Grilled Honeysuckle Pineapple: Eat This

Hey everybody! Welcome to Friday’s unusually late recipe post. The office has been kind of nuts today, as I’ll be in sunny North Carolina next week, and have been duly pummeled with pre-vacation job responsibilities. Oh, the pleasures of being a working woman.

(Did I just make myself sound like a prostitute with that last sentence? I’m not. I promise.)

(Though … there’s probably less paperwork, so maybe …)

(Anyway.)

While I’m gone, Leigh, Jaime and the effervescent Rachel will be tending CHG – regulating comments, maintaining the schedule, and generally waxing poetic about zucchini, tomatoes, and misleading labels. They are kind, ever-so-lovely souls with finely-honed, ninja-like writing skills, so I’m sure y’all will enjoy their, uh … poetic … waxings.

Before I’m off, I’d like to leave you with a fantastically tasty recipe garnered from this weekend’s potluck. It’s called Honeysuckle Pineapple, and it’s over at All Recipes (of all places). My friend J (she of the earthshaking baklava and sock-rocking grilled peaches) brought it for dessert. I’d already consumed 14 metric tons of barbecue, but found room for it (maybe in my arm or toe or something) and was not disappointed. The light, sweet, sharp flavors ended the eve perfectly, and even made us feel vaguely healthy. Not bad for a single pineapple in the face of all that beef.

As always, if you should give it a try, here are a few things to know:

1) The calculations below are for one whole pineapple, which made twelve large, lengthwise slices. I’m counting each piece as an individual serving, so the numbers are slightly different than those on the All Recipes website.

2) Jen on the booze: “A medium size bottle of Cherry Brandy (which I only needed 6 tablespoons of) was roughly $5.99 at a high end Manhattan Liquor store. I am sure there are smaller bottles and cheaper liquor stores out there, but, I had trouble finding the cherry flavor, so, when I saw it I bought it. (And it won’t go to waste!)” Based on what Jen said, my numbers are for a 375-ml bottle, which is about 25.27 tablespoons at $0.24/each.

3) Once again, my photography skills have failed me, despite what I thought was a newfound mastery over the “Enhance” button in iPhoto. Seriously, a blindfolded four-year-old could have taken a better shot of this food. I promise, it tastes much better than it looks.

4) Don’t fear the fruit! Pineapples are surprisingly easy to cut after you’ve gotten the hang of it. For a brief tutorial, go here.

And that’s it. Hope y’all have lovely weekends, weeks, and next weekends. I’ll think of you while I’m lapping up the warmth on a romantic southern beach.

(Uh … with my parents. So maybe not so romantic.)

(*shudder*)

Grilled Honeysuckle Pineapple
Serves 12
Adapted from All Recipes.

12 (large) slices fresh pineapple
4-1/2 tablespoons honey
6 tablespoons cherry brandy
1 tablespoon lemon juice

1) In a medium or large glass bowl, stir honey, brandy, and lemon juice together. Add pineapple. Mix until coated. Cover and refrigerate for 60 minutes.

2) Preheat grill (medium heat). Lightly brush grate with oil.

3) Place pineapple on grill. Cook 10 minutes, turning a few times. Fruit should be warm and slightly browned when finished.

Approximate Calories, Fat, and Price Per Serving
87 calories, 0.3 g fat, $0.34

Calculations
12 (large) slices fresh pineapple: $1.99
4-1/2 tablespoons honey: $0.45
6 tablespoons cherry brandy: $1.42
1 tablespoon lemon juice: $0.20
TOTAL: 1044 calories, 3.6 g fat, $4.06
PER SERVING (TOTAL/12): 87 calories, 0.3 g fat, $0.34