BIRD + CLEAVER

When it is nice outside, we love to cook on the grill. Obviously, if you are going for flavor, charcoal is best. But, there are downsides. It is temperamental, and I am impatient. It is certainly not an instant gratification cooking method. And while those things can be a pain, there is one that bugs me far more than having to wait a few extra minutes  or having to add a little more newspaper to the chimney starter. I absolutely can't stand to just let those beautiful coals just burn into nothing after dinner is done. It's such a waste, makes me crazy! I have been known to root through the depths of the pantry looking for "something for later". I would cook almost anything to not have to waste those beautiful, red hot pieces carbon.

But, what if you didn't stop at dinner? What if you just kept on going right to the very end. What about soaking something in a bath of sugar and some of that booze you just can't seem to get rid of and tossing those onto the heat.  Yes, that's it, I will grill my dessert! Finally, the answer! The coals will not burn in vain!

• 1 fresh pineapple, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices and cored
• 1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1/2 cup rum
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• pinch of salt

 for the sundae:

• vanilla ice cream
• unsweetened coconut flakes
• toasted pecan pieces
• boozy sauce

marinate pineapple in sauce for about 30 minutes.  Make sure grill is hot ( yes, we are pretty technical with this part) and place rings on direct heat.  Brush with a bit of marinade, and cook on each side for about a minute.  Remove from grill and set aside.

Place remaining pineapple marinade in small sauce pan and cook over medium heat until gooey and caramel-y.  This should only take a few minutes. Remove from heat.

Assemble your sundaes.  Ice cream, pineapple, gooey/boozy caramel sauce, coconut and toasted pecans.  Enjoy!


**In the spirit of full disclosure I should probably mention that we realize grilled pineapple is not very cutting edge. However, we are totally cool with that. It was something we whipped up after dinner and it just so happened that is was really awesome. So, we thought we'd share. Also, remember all that good stuff I said about charcoal? Yeah, it's true; but you also remember that I am impatient, right? Well, I cooked it on the gas grill. Yeah, so what! I needed a paragraph about grilling that played to the emotions of summertime, and wasting charcoal was what I came up with. In all seriousness though, we have cooked this dish with both types of outdoor magic, and we prefer the Caveman method over Hank Hill's any day. So, there you have it.