I'm Calling It: PINEAPPLES ARE IN!

It's true. Summer tends to be a time when pineapple themed items hit the racks, but this year it is definitely the year of the pineapple. From prints to patterns, coffee mugs to handbags (do people say handbags?) they're everywhere. And I am LOVING it!
I've had a pretty long and loving relationship with pineapples. In fact, I actually walked down the aisle holding a freshly picked pineapple from my bro-in-laws garden!

Now, I'm not saying that I formed this serious appreciation from watching the show Psych (because obviously, pineapples are just delicious) but I definitely think it deepened it. In each show, there's a "hidden" pineapple and when we would have viewing parties at one of my friends' apartments in college, we'd always try to spot it.

(Quote from one of the episodes)

Plus, you know, living it Hawaii didn't hurt either. Dole Plantation was one of my favorite places to even just drive past. You could smell the pineapples from the jeep; amazing!
I think a lot of people know Dole Whips from Disney, but I had never had one until visiting the gift shop at the plantation where they were made from fresh picked pineapples! It was divine!

Here we are, enjoying a dole whip with Mr. Husband's brother and his wife
(she's a kindred spirit and fellow pineapple enthusiast:) )

I actually think it all began on a fateful trip to PA one summer. I had seen several pineapples on various things (i.e. Barns, pillows, candles, etc) and wondered why they were everywhere. We looked it up and found out that pineapples are actually a sign of hospitality! So, I mean, being from the South... Hospitality practically runs in my veins...


More recently, my pineapples come in the form of lotions, tote bags, t-shirts and jewelry. However, when summer rolls around and I'm able to get my hands on a nice ripe one, I pretty much make my tongue raw eating so much. Also, a nice switch up from just plain pineapple is pineapple with a light sprinkling of Tajin seasoning. This is something  I had in Hawaii but was recently reintroduced to me by my big sister (who even got me a bottle to take home as they now carry at it one of my favorite places that we don't have here; Publix...that's a whole different blog post...).

Yum!

It's pretty delicious, and it seems like it cuts the acidity a bit. It's hard to explain exactly how it tastes, but it gives it a somewhat savory flavor and just compliments the fruit so well. Definitely worth trying!

So there you have it. I just did a whole post about my passion for pineapples and how the world seems to have finally caught on...I guess it was only a matter of time...