It’s hard to believe it’s almost Cinco de Drinko Mayo.
I didn’t actually realize it until I saw someone else’s blog post. Maybe that’s why I’ve been craving Mexican lately?
This concoction is an unexpectedly Mexican combo, but a tasty one. My pineapple was perfectly golden to the top, meaning it was on the sweet side. That sweetness was wonderful with the earthy beets.
The colors were nice too – pretty food tastes better!
You can use pre-cored pineapple from your grocery store, but I recommend buying pineapple whole. Whole pineapples always intimidated me in the past because I wasn’t sure how to tell if it was ripe.
Then I found a fool-proof method.
There are 2 ways that – in combination – I have found to be fool-proof:
- Color: A ripe pineapple should be golden in color. Yes, there will be some green, but there should be gold forming, particularly at the base (the sweetest part of the pineapple). The further up the gold, the sweeter the fruit.
- Leaf: You should be able to fairly easily remove a leaf from the crown of the pineapple. Some say this is a myth, but has never steered me wrong.
Cumin, red pepper, and a pinch of cinnamon give the salad its Mexican taste. The cilantro and the lime juice on top set it off and balanced the stronger spices. (If you don’t like cilantro, parsley would be an excellent sub here.)
Note: I didn’t include the measures for any of these because… well, you don’t really need them. Make as much or as little as you like, as adjust the spices to your tastes. I piled on the cilantro and the red pepper flakes.
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Mexican Pineapple and Beet Salad
- Pineapple
- Beets, roasted
- Cilantro
- Cumin
- Cinnamon
- Red pepper flakes
- Pepper
- Fresh lime juice
Peel and core the pineapple and cut into half-moon slices. Slice beets into rounds.
Arrange in layers on a plate. Sprinkle with each of the spices, adjusting flavors to your palate.
Top with cilantro and fresh lime juice. If it’s available, crumbled cotija cheese would also make a nice addition here.
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I am realllly looking forward to Cinco de Mayo this year because I will be hanging with some of my favorite bloggers at the Blend Retreat!
Are you going to Blend?
Do you have a secret for determining if a certain fruit is ripe?
This is such an unexpected pairing, but it looks great! I love the spicy flair you gave it.
I wish I were going to Blend, but I’ll be on a trip then. 🙁 I’m planning on going to HLS though! Are you?
Thanks!
I wish you were going too! Not planning on HLS. 🙁
Cinco de Drinko?! How have I not known about that terminology?!
Wish I was going to Blend, but I’ll settle for South Beach instead. 🙂
Ohhhh… tough choice, but I guess South Beach is a decent alternative. 🙂
What I pretty salad! I need to give beets another try. I had a bad beet salad once that ruined them for me, but they always look so good.
They are definitely an acquired taste… I started slowly with them by making a pesto, then a shake… now I just eat them plain! Bocado in West Midtown has a great farro-beat dish, fyi.
yum! i bought a pineapple last week and made pineapple, black bean and shrimp fried rice and then pineapple black bean enchiladas!
Those both sound super tasty!
I want those enchiladas!
Ahh so that must explain why I’ve eaten Mexican almost every day for the past week: can’t get enough of this! Love your recipes, Laura- always so innovative! My only trick for knowing when fruit is ripe is with bananas: the uglier, the riper 🙂
Thank you! I’m with you on the bananas. I can’t believe some people prefer them green!
I find it pretty amazing that both St Patty’s and Cinco de Mayo fall on Saturday’s this year.
That is brilliant. Thank you, Universe.
Pineapple and beets – awesome combo! I never would’ve thought of that. I wonder how a little bit of goat cheese would taste with this – maybe I’m taking it too far! Haha!
I recommended cotija to keep with the Mexican theme, but I bet goat would be great too!
Oh – that’s RIGHT! Saturday night will be Cinco de Mayo! I need to start scoping out some of the Mexican joints on Pearl Street! My hubby’s best friend lives in Boulder, and he has really good taste in food, so I’ll probably ask him too. 🙂
Man, that weekend is just getting better and better- getting to celebrate with Mexican food might just push it over the top!
Oh- and a trick for fruit- (this might be hard to explain). For cantaloupe- if the area where it used to be attached to a stem is smooth, it’s ripe. That means that it more than likely detached from the vine itself, rather than being yanked off before it was ready. (A sweet old guy working the produce at a grocery store told me this years ago, and it’s been right every time!)
I need a whole week in Boulder! Is it NEXT Friday yet?!
That cantaloupe trick is awesome! I can’t wait to try it out.
I never thought of putting these 2 together before. It sounds great.
pineapple and beets!? 😀 I have never done that before!
I. Love. Beets. Thanks 🙂
Okay – humbs up for crazy creativity. But I still hate pineapple 😉
LOL! Ok, ok… you could do it with any citrus!
Now here is a beauty of a salad. Those colors are very cool together. Funny I just bought a pineapple and the leaf test is the trick. Now to try and cut and core it. I might juice the two together, sounds like a sweet combo.
I actually cut mine up before I cut out the core – if it’s ripe enough very little needs to be cut out, and that’s where most of the nutrients are.
Pineapple and beets look so gorgeous together. I’ve been craving pineapple too, need to pick one up.
oh my gosh this combination is brilliant! i can not wait to try this!
Thanks, Sarah!
I’m going to a Cinco De Mayo event tonight sponsored by Avocado’s from Mexico and Corona. I will eat some guac in your honor!
I know with picking out melons they should always be heavier than they look.
You had me at Mexican. Then you added 2 more favorite words: Pineapple and Beet. This is my favorite title ever on your blog! I’m not going to Blend, but I am looking forward to Cinco de Mayo! Sadly, no secrets to telling if fruit is ripe or not. I usually try to buy yellow bananas… 😉
Mexican is the best food ever. 🙂
Love this recipe – the combo sounds delicious! I used to avoid beets because of negative childhood experiences with them, but now I love them!
That’s why I don’t eat caviar. *shudder*
I would have never thought to combine pineapple and beets!! But now I see how they can compliment each other!!!
Oh man, I’m so bummed that I’m not going to BLEND, but I AM going to make this amazing looking salad. How do you come up with this stuff???
Oh, Mama… I think about food an embarrassing amount of time.
Yum I live pineapple so much! It never finds its way into recipes in my house…I eat it all plain before I get the chance to do anything else with it.
I had that problem while plating this dish!
i completely forgot about cinco de mayo coming up too! yay – we always called it cinco de drinko too – especially in college. any excuse to start drinking before noon, right?!? haha. how times have changed….
i’m still intimidated by whole pineapples. i’m not good at peeling/coring them and i feel like i waste SO MUCH when i do it myself. 🙁 i hate wasting.
I can’t believe all of the morning drinking we did during football season. Ouch!
I just cut before I core it – if it’s ripe you don’t have to do much core trimming!
You never cease to impress me. I’ve been away from the blog world for a little bit, but reading posts like this inspire me to want to get back to it all. (Thanks for that!) This sounds delicious and something I would never have thought of. I have been having a thing for pineapple lately, so this will fit right in–into my mouth, that is. I am really looking forward to Cinco de Margarita–I mean, Mayo. We already have big plans for the day. The whole day.
Candy… thank you SO much. you made my day. 🙂
Cinco de Margarita – I LOVE it!
Alright my friend…you’ve got my mind running with this pineapple beet thing. Hummmm good ideas are coming.
Ohhhh… I can’t wait to see what you come up with. Beet Margarita? 😉
LOL…I thought you didn’t drink.
Riiiight. Never. 😉
I love beets. My sister and I used to eat them all the time when we were kids haha
THAT is rare – it took me until 27 to like them!
Because I trust implicitly, I will try this salad – that and the fact that the colours go beautifully together 😉
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
P.S I hate beetroot 😛 so once again you make question my tastes!
Thank you! You must report back. 🙂
I dig this combination and wouldn’t have come up with pairing beets and pineapple. Love the colors in this dish!
Thank you! I think pretty food is more fun to eat. 🙂
I’m loving the color of that salad and the way you plated it. Just perfect.