How To: Cut a Pineapple

With summer quickly approaching, this means more fruit! One of my favorite summer fruits is pineapple. They are so sweet and juicy, and they are also great frozen and blended in smoothies, or even grilled and thrown into salads. Pineapples look pretty intimidating, and many people have no idea how to cut into it, so I wanted to show you guys just how easy it is!



First...

you want your pineapple to be RIPE, to pick a ripe pineapple: pull a leaf from the middle of the fruit, and the easier the leaf comes out, the more ripe it is. You also don't want your pineapple to have a lot of green....so the more yellow, the better! Also, you should be able to smell the pineapple before you cut into it.

These three signs all guarantee your pineapple is ready to get cut open and be eaten! If your pineapple still needs some ripening, leave it out on the counter until it's ripe. Once it's ripe, you can stick it in the fridge until you're ready to cut it.

 

It's time to cut open your lovely pineapple! Start by breaking off the leaves/hair of the pineapple. Just simply twist it right off..

 

Now, you want to cut off both ends so you have two flat surfaces to keep the pineapple from rolling around, or toppling over..

Time to get rid of the skin! Stand it up on one end and go around each side, cutting off the outer layer. Try to leave as much of the actual pineapple, and only cut off the skin..

 Now, your pineapple should look like this..



Once you have the skin off, there is usually some spots of skin still remaining, so to get rid of this just use a knife to cut out the little spots. Again, try to leave as much of the pineapple while doing this..

Now, it's time to cut out the core. Pineapples have a hard core in the center, much like an apple or pear, so to cut this out I like to stand it up, cut around it, and then just pull it out. The core is a lighter yellow, so it's pretty easy to see it.

Lastly, chop up your pineapple into pieces, you can make them big or small depending on your preference. 

YUMMMMMMM.......

Pro Tip: Set a plastic bag beside your cutting
board, this way you can just put all your trash into this
and avoid taking "trips" to the trashcan.
Also, it makes the cleanup a little easier.

Orange You Glad You Came?

While on vacation at Disney, I took advantage of the Florida produce, and made sure to stop for a few minutes to get some delicious Florida oranges. On our way to Disney World on the first day, I noticed a HUGE building that was shaped like an orange. I started freaking out, and knew that was the place I wanted to go to get some oranges.

On the last day we were in Florida, we stopped at Orange World to check out their oranges. Unfortunately, the building wasn't filled with fruit (like I thought it was) but there was a beautiful selection of freshly picked oranges and grapefruits. There were also samples of all the fruit that was being sold so we were able to taste to see which types of oranges we like best. After trying all the different types of oranges, my mom and I decided to go with the Valencia oranges. They were big, juicy, and very sweet. We bought a huge bag so that we could share some with family back in North Carolina.



  


Take advantage of your vacation location, and take home some food souvenirs that will bring your vacation back home with you!

                                   

Cauliflower Mashed 'Potatoes'

Looking for ways to sneak more vegetables into your diet, or even your kid's diet? Here's a great way to add some more nutrition into everyone's favorite side dish....mashed potatoes! Also, these mashed 'potatoes' don't take as long to make, because you don't have to wait forever for your potatoes to cook. These cauliflower mashed potatoes can be a great base for many flavors, you could add cheese, sauces, spices, or other vegetables to give them a little kick. Be creative and try out different things to add into your delicious mashed cauliflower!








Ingredients:

1 head of cauliflower

that's it! Just one ingredient! 

Step One:

Put a pot of water on the stove top to boil..



Step Two:
Cut up your cauliflower into pieces..



Step Three: 
Let your cauliflower boil for about eight minutes, or until they are fork tender..

  

Step Four: 
Strain your cauliflower over the sink, then transfer it into a bowl..

  

Step Five:
"mash" your cauliflower using an immersion blender. If you don't have an immersion blender (which you totally should, it's amazing!) you could probably use a blender, but I've never tried it with a one. With an immersion blender, simply pulse it until the cauliflower is smooth and creamy.

    

Step Six:

Add whatever spices, or add-ins you would like. I topped mine with just some pepper, sea salt, and garlic powder. Then, enjoy!

Quick and Easy Pumpkin Dip

Do you love apples, but are wanting to change up the taste? Well I've got a quick, simple, healthy dip for you to try! I absolutely l o v e pumpkin, and almost always have a container of pumpkin puree in my refrigerator. Last night I needed to use it up, and so I created this delicious pumpkin butter and dipped some apple slices into it. y u m m m m . . . .

             

Pumpkins contain lots of fiber, as well as beta-carotene (which gives it that beautiful orange color) which is a very important vitamin for your eyesight! And of course apples are just plain perfect (go look at my top five favorite fruits to find out why http://cookinglittle.blogspot.com/2014/02/my-favorite-fruits.html ) Some people don't know how to use pumpkin, so this is a great way to use any leftover cans of pumpkin that you may still have from Thanksgiving.

Ingredients: (for one serving)

apples (however many you want to eat)
2-3 Tbsp. pumpkin puree (make sure it is NOT pumpkin pie filling)
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 Tbsp. Stevia (honey, or maple syrup would work great as well)


And it's just as simple as putting the canned pumpkin in a bowl, along with the cinnamon, ginger, and stevia, and then mixing it up! Quick snack in less than five minutes! This would also be a great party dip, if you're wanting to serve/bring something a little sweet.

Sweet Potato Fries

Sweet potatoes, as you know are my one true love in life, so I try to find different ways to eat them. Roasting them is probably one of my favorites, they are so great with seasonings, or just plain. Also, they make for a great transportation for dip to my mouth. Yumm!

I encourage you, if you try this recipe, to experiment with different seasonings.
Some of my suggestions are:
     Cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger
     Chili powder, cumin, paprika
     Garlic, rosemary, sea salt, pepper

but definitely let your inner chef take control, and try whatever it's telling you!

Step One:

Wash/scrub your beautiful potatoes....and f.y.i. all of these potatoes were less than TWO DOLLARS!?!
   

Step Two:

Cut your potatoes in either sticks, like I did, or cubes. Try to keep them the same size so they can evenly cook. 

Step Three:

LIGHTLY spray your soon to be fries with olive oil spray, or even better, coconut oil spray.

Step Four:

Season those babies up! Use whatever types of seasonings your heart desires, and use as much or as little as you'd like. I used the Roasted Garlic & Herb seasoning by McCormick, and I think it made them taste quite similar to Arby's curly fries....but then again, it's been a while since I've tasted an Arby's curly fry..

Step Five: 

Give them a shake, gently shake the pan to get all the fries seasoned...or you can just use your hands to move them around. 

Step Six: 

Put them in the oven (425 degrees) I usually leave them in there for around ten to fifteen minutes, depending on how small I cut them. But just keep checking on them every five minutes to make sure they don't burn. I like my fries super crispy, so I leave them in a little longer, but if you like yours not as crispy, then take them out sooner. 

Step Seven:

Let your fries cool off, if you can wait that long...

Step Eight:

Enjoy your delicious fries! I made these for my sister, along with some homemade mac and cheese (which will be featured in an upcoming post....so keep a look out!). 

Also, she wanted to dip hers in ranch, and I dipped mine in salsa. You could also use hummus, or balsamic vinegar, or really anything you'd like to dip them in....or just enjoy them by themselves. 

   

Orange Ginger Smoothie

Thanks to Earth Fare, I got a free bag of oranges that I need eat. So after a long workout today, I decided I needed a smoothie that would rehydrate me and would be super sweet.....and this is what I came up with. 

Disclaimer: use frozen bananas, I didn't have any bananas that were frozen, so it wasn't as creamy. 

What you'll need:

• three small juice oranges (or two large oranges)
• two bananas (USE FROZEN, it is seriously so much better!) (also, make sure the skins are as spotty as possible!)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk- homemade is definitely better, but I didn't have any made :( 
• ginger root- this is optional, but I think it gives it a little zing, plus it has tons of health benefits!
• personally, I don't eat dairy, but if you, you can add in up to 1/2 cup of yogurt (plain/greek is suggested)

First....

    get all your ingredients together, obviously..

    also, the minion is optional, but I mean who would want to leave him out?!

Second....

Peel your oranges and remove the seeds. The little orange peeler I have is from Pampered Chef and is only 1 dollar! Definitely a great investment!

 Third....

Grate in your ginger. To use fresh ginger root, simply take a knife or vegetable peeler and remove the skin, then use a grater to grate the ginger. Fresh ginger can be stored in the freezer in a ziploc bag to keep it nice and fresh.

Fourth.....

Pour in your almond milk. I didn't really measure it, but guessed it was about a 1/4 cup. Also, if you'd like for it to be a little colder, add in some ice at this point as well. 

Fifth....

Put in your two bananas, and blend it all up!

Sixth....

Pour it into a jar, and enjoy! Yummmmmmm....