Being in Hawaii for Spring Break was incredibly inspiring. I can see why artists go on extravagant adventures to places they’ve never been before. Getting to experience such a unique culture in Maui was eye opening and exciting! I saw new animals, ate new foods, smelled new plants, and breathed the ocean air in a way I never had before.

Even going to the grocery store was a fun experience for me. Everything in Maui was expensive…except for the pineapple, which was only $0.99! Naturally, we bought a few and then realized that was a couple too many to eat in one week. Since vacation to me means dessert, I figured I could make something out of our leftovers!

Cutting open the juicy pineapple, I knew I had to embrace the beauty of this fruit. It’s hearty texture really holds up to being baked. A simple crumble topping turns the fruit into a delightful dessert. The real finishing touch was adding some sweetened coconut to the top… nothing says island paradise like coconuts!

Enjoy this treat on your next vacation, or make it tonight and let yourself sail away! I had it for dessert one night, and then ate it the next morning for breakfast… that’s what vacations are for though, right?

Ingredients:

1 Pineapple
1 cup Flour
1 cup Light Brown Sugar
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1 pinch of Salt
1 Egg
1/2 cup Butter
1/2 cup Sweetened, Shredded Coconut
Vanilla Ice Cream

Preheat the oven to 350 deg F. Take your pineapple and chop it up in to bite sized pieces. Place the fruit in a 13″ x 9″ pan (or a huge skillet like me, we didn’t have one in the vacation condo).

Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and egg until fully mixed. Melt the butter in the microwave and pour over the top of the mixture. Use your hands to combine the topping together. It should end up as one giant mass of sticky topping. Pull small pieces of the topping apart and sprinkle over the top of the pineapple. Shake the shredded coconut over the top.

Bake the crumble for 40 minutes in the middle of the oven, and then finish for 10 minutes on the top rack of the oven to brown the coconut!

Serve it up hot with cold vanilla ice cream over the top! It also heats up well again in the microwave after being stored in the refrigerator for about a week.