How To Freeze Pinneapple

So the local grocery store here had a sale on pineapple. $1 a piece! How could I pass that up? I made a special trip just for the pineapple, and bought 6 of them.  But since I picked them at their peak of ripeness, they wouldn't keep forever and so I needed to store them. Here is everything I know about Pineapples. 

Picking a pineapple: There are many ways to pick a ripe pineapple, the smell and look and softness and so on. I like to try to pluck leaves from the center of the pineapple. If it comes out easily, it is ripe. If it is really stuck or doesn't come out, it needs a little time. 

How to make a pineapple even sweeter: My sister in law shared this little tidbit with me. When you get home from the store, cut off the leaves and flip your pineapple upside down. Let it sit like this until you chop it up; a few hours up to a few days. This helps the denser sugars/sweetness filter to the rest of the fruit. 

Cut up your pineapple. There are a few different ways you can do this. Just look it up on youtube. 

Next place a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet and spread out the chopped pineapple, trying not to let too many pieces touch. 

Stick the cookie sheet in the freezer on a flat surface and let sit for a day. The pineapple will now be frozen in individual pieces which you can conveniently stick in freezer baggies. When ready to use, you wont have to bang the bag of pineapple on the counter to try and unstick a few pieces!

Happy Freezing!

Basted BBQ Chicken Salad with Cilantro Ranch Dressing

I made this salad last week and couldn't get enough of it. I told everyone about how amazing it was. And then they asked for the recipe... so I had to be on top of things and actually post about it. 

This salad is so delicious! And easy, you probably have most of the ingredients right now. You should make it for dinner tonight. And then tell all of your friends and they will want the recipe. 

We start with the chicken. If you don't have good chicken, you can't have an amazing salad. Now, if you are scared to try new things, go ahead and just grill the the chicken. But if you are brave and daring, try this way. It is called "basting" and it makes moist, flavorful chicken in only 45 minutes. You season and bake the chicken for 20 minutes and then brush on BBQ sauce every 4 minutes until it is done. A little bit of work? Yeah, but still worth it. 

You need the basics, the lettuce, tomatoes, avacados. Add some southwestern fun like black beans and corn. If you have tortilla strips, those would probably be great too. 

And then we get to the really good stuff. BBQ sauce and Cilantro Ranch Dressing! All that saucy goodness on those fresh veggies and yummy chicken. Dream come true!

BBQ Basted Chicken

Preheat oven to 350. Cut 3 chicken breasts in half and lay the 6 sections on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper/baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil or spray with pam. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic and paprika. Bake for 20 min. Take out and brush your favorite BBQ sauce on each piece every 5 min. After 5 or so brushes, take chicken out and chop into bite sized pieces. 

Salad

1 head romainne lettuce, chopped

2 roma tomatoes, chopped

2 avacado, chopped

1 can corn, drained

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

tortilla strips 

Sauces

BBQ sauce

Cilantro Ranch: Combine the following in blender: 1 cup mayonaise, 1 cup milk, 1 packet/3 TBSP Ranch Dressing Mix, 1 bunch fresh cilantro. Thicken with mayo or thin with milk as desired. 

Sausage & Crescent Roll Breakfast Casserole

My sister in law made these for some family function or another. They are so good, it's like biscuits and cheesy gravy in a bar form. They are convenient for big groups, delicious and super easy to make (only 3 ingredients!).

Pillsbury makes the coolest thing. Crescent roll dough in one sheet! Think of all the possibilities!

Stuff it with a cream cheese and sausage mixture

Add another dough sheet and bake until golden brown. 

Make these. They are so good. And so easy, you have not reason not to. 

Sausage & Crescent Roll Casserole

1 lb of sausage ( I recommend Hot or Maple)
8oz package of Cream Cheese
2 rolls of Seamless Crescent Roll Dough

Cook sausage, add cream cheese into warm pan until incorporated. Lay dough in ungreased 9X13 pan. Top with sausage mixture and layer with another dough sheet. Bake at 350 for 20-25 min. Eat warm!