Who We are

Three generations. One family recipe. One mountain that inspired it all.

honi (Hawaiian)

To kiss; a kiss. Traditionally, to touch noses in greeting. Also, to smell or catch a familiar scent.

Some family recipes are simply passed down. Others become part of a family's legacy.

Long before Mauna Kea Honi had a name, my grandmother was making this special meringue candy for her children. It became a cherished family tradition, shared at home and remembered for generations.

In 1984, she wrote down the recipe that would eventually become the foundation of Mauna Kea Honi. Her original version featured the classic flavor and finely chopped pecans and walnuts.

Years later, after my grandmother passed away, my mother discovered the handwritten recipe tucked inside her Bible while visiting her brothers on the mainland. She brought it home to Hawai'i, determined to continue our family's tradition.

As she made the recipe her own, she replaced the pecans and walnuts with locally grown macadamia nuts and created the first new flavor—Kona Coffee—while preserving everything she loved about my grandmother's original recipe.

Originally, my mother cut the candy into small squares. One day, my father suggested shaping them like the snow-capped peaks of Mauna Kea. The very next day, he emailed my mother a photograph of Mauna Kea covered in snow. Before she had the chance to open his message, he unexpectedly passed away.

When my mother later opened that email she immediately got chicken skin.

While sitting in the chapel beside my father's body, the name Mauna Kea Peaks came to my mother. When she later began selling the candy, that became the name of her business.

After my mother's passing, I realized that what my grandmother began and my mother so lovingly preserved deserved to continue. I also wanted the name to reflect what it had always meant to me, so I renamed the business Mauna Kea Honi.

To me, honi represents the memories, traditions, and love that are carried forward from one generation to the next.

Today, I continue the family tradition by honoring my grandmother's original recipe, my mother's craftsmanship and innovations, and by creating new flavors inspired by Hawai'i for future generations to enjoy.