Grilled Tropical Pound Cake and Pineapple

Since becoming pregnant my taste and tolerance for food has really changed.  Let's be honest, my motivation to make things has changed quite a bit as well.  You may have noticed this by my (lack of) blogging lately.  But, rest assured, at 35+ weeks pregnant there is a light at the end of this preggo tunnel and not only am I super excited to meet this little bun I have been cooking but I am also excited to get into the kitchen and make some delicious things to share.  

For the time being I am on the lookout for easy, delicious things to make that require the least amount of thinking.  I have to say that I have fallen even more in love with Tastefully Simple while pregnant.  The ease of their recipes coupled with knowing that everything I have made from their product line has turned out great is really fantastic.  Let's be honest, there is nothing worse than putting any amount of time and energy into something and it doesn't turn out.  

A few weekends ago we had our annual couple's trip to the lake.  It was so fantastic to catch up, laugh and relax with three of our favorite couples.  Standing in the lake with the sun on my skin and weight off my joints was just about the most amazing thing ever.  After spending an entire day on/in the lake we came back for an awesome dinner.  I offered to bring dessert and it did not disappoint.  I had help from the ladies of the group who I have to say were great blogging assistants…racing the daylight, holding things at the grill and helping with "accessorizing" the last shot.  Here is how it went down 

 This recipe starts off with following the directions on the box of Tropical Pound Cake Mix.

 Pour the mix into a bowl

 Add in melted butter

 Water

 And stir.  Yep, that easy.

Pour the batter into a loaf pan

 Spread out on the top and pop this baby in the oven.  Just wait until you start smelling it bake!

 Next, I got to work on the pineapple

 Cut off the top

 And used this amazing pineapple tool to cut it into rings

 I'm seriously obsessed with this thing.  I detached the rings and placed them in a container to bring to the lake

 By that time the pound cake was done.  I let it cool completely and wrapped it in tin foil for travel.

 When we were ready to make dessert I cut the Tropical Pound Cake into nice thick slices

 Out to the grill we went

 First we added the pineapple rings to the top rack.  The grill was preheated on medium high heat.

 I lightly spritzed the pound cake with canola oil spray…coconut oil spray would work as well.

 On to the grill with the poundcake

 We monitored things very closely and after a few minutes, the pound cake was ready to be flipped.

 Same with the pineapple.

 To assemble, we placed the Tropical Pound Cake on the plate, topped with the grilled pineapple and a dollop of whipped cream.

 Paper umbrella optional but highly recommended.

I have to say this Grilled Tropical Pound Cake with Pineapple was a huge hit!  The pound cake stayed nice and moist and was perfectly complimented with the tart yet sweet pineapple and whipped cream.  Not only did this dessert wow our tastebuds, it was pretty stinking cute.

Grilled Tropical Pound Cake and Pineapple 
(serves 10)

1 box Tropical Pound Cake
3/4 cup melted butter
1 cup water
1 fresh pineapple
Canola or coconut oil spray
whipped cream for serving

Start by preparing the Tropical Pound Cake by following the directions on the box.  Once baked, let cool completely and either serve or wrap in tin foil until ready to make dessert.

Cut the pineapple into rings.  Set aside until ready to grill.

When ready to make dessert, preheat the grill to medium high heat.  Place the pineapple rings on the top wrack of the grill.  Then lightly spray each side of the pound cake with the cooking spray.  Place on the main wrack of the grill and watch closely.  We didn't even shut the grill this happened so quickly.  Once the first side of the pound cake has grill marks, flip it to the second side.  Flip the pineapple to warm and make grill marks on the other side.  Once everything is all warm and grilled-marked up, remove from the grill to assemble.

Place the pound cake on a plate, top with a ring of pineapple and dollop of whipped cream.  Paper umbrellas really add something special as well :)

Enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

***DISCLAIMER: I was provided with product and compensation for this post from Tastefully Simple.  All opinions are my own and as aways, you can't buy my love, baby.**

Chili Pasta Bake and a Cooking Planit and T-Fal Giveaway!

In my last post I did a little demo of how to use the cool new Cooking Planit application.  This time I am going to talk a little about my experience using the T-Fal cookware that was sent for me to review and GIVEAWAY!  I made this awesome Chili Pasta Bake which is perfect for chilly weather that is right around the corner this fall.  YAY!  

First I drizzled a little canola oil in the skillet to get things going.  As you can see there is a thermo-spot in the middle…just watch...

Once the skillet gets hot, the little target in the middle disappears.  To the naked eye, it truly was gone but in this picture it still shows up a bit.  Awesome!

From there I added the onions and let them sauté a bit...

I then added the ground beef

And seasoned with a bit of salt

And plenty of black pepper. From here, let the meat cook until no longer pink.

Meanwhile, I brought the stock pot out and filled it with hot water.  How pretty is she!?

And how smart, it has the measurements inside of the pot!  Awesome!  I brought this to a boil and cooked my pasta--yeah I didn't take a picture of that but you can handle cooking pasta, right?

Once the ground beef was cooked, I added tomato sauce

And diced and fire roasted tomatoes with green chilis.  LOVE that stuff.

Gave it a quick stir

And added a few kidney beans.

Next came the seasoning, lots of chili powder

Cumin

Cayenne powder

And a bit of water

Gave it a stir and let it bubble for a bit

I drained the noodles and added them back to the pot

I then added the chili mixture to the noodles 

And gave it a quick stir to combine.

After that, I poured everything into a 9x13 pan

And sprinkled with a three cheese mix.  I popped it in the oven for 30 minutes until it came out looking like...

THIS!

Cheesy chili pasta goodness.

We topped ours with a  little sour cream and green onions, just like we like our favorite Perfect Chili.

This will definitely be a staple in the Schwartz Household this fall and winter!

Chili Pasta Bake

• ½ Tablespoons Canola Or Vegetable Oil
• 1 pound Ground Beef
• 1 whole Onion, Chopped
• 1 dash Salt
• 1 dash Black Pepper
• ½ pounds Cooked Pasta
• 15 ounces, fluid Tomato Sauce
• 14-½ ounces, weight Diced Tomatoes And Green Chilies
• 15 ounces, weight Kidney Or Black Beans, Rinsed
• 1-½ Tablespoon Chili Powder
• 2 teaspoons Cumin
• 3 dashes Cayenne Powder
• ¼ cups Water
• 2 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• ½ cups Sour Cream, For Topping
• 4 Tablespoons Green Onions, Chopped

Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees.

Drizzle the oil in a large skillet on medium high heat. Add the onions and sauté for about 3 minutes. Add the ground beef and season with salt and pepper. Cook until no longer pink.

While the ground beef is cooking, cook your pasta to firm al dente. Once cooked, drain and set aside for now.

After the ground beef is cooked, add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes and green chiles, beans chili powder, cumin, cayenne and water. Give it a stir and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes, stir in the cooked pasta. Stir to combine.

Pour the chili pasta mixture into a 9×13 pan. Flatten out with a spatula and sprinkle with cheese. Place in the oven for 30 minutes or until the edges are bubbling and the cheese has fully melted.

Spoon into serving dishes and top with sour cream and green onions.

Enjoy!

(NOTE MY FORMATTING IS ALL DIFFERENT BECAUSE I COPIED AND PASTED THIS FROM MY TASTYKITCHEN PAGE.) 

Isn't this cookware set just about the prettiest thing you have ever set your eyes on!?  Well, not only are they gorgeous, they are oven safe to 500 degrees, are dishwasher safe, have a limited lifetime warrantee  and have a stainless steel interior!  I have to say, I also made eggs the other day in the skillet and wow, that baby cooked my eggs to perfection cleaned like nothing! 

So, after all of that, have I convinced you that this cookware is awesome?  Well good, because you can WIN it! Use the Rafflecopter widget below and let me know if you have any questions!  

You will need to create a Cooking Planit account to enter and your an do so by going here.  Or you can download the FREE or for purchase app by going to the app store on your phone.  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The giveaway started on August 19th and goes until August 25th.  I will be announcing the big winner on Monday, August 26th.  If you don't win on my blog, please check out the other 49 bloggers who are participating below:  

THE COOKING PLANIT AND T-FAL 2013 GIVEAWAY
Start	End	Flight 1	Flight 2
8/19/13	8/25/13	Baby Boomster	Mrs. Schwartz’s Kitchen
8/20/13	8/26/13	CopyKat Recipes	Daily Dish Recipes
8/21/13	8/27/13	Lisa Cooking	Lark’s Country Heart
8/22/13	8/28/13	ME Redone	Hot Eats and Cool Reads
8/23/13	8/29/13	Mother Would Know	The Two Bite Club
8/24/13	8/30/13	Sophistishe	Citron Limette
8/25/13	8/31/13	Kitchen Concoctions	Cupcakes and Kale Chips
8/26/13	9/1/13	I Can Cook That	Leave a Happy Plate
8/27/13	9/2/13	Peaches & Cake	i love my disorganized life
8/28/13	9/3/13	Diddles & Dumplings	Yates Yummies
8/29/13	9/4/13	basilmomma	Cooking With Libby
8/30/13	9/5/13	Persnickety Plates	Creole Contessa
8/31/13	9/6/13	Ancestral Chef	Bite Sized Blog
9/1/13	9/7/13	The Staten Island Family	Mamal Diane
9/2/13	9/8/13	Food Fash	Recipes For My Boys
9/3/13	9/9/13	The Wicked Noodle	Hungry Little Girl
9/4/13	9/10/13	Unorganized Mommy of 3	The Tasty Fork
9/5/13	9/11/13	Yi Reservation	Dixie Chik Cooks
9/6/13	9/12/13	Chicago Foodie Sisters	The Fountain Avenue Kitchen
9/7/13	9/13/13	Cooking from a SAHM	FoodThoughtsOfaChefWannabe
9/8/13	9/14/13	Bobbi’s Kozy Kitchen	Rants from My Crazy Kitchen
9/9/13	9/15/13	What Jew Wanna Eat	Sumptuous Spoonfuls
9/10/13	9/16/13	The Mama Report	Busy Mom of Two
9/11/13	9/17/13	Culicurious	Huppie Mama
9/12/13	9/18/13	Three Diets. One Dinner.	Spice’s Bites

• FINE PRINT: Contests open to US only. Limit one winner per household/per family from the 50 blogs participating in the promotion. Individuals winning more than one giveaway will receive 1 set of cookware and the other winning entries will be disqualified and an alternate winner will be chosen. 

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I was given a set of T-Fal pans as a promotion to try before giving a set away.  Please know that all of the opinions are my own, as always, you cannot buy my love baby.