Pineapple Coconut Pepper-Studded Rice and a Tropical Pineapple Hot Fudge Sundae

Last Friday I had a lifelong dream come true:  ice cream.  Delivered.  Right to my doorstep.

 

At 10am.

 

I’m living the life, y’all.  You don’t even know!

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program I was lucky enough to get to try the Häagen-Dazs® Pineapple Coconut Ice Cream.  OMG.

 

OH.

 

EM.

 

GEE.

 

Let me take this quick moment though to remind you guys not to let dry ice touch your skin.  Oh, I wore gloves to get the ice cream out of the box, but a small piece fell on the floor and I totally stepped on it.  OUCH.  Don’t do that…

I couldn’t decide what I wanted to make with the ice cream though!  I mean, obviously a dessert-y type thing would be in the cards (adoy – just wait til the end of the post!) but I couldn’t just stop there.  I felt like something savory would be a fabulous change-up with such a great product.  SOOOOOOOOOOOO…I made a delicious coconut-pineapple rice studded with jalapenos and red peppers.

 

Trust me, you want this.

But wait!  There’s more!  You can’t just have an ice cream party without ice cream dessert.  It’s not possible, nor should it be attempted.

I couldn’t decide what to do dessert-wise but finally decided to stick with a tropical spin on the classic sundae.  You guys know how obsessed we are with Hawaii and all things tropical…really, would you expect anything different?

 

Fully coconut-y, fully sweet and fully delicious.  Now if you’ll excuse me I’m going to go eat another gallon of this goodness.  Because OMG.

PINEAPPLE COCONUT PEPPER-STUDDED RICE

• 1 cup white long-grain rice
• 1 cup defrosted Häagen-Dazs® pineapple coconut ice cream (I defrosted mine in the fridge overnight)
• 3 cups water, divided
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 jalapeno, chopped (remove all seeds if you don’t want a lot of heat)
• 1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1 tsp olive oil

In a small saucepan bring the rice, defrosted ice cream, salt and 2 cups of water to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes until the liquid is absorbed.  NOTE: depending on the humidity and where you live (i.e. I am at a higher altitude) you may need to add a little more water and continue cooking to make sure that the rice is thoroughly cooked.  Meanwhile saute the peppers in olive oil until tender.  When the rice is done gently fold in the peppers (this keeps the rice nice and white!) and adjust seasonings as needed.

 

TROPICAL PINEAPPLE COCONUT HOT FUDGE SUNDAE

• 1 pint Häagen-Dazs® pineapple coconut ice cream
• 4 slices pound cake
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk
• 1 tsp coconut oil

In a small saucepan heat the coconut milk and coconut oil together, stirring frequently, until steam starts to form.  Remove from heat and whisk in the chocolate chips until smooth and creamy.  In a glass layer the ice cream, pound cake, coconut hot fudge sauce, and repeat.  Devour!

 

(Also pictured: macadamia nut brittle, following this exact recipe but using dry-roasted macadamia nuts in lieu of peanuts).

 

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I received a stipend and coupons for free Häagen-Dazs® ice cream