I am always shocked by the cost of pre-cut fruit in supermarkets – it’s at least double that of buying whole fruit, and sometimes more. I understand that it’s a convenience thing but, for an extra few minutes, I don’t mind peeling a mango (a y-peeler works a treat) or chopping a melon. Plus it avoids single-use plastic, and the fruit lasts longer, too.
I know some people find preparing a pineapple intimidating, but it’s actually very easy. First check it’s ripe: the leaves should come away with a gentle tug, while the base will be turning yellow and fragrant. If it’s not ready, leave it on the counter for a day or two (close to bananas will speed things up).
Slice off the crown and the base, then stand the pineapple upright on a chopping board and work your way around it, slicing the skin off from top to bottom. Cut out any ‘eyes’ with a sharp knife (they run in diagonal lines, so cutting in a spiral pattern works well and looks nice, too). Quarter the pineapple, then trim out the thick central core, and it’s ready. For a simple summer dessert, slice and scatter with brown sugar, mint leaves and a squeeze of lime juice, or make these piña colada-style lollies.
METHOD
Chop up the pineapple and put in a high-speed blender (a Nutribullet or similar works well) along with the coconut cream, honey and the zest and juice of the lime. Add a pinch of salt, then whizz until smooth.
Taste the mixture. Depending on how sweet your pineapple is, you may want to add a bit more honey or lime juice – remember the flavours will be muted once they’re frozen. At this stage you can stir in 3-4 tbsp of rum, too.
Carefully pour the pineapple and coconut cream mixture into 6 x 100ml ice-lolly moulds and freeze overnight or until ready to serve. If the ice lollies are hard to release, run the moulds under the tap briefly to loosen, then serve immediately.
