Pineapple "Ice Cream"

I made this dessert for my class with my church group last week. I did a post on this months ago, but I thought I would revisit it with pictures now that it is finally starting to warm up--at least for some people. We got snow today.

This is a fabulous and healthy dessert. Claire loves it and calls it pineapple ice cream.

Pineapple Ice Cream
1 pineapple (frozen in 1 inch chunks)
1/4 cup sugar or the equivalent of your desired sweetener


I chop many pineapples at once. It makes a mess, but you only have to make a mess once.


Freeze in Ziploc bags. Usually you can fit about 2 pineapples per bag. During the freezing process, pull them out about every hour and move the pineapple around in the bag. This will help it freeze individually rather than one huge pineapple chunk.

To make the ice cream, microwave 1 pineapple at full power for about one minute until it's just starting to get soft on the outside of the chunks. Place in the food processor (You really need a food processor. A blender won't work for this unless you have a pretty impressive blender.)

Start mixing. You will have to smash it down several times. The large chunks get stuck at the top and sometimes have a hard time mixing in. Just smash them down with a rubber scraper.

Keep mixing. Smash again.

Almost Done! Keep mixing until completely smooth and the consistency of soft-serve ice cream. Taste and add a bit more sugar if needed. Mix again until sugar is incorporated.

Store in the freezer. Like homemade ice cream, this is best immediately. It gets pretty hard in the freezer. Use within a few days.

Freezer Cooking Handout

I did a class tonight on freezer cooking for my church group. I put together a handout for the class. Most of the information on the handout is from various posts here on my blog, but if you are interested in having it all together you are welcome to download the handout:

Freezer Cooking Handout

Cafe Rio Sides

Here are a couple ideas to help you use the Cafe Rio chicken. The chicken is fabulous in a burrito with these black beans, some Spanish rice, fresh cilantro and cheese. Drizzle the salad dressing on top.

Crock-pot Black Beans
2 cups dried black beans
About 3 cups of water
2 cloves of garlic
1 Tbsp salt
1 tsp cumin

Wash the dried beans pick out any rocks or beans that look funky. Pour them into a pan and add water till it is at least 2 inches above the beans. Let soak overnight (or for 8 hours.)
Drain off the water and pour beans into a crock pot. Add the 3 cups of water and the remaining ingredients. Cook on LOW for 8 hours. During the last couple hours of cooking, you can add extra water if you want them saucy.
(I added about 1 1/2 cups more water than the recipe called for. I also cooked them on high for about 6 hours and then turned them down to low for another 3-4 hours. I'm not sure that 8 hours on low would be enough. They are also a tad salty. I now use about 2 tsp salt).

Cafe Rio Salad Dressing
1 cup mayo
1 packet of Hidden Valley Ranch mix
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 of a bunch of cilantro with stems chopped off
1/2 - 1 small jalapeno (if you don’t like it spicy, remove the seeds)
1 tsp lime juice
1-2 tomatillos (remove outer papery skin and cut up)
1 garlic clove

Blend all ingredients in food processor or blender.