Week 18 - Hot Pineapple

Hot Pineapple   

Recipe 18 - 52 in 2022

Side Dish #3

    I sat down to write Week 20's post and realized to my dismay, that I hadn't written Weeks 18 & 19. Egads!!! I'll write all three tonight, so off we go. Side Dish #3 is the star of Week 18. I chose a recipe called "Hot Pineapple. This recipe is in Southern Country Cooking from The Loveless Cafe cookbook, published in 2005. It's in the "Breakfasts & Breads" section. Although it is in a breakfast section and would be great as a brunch offering, it really was good anytime of day. It was easy to make and you could easily have this on the table in an hour. I will say that I didn't realize when I drained juice from the pineapple, that I should save it, but in the long run, it worked out. I used a bit of sugar syrup in place of a little of the juice which ends up being part of the topping. That worked fine. I rather enjoyed this dish. I've never made anything like it. I would definitely consider it for a brunch offering.  Modification(s) in italics.

Ingredients:

1 20oz can pineapple chunks, drained (retain juice in a bowl)

1 16oz can crushed pineapple, drained

1 cup grated cheddar cheese (I used my favorite Monterey-Jack blend)

1/2 cup sugar (If you buy fruit in heavy syrup or just want lower sugar, leave this out)

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

4 tablespoons pineapple juice

1/2 cup (one stick) butter

1 sleeve Ritz or similar-type crackers, crushed

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a skillet on low heat, melt the 1/2 cup butter. In a 1 quart casserole (I think I used a 2 or 3 quart casserole, because I didn't have a 1 quart casserole and honestly, it would not have all fit in that size; use whichever size you like) stir together your pineapple. In a bowl, mix the sugar, flour and the reserved pineapple juice. It should be pretty smooth when you're done. Pour the sugar, flour, pineapple juice mixture over the pineapple. Add the crushed crackers and stir until the butter is absorbed and the crumbs are coated. Pour this crushed cracker mix on top of the pineapple. Bake for 30 minutes. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Hot Pineapple

Yummy!