GRILLED VANILLA-GINGER PINEAPPLE

Grilled Vanilla-Ginger Pineapple image

Sherry Yard has a wonderful recipe in her first cookbook, "The Secrets of Baking," called Roasted Voodoo Vanilla Pineapple. She roasts her pineapple with the dried vanilla pods that you save after you've scraped out the seeds, and fresh ginger. She inserts the pods into the flesh of the pineapple, a great idea if you're roasting the pineapple for a long time. I decided to use vanilla extract instead of the pods, because during the relatively short time on the grill they infused only the section of the pineapple they had been stuck into. I add vanilla to the ginger syrup and baste the pineapple with this sweet and pungent mix. You could also simply drizzle the pineapple with honey.

Provided by Martha Rose Shulman

Time 25m

Yield Serves 4

Number Of Ingredients 6

Ingredients

1 large ripe pineapple
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup ginger palm sugar syrup or honey
Pinch of cayenne
1 tablespoon grape seed oil or canola oil
Fresh mint for garnish

Steps:

Cut ends off pineapple. Quarter lengthwise, peel and core.
Prepare a hot or medium-hot grill. (If you are using the grill after cooking meat or fish, allow residue to burn off and scrape away with a spatula.) Stir together vanilla extract, ginger palm sugar syrup or honey, and cayenne.
Brush pineapple wedges lightly with butter or oil and place on grill. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes per side, basting with the syrup, until you see grill marks and the pineapple is lightly colored. Remove to a platter or to plates and brush on remaining syrup or honey. Garnish with fresh mint, and serve warm.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 238, UnsaturatedFat 3 grams, Carbohydrate 54 grams, Fat 4 grams, Fiber 4 grams, Protein 2 grams, SaturatedFat 0 grams, Sodium 17 milligrams, Sugar 28 grams