Brown Butter Glazed Pineapple with Vanilla Bean Icecream

Ahh, palm trees, ocean breezes, crabs, and snorkeling...you guessed it, I'm not in Georgia anymore! We are visiting relatives in sunny, steamy, south Florida. That's right -- at precisely the time of year when most people are fleeing the summer heat of the tropics, we're enjoying the quiet beaches and light traffic of Florida in the summertime. My kids are totally grooving on the screened in pool in the backyard, as well a diverse selection of Florida critters including lizards, snails, land crabs, cicadas and manatees. OK, it may not be everyone's idea of heaven, but we adore the beach in all types of conditions, and when you have a free place to stay that's (literally) right around the corner from the beach it makes us want to stay for a LONG time! And by offering to cook in exchange for a place to stay, I get the best of both worlds: wonderful food AND the beach!   

Since it's Secret Recipe Club time, I was hoping to find the perfect tropical desert. For our main menu, I made these fresh amazing chicken feta tacos (which I actually made into fish feta tacos this go round since we're, duh, at the ocean). I was hoping for something fresh & fruity, something light, something that tasted like.... well, Florida! And then, as I was searching through Cairns Manor, I came across the perfect dessert for the occasion:  Brown Butter and Rum Glazed Pineapple.

Fresh, fruity, tropical and delish -- what's not to love? Off we went to the store to get pineapple and few hundred other things I'll need on this trip. Along the way I made some adjustments to Jo's recipe, removing the rum and adding some extra spices, including salt and pepper because sweet and salty always go together. The end result was delicious with a great blend of tastes and textures and warm pineapple pairing nicely with ice cream.  

Before I get into this yummy recipe, a quick side note to introduce: Jo over at Cairns Manor: Jo is a Midwife, and people like her hold a special place in my heart because I could never do her job. I'm a real medical wimp and I stand in awe of those in the industry. My Mom was a Nurse  and actually is still involved in the medical field as a consultant. Jo and my Mom are heroes. I'm so glad God did not create us all alike, because wimps like me could never give anyone a shot!! Thank you Jo for all you do.

On Jo's blog, she made this pineapple dessert and served it with angel food cake. I decided on pound cake AND ice cream. Really good Breyer's Vanilla Bean ice cream. It was delicious. Everyone asked for seconds. The pineapple glaze ran over the cake. The heat of the pineapple melted the ice cream a little and they all mixed together for sweet, salty, tangy perfection. Go out and buy a pineapple, make this poundcake and serve this dessert tonight. If you don't want to heat up your kitchen, grill the pineapple. Ah-may-zing!

Brown Butter Glazed Pineapple
1 pineapple
1/2 c butter, unsalted
1/2 c packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Cut top and bottom off the pineapple. Following the curve of the pineapple and cut off the skin. Cut pineapple in half from top to bottom. Cut again in quarters. Now the core can easily be cut out by cutting off the point of the quartered pineapple. Cut into 1/2 inch slices and set aside.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Once melted allow to continue to cook until it foams up, the foam subsides and the butter starts to brown, then let it cook to your desired browness. Just be very careful not to let it burn! Add in the brown sugar and spices. Cook until slightly thickened, about 1 minute.

Add the pineapple to the pan. Lower heat to medium low. Cook until deep golden, about 8 minutes. Transfer the pineapple to a bowl, leaving as much glaze as you can in the skillet.

Return the pan with glaze to medium-high heat. Simmer until again thickened, about 3-4 minutes.

Grilling option: melt butter in microwave. Mix butter, sugar and spices in a large bowl. Toss with pineapple to coat. Grill pineapple over med direct heat for 5 minutes until warm with lovely grill marks.

Serve immediately with ice cream and pound cake if you dare.