to briefly speak to the owners of Aloha de Mele, Island Harvest, and Paniolo Pets about their specialties.  

It didn't matter if you were a brand new start-up or an established name - it was evident that everyone there benefitted from the program.

Almost everyone I spoke to said that they appreciated how businesses were in various stages of development, and didn't hesitate to reveal their strengths and weaknesses in order to get assistance in areas that needed the most improvement.  They were all there to learn, and to develop and implement new strategies to bring more awareness to their products and increase sales. 

I was very familiar with Kahuku Farms - I've taken their farm tours and enjoyed products in their cafe.  It was neat to hear about how they are now working on expanding sales of their value-added products.  

`Ohana Nui not only makes great cookies, but they are on a mission to help our marine life - a portion of sales goes to Hawaiian Marine Animal Response.  

One of my favorite finds was Kākou Collective, which offers washi tape and stationery with designs of native Hawaiian plants and birds. I've never seen anything like it, and I love this very strong connection to Hawai`i.  

Every business owner who goes through the program has access to a wide array of resources that will help them in marketing, financing, sales, public relations, branding, and more.  The support within the Cohort and from outside sources was abundant, and it was great to discover so many new businesses.

For more information, visit House of Mana Up. 

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Wild Harvest Hawai`i

Wild Harvest Hawai`i, based on Hawai`i Island, creates addicting freeze-dried fruits that are just so naturally sweet and delish, you may find yourself eatingh an entire bag in one sitting.

Using locally-grown fruits such as apple bananas, jackfruit, and soursop, Wild Harvest Hawai`i freeze-dries them, packages them, and sells them via their website and at Farmers Markets.

You can just eat them straight out of the bag, or use them in desserts like we have been doing at Na`au.

They are crunchy, tasty, and highly addicting! 

Wild Harvest Hawaii also makes freeze dried ice cream!

Visit https://whhawaii.com/ to learn more! 

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Amlou Living

Amlou, a popular edible, nutty spread in Morocco, was part of the inspiration behind Amlou Living - a lifestyle and wellness brand of small batch, locally-made home and beauty products made right here in Hawaii.

I was fortunate to receive a few products from the Amlou collection, which was the brainchild of co-founders Jennifer Kim and Christina Takahashi. They have integrated the sights, scents, and experiences from their travels to Morocco into their quality products, a sampling of which I was fortunate to have received.

The 100% phthalate-free fragrance, natural coconut soy wax candle is such a pleasant addition to my nightstand.

The Amlou Cotton Face Mask is perfect for these pandemic times. The adjustable straps, rose hue, and shape of the mask makes it both fashionable and functional - wear it for travel, work, or every day errands.

Also perfect for these times is the best-selling Orange Blossom Hand Sanitizer, which smells amazing. With 70% alcohol and a refillable bottle, this sanitizer is perfect to toss in my Amlou tote.

I love the muted hues, clean lines, and minimalistic feel of the Amlou brand, which totally suits my personality.

I can't wait to see what other products Amlou Living will start to offer!

For more information and to shop the Amlou Living line, visit www.amlouliving.com.

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House of Mana Up Subscription Boxes

 Disclosure: Complimentary product was received.  

Last year, in the midst of the pandemic, I ordered locally-made products from House of Mana Up to gift to someone on the East Coast. 

I loved the broad selection of products handmade right here in the islands.  From coffee to candles, soaps to sauces, you can find all sorts of wonderful gifts for friends and family (or even yourself!).  

I just discovered that they now offer a Subscription Box!  For $50 a month, you can get a thoughtfully-curated box of goodies featuring exclusive, limited-edition, or never-before-seen local products.  Each box comes with notecards detailing some of the stories behind the businesses, and shipping is free within the US!

I was fortunate to receive a box themed around "Ono food."  In the box was Salmon Jerky from Kaimana Jerky, Baker's Brew Coffee from Hawaiian Pie Company, and a Cook Real Hawai`i cookbook by Chef Sheldon Simeon.

Subscriptions auto-renew and you can cancel at any time.  

What a great way to support local!  This would be such a great gift to new college students, relatives who moved from the islands, or friends you've haven't been able to see in years.  Even if they're not from Hawai`i, just about everyone would feel special with surprises from Hawai`i.

House of Mana Up does more than just offer goods online (or in their shop at Royal Hawaiian Center).  They also offer tools and resources to Hawai`i-based entrepreneurs, supporting them in all facets of product development, marketing, financing, community and cultural relations, and more.  

It's such a great initiative, and such a wonderful way to support local.  

For more information on House of Mana Up's Subscription Boxes, click here.  

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Ahualoa Family Farms

Ahualoa Family Farms on the Big Island cares for over 90 acres of macadamia nut orchards, and Hawaii Mom Blog was lucky to have sampled some of their products, including their macadamia nuts and macadamia nut flour.

At Na`au, we received some macadamia nuts, and Chef Brian made some amazing brittle with it.  

He made a Macadamia Nut Brittle with Chili Flakes and sprinkled with Sea Salt.

It was so delish on its own, but even more amazing when mixed in with ice cream!

Ahualoa Family Farms also offers coffee, chocolates, granolas, and more!

For more information or to shop Ahualoa Family Farms products, visit https://ahualoafarms.com/. 

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