I have this thing about grilled pineapple. Well, to tell you the truth, I have this thing about pineapple -- period. I love pineapple. Now that I've said that, I will say that I don't like pineapples in cakes or cookies or things like that. Pineapple chunks, I guess, is what I love.
At the rehearsal dinner for Matt and Mel, we made grilled pineapple with a warm chocolate sauce that was a hit. We did the chocolate sauce instead of the rum concoction below, which I believe came from Gourmet Magazine. You can make the dulce le leche the day before and keep it covered and refrigerated. The recipe calls for sweetened condensed milk. I always confuse this with "evaporated milk" when I go to the grocery store and invariable have to go back and get condensed milk. I think Borden makes sweetened condensed milk and Carnation the evaporated variety -- or vice-versa. Whatever. Don't make a mistake. They are totally different things. I think.
And it bugs the shit out of me when the recipe calls for 1/2 of a ripe pineapple. Why not use the whole thing? Then it serves 8 -- since you're drizzling the dulce le leche over the pineapple, there should be enough to go around without doubling the recipe.
You need to get together:
2 (14-ounce) cans of sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup dark rum
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 ripe pineapple, preferable golden
salt
Vanilla ice cream, if desired
You also need:
9-inch deep dish pie plate or other oven proof deep thing, aluminum foil, and a roasting pan, and a grill
Preheat the oven to 425 F.
Pour the condensed milk into the deep dish pie plate and cover it with foil. Place it in the roasting pan. Add enough water into the roasting pan to reach halfway up the pie plate. Bake the milk until it is thick and golden, about 1 1/2 hours. Carefully remove the roasting pan from the oven, take out the pie plate, and allow it to cool completely. When cool, add the rum and the vanilla, whisk until smooth. Season with salt.
Heat up the grill. Cut the pineapple lengthwise through the leaves into 4 wedges, leaving the leaves intact. Grill the pineapple wedges, cut-side down (yellow side down), until just charred, which will take a couple minutes a side.
Put each wedge on a plate. Put a scoop of ice cream next to the pineapple wedge and drizzle with the dulce de leche.
Posted by Bill at May 4, 2004 03:21 PM
that looks cool, btw, with the leaves and husk "intact," but i like the way nigella does it better: cut off the outside of the pineapple, THEN cure it and cut into wedges, and stick a bamboo skewer all the way through and grill. easier to eat. and then you could serve it on a tray with a choice of the sauces: chocolate OR RDDL. just a thought. cuz, you know, this is MY PAGE, TOO.
Posted by: stacey at May 5, 2004 10:51 AMCORE IT, DAMMIT, CORE IT!!! you know that's what i meant.
Posted by: stacey at May 5, 2004 10:52 AM