Eat it the way you found it: Pineapple

I think fruit gets unfairly ignored as a legitimate dinner side dish.  You and your kids need 2-3 servings per day...will dinner put you over that mark?

When fresh pineapple is on sale, do as much as you can with it!  It's delicious as is, or chopped finely and mixed into rice.  Or GRILL IT.  Oh jah.  A little butter-lime-rum marinade and lordy, stand back!  After you cut off the stem, top and peel, slice it into 1/2" slices and use a small biscuit cutter to take out the core for grill-ready slices.

Don't throw out the peel and core...for grownups, put all extra parts in a 2 quart pitcher with a 750-ml bottle of vodka for 7 days and strain.  You're very, very welcome.  Or use the same parts to create "fruit-infused water" for drinking plain or, check this, making kick-butt naturally sweetened iced tea.  Again, you're welcome!
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Breakfast Done Yesterday

Breakfast is by far the hardest meal for me to turn out in real time.  I am NOT a morning person, and the feral monsters that emerge from my children's bedrooms at 7 am every day do not morph into pleasant little people until after they've been fed and watered.  Every minute counts, and saving even a few minutes saves a lot of my sanity.

Homemade frozen pancakes and cereal are great for the kiddos, but I like something a with a little more staying power for myself.  Neither the Morning Power Drink nor Breakfast Muesli to Go can be frozen really well, but they can be made in large batches (on Sunday night, say) and kept for a week or so in the fridge to cut a snooze-button's worth of time off your breakfast prep.

Morning Power Drink (makes 6 servings)

2 1/4 cup milk
2 1/4 cup orange juice
3 6-oz. yogurt cups (any flavor, or plain)
3 bananas
1 cup soy protein powder or non-fat dry milk powder
Optional: 3 tbsp flaxmeal

Blend all the ingredients together and refrigerate.

Breakfast Muesli To Go (makes 5 servings)

5 cups rolled oats
1 32-oz. tub low-fat plain yogurt
1 1/2 cups low-fat milk
1/2 cup honey or maple syrup
5 cups assorted berries (fresh or frozen)
Optional: 1 banana, apple or kiwi per serving

Stir together the oats, yogurt, milk, honey or maple syrup and berries.  Divide into 5 sealable containers.  If desired, slice a piece of fresh fruit just before serving and stir it into one serving of the muesli.

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