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Image of the Week: Caramel Pineapple Cheesecake
Image of the Week: Roasted Pineapple Tamales
Weekly Roundup: Pineapple Perfection
Whisk your taste buds away to the tropics with pineapple-inspired recipes boasting floral notes and a beautiful balance of tangy, tart sweetness. Although you can find it canned, fresh is always best. To check for ripeness, sniff the bottom of the pineapple. If it smells slightly sweet, it’s ready to eat.
- Three kinds of chile peppers—ancho, guajillo, and chipotle—make Cook and Be Merry’s Pork Tacos with Achiote & Grilled Pineapple literally hot off the grill (pictured above).
- Veggie Belly’s Pineapple and Coconut Rasam is a spiced, broth-based soup from South India that’s flavored with tamarind pulp and fresh sprigs of cilantro.
- Chewy, dried chunks of ginger and crushed pineapple dot Bakingdom’s Pineapple Gelato with Fresh Rosemary.
- Closet Cooking’s Korean Pineapple BBQ Chicken Quesadillas are dripping with jack and cheddar cheese and spicy Korean-style salsa roja.
- Delicious on crackers, eCurry’s cumin, coriander, and cinnamon-scented Indian Spiced Pineapple Chutney is bold enough to pair with your favorite pungent cheese.
- Mama’s Gotta Bake’s juicy, caramelized slices of Roast Pineapple and Pistachios are cooled down with a dollop of creme fraiche and torn mint leaves.
- Like a lunchtime rice pudding, Coffee and Vanilla’s chilled Rice Salad with Pineapple, Red Kidney Beans, Corn and Raisins is dressed with sour cream and lots of fresh black pepper.
Intoxicate your Valentine
Photo: Courvoisier
Valentine’s Day is my favorite fake holiday, stemming from kindergarten when even Jared Levine, the class heartthrob, had to give me a doily-covered cardboard. Beyond the bliss of teacher enforced equality, Valentine’s Day holds true significance for me because it’s when I drank my first cocktail (if you’d consider a cranberry-Popov a cocktail). No, I wasn’t pouring my post-break-up tears into a Solo cup, if that’s what you’re thinking. It was a tumbler.
Since that landmark occasion, I have celebrated every Valentine’s Day like most romantics do: by drinking. Whether you’re toasting your best “Gal-entines” or sharing a solo evening with your own Jared Levine, the “Rosé Kiss” created by Moses Laboy of NYC’s Red Rooster, makes a sweet start to your night of swooning.
To create it at home, muddle pineapple (canned is fine) and mint in a cocktail shaker. Then, add 2 parts Courvoisier Rosé, ½ part French dry vermouth, ½ part fresh lime juice, 3 splashes of bitters and ¼ part simple syrup (or less if you don’t want to be cursing Cupid’s hangover). Shake well and pour into a rocks glass. Garnish with a fresh pineapple chunk and gaze longingly.
