Celebrating the holidays in Hawaii doesn't necessarily mean that the menu will be different from the traditional American feast enjoyed in homes throughout the US. Indeed, many Hawaiian families celebrate with roast turkey with stuffing, gravy and mashed potatoes, while others enjoy baked ham with scalloped potatoes and yams.

What is very different, however, are the ethnic and local foods that also show up at the dinner table. Because of Hawaii's wonderful multi-ethnic population, a holiday dinner and potluck in the Islands is always a blend of Hawaiian, Asian and European cuisines.

At a pot luck lunch or dinner, dishes that turn up may include the following:

• sashimi (raw fish - a must at any New Year's feast)
• lumpia (deep-fried spring roll filled with bananas, vegetables or beef)
• tonkatsu (breaded, deep-fried and sliced pork cutlets)
• laulau (baked pork and fish bundled in taro leaves)
• cold ginger chicken (boiled whole chicken served chilled with ginger sauce)
• Ôpulehu' short ribs (Hawaiian style barbecue short ribs)
• meat jun (minced beef in egg batter, pan-fried)
• somen noodle salad (boiled somen noodles, chilled and garnished)
• vinha döahlos (pork butt roasted with garlic, vinegar and chili peppers)
• and more.

Light side dishes or accompaniments such as sushi rice, kim chee, fish cake, lomi salmon, taegu and crisp wontons will also be scattered about the table.

Wonderful desserts such as chocolate haupia pie, malasadas, almond float (lychee and mandarin oranges in an almond gelatin), bibingka (sweet coconut rice dessert), green tea ice cream and other homemade creations will be spread out next to the apple and custard pies.