Pineapple rice, Broccolini, Roasted Corn

Last week I had purchased a pineapple that we loved eating. I saved the core to try out an idea - the tough core I don't think is edible, but I was wondering what it would do to rice or other grain. I prepared to make brown Basmati rice in my rice cooker, adding in some sauteed bell pepper and onion, as well as seasoning (pinch of turmeric and salt and browned cumin) - and pieces of the pineapple core. I started the vegetable broth - rice - vegetable - pineapple - spice mixture going in the rice cooker and made the rest of the meal.

I made a simple stirfry of broccolini and roasted 3 ears of corn over the open flame of my gas range. I stripped the kernels and mixed in seasonings and Earth Balance non-hydrogenated margarine - we so love fresh corn!

The rice came out well - I tried to balance the sweet flavor the pineapple core piece imparted with a little salt and spice. I'd like to try a variation of this sometime with additional savory ingredients to further tip the balance away from sweet. (The pineapple core pieces were still very tough and fibrous, and I composted them - they did their job imparting their flavor!)