Monday 22 April 2013

Pineapple Casserole



As a simple Canadian caker coming from a country with only 10 11 12 provinces, I often find keeping track of all those U.S. states confusing. I mean, Alabama, New York, Wisconsin, Miami. There's just so many of them.

I have some American Caker Cooking readers, so I like to give both of them a shout out every now and then by featuring a recipe from their land. This week’s recipe comes from a place called Lake Hasavu in Arizona. For those Canadians who don’t know where Arizona is, it’s that rocky place where the Brady Bunch went on vacation.

Just to add to my American confusion, this Pineapple Casserole is made with canned pineapple chunks, Ritz crackers and cheese. That's pretty much it. I mean, where’s the ground beef? The cream-of-something soup? Where’s the salt, for crying out loud?!?

Enough whining. Pineapple Casserole is tasty enough in that weird fruit-and-cheese kind of way. For all I know, it could be a popular dish in Arizona. But next time, I think I'll opt for pork chaps and appleshach.

4 cans Dole pineapple, well drained or 2 larger cans of other brand
1 ½ cups grated cheese
2/3 cup crushed Ritz crackers
5 tablespoons flour
1 stick margarine, melted

This makes a large batch – 9x9” Pyrex casserole pan (square). Serves 12-16. (May use smaller pan and make ½ batch for family size.

Place pineapple evenly over bottom of pan. Mix flour with grated cheese and sprinkle over pineapple. Sprinkle crushed Ritz crackers (or substitute salt-free crackers). Pour melted margarine over, bake 30 min. at 350 degrees. Good served hot with a meat course or later served either hot or cold as a snack or dessert.


Source: Havasu Regional Hospital Auxiliary, Lake Hasavu City, Arizona

17 comments:

  1. Holy yikes! You know, if you used mozzarella cheese and mixed in some ham chunks and cherry tomatoes, it would be a Hawaiian Pizza sort of casserole thingy. Wouldn't that be fun?

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    1. Not a bad idea, Gustia. But I can't help but think it'd be a heck of a lot easier to pick up the phone and call Domino's instead.

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  2. I guess this is the hearty, 'feed the family' version of that cocktail party classic - cheese and pineapple on sticks stuck in half a grapefruit (then throw away the grapefruit).

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    1. Your cocktail parties sound pretty fancy. I only wish I could afford sticks.

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  3. Hello, from the southwest USA! (:waves!!!:) I'm not sure what the hell is going on in Arizona but perhaps the incredibly hot weather inspires more "cool" casseroles. Perfect for serving with roadkill already cooked on the skillet-like pavement. Or, the perfect accompaniment to a sandwich cake.

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    1. Hi Stephanie! (waves back!) I will say this about Pineapple Casserole - it's one of the brightest things I've ever featured on this blog. It's like a ray of sunshine compared to my usual browns, greys and beiges. I wore sunglasses while I ate it.

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  4. I don't understand this recipe. At all.
    I think I need to lie down now...

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    1. Veg-o-matic, as one of my two American readers, I was hoping you might be able to shed some light on this recipe. But now you've gone off and laid down and I'm just as lost as ever...

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    2. It's pineapple. And cheese. And Ritz crackers. There is NO explanation for this recipe at all. Is it a fruity main dish? A cheesy dessert? Maybe it's a side dish or an appetizer.
      I. Don't. Know.
      And I think I'm actually more confused now than I was before.
      Musta been something in the water at Lake Havasu.

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  5. For a split second I considered making this for a new man in my life then I realised that he wasn't ready for this yet. I'll stick to the Celia Johnson's Chocolate Sponge Cake.

    Is it wrong that I REALLY like the sound of this and have everything I need to make it to hand without going out of the door

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    1. You did the right thing. Too many people have made the mistake of serving Pineapple Casserole too early in their relationship and, well, those people are still single today. Timing is everything.

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  6. Toward end of each month I adventure out, look and visit different blogs....sure sound easy enough and pretty much pineapple does go well with most pork dishes.
    Hope you fine a few moment to stop in at my blog and the coffee is on.

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    1. Thanks for dropping by, Dora. I'm always up for a cup of coffee and will check out your blog.

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  7. My mom makes this every year for (American) Thanksgiving. It's almost always the first dish to get 100% eaten. I think for me personally the magic comes from the butteriness of the ritz crackers, combined with the additional butteriness of the stick of butter, combined with the sweetness of the pineapple. I could take or leave the cheese.

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    1. Hallelujah! I finally hear from someone who's had this dish before. Thank you, Leah!

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  8. I'm an American lover of caker cooking. I grew up on it (our moms sound gharishly similar) and still find a fondness for it today. But I never had "Pineapple Casserole" until I moved to KY for college. Maybe it's a regional thing... although that doesn't at all explain why it would be showing up in a cookbook from AZ. So much for that hypothesis. But the stuff is good. All the "cotton heads" (old ladies) at work bring this to potluck days and it's the first thing I go for.

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    1. This recipe will forever be in my "Caker WTF" file. And that file is getting pretty big. I don't blame you for going for it at the potlucks. Those pineapple chunks are like rays of light, beckoning you.

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