Not my grandma's pineapple delight

My grandmother just moved into a new home, I volunteered to unpack her kitchen since most of the things she owns are over 50 years old and I love seeing these versions of gadgets I have now. I came across her recipe tins, it was like Christmas came early! Being the lovely grandmother that she is, she insisted I take the tins so that I can copy whichever recipes I like, while I browsed, I found a wonderful sounding recipe for Pineapple Delight. Dated 1920, so in all fairness my grandmother probably didn't write this, her mother more then likely did. I normally read ingredients and decide if the recipe is any good from there. Often I won't read directions until the moment I'm going to make something. I decided it would be in my best interest to read the directions before Easter dinner when I attempted to make this dessert, lucky I did, they were confusing and not in order. So if I would have followed them as I read them I would have had a random blob of pineapple mess. I decided to change it up. I opted not to use raw eggs in my version and just avoid the food poisoning risk all together, and sugar instead of cornstarch.

 

Obviously mine's been cut. I took this after Easter....

So here it is, enjoy!!

Not My Grandma's Pineapple Delight

Crust
1 box using only 2 packages of honey graham crackers (finely crushed, I put mine in the food processor)
1 cup sugar
1 stick butter (melted)

Filling
1 can crushed pineapple
1 cup sugar
4 tablespoons cool whip (or see other whipped topping options below, the measurement is the same for this step though)

You'll also need
a small bag of crushed walnuts
1 extra large tub of cool whip, or 2 cans of spray whip, or 1 quart whipping cream + 1/2 cup powdered sugar mixed until whipped cream consistency.
About 1/4 cup of finely crushed graham crackers (dry, not the stuff you mixed for the crust)

So to make the crust you'll want to toss all the crust ingredients into a plastic zip lock bag and mix it well.  Crust isn't an exact science really, if your crumbs feel like they need a little more liquid add a couple more tablespoons of melted butter (one table spoon at a time!). Your crust should stick together when you squeeze it in your hand.

I used an 8X11 sized pan, you can use a smaller one, circular one, or a larger one (but you'll have to adjust your crust accordingly) In a foiled lined, and greased, cake pan press your crust mixture into the bottom. Make sure you push down on it or it won't stick together. Put it into the oven at 300 degrees for 10 - 15 minutes. Remove and let cool.

In the mean time add your filling ingredients (except cool whip) in a medium sauce pan and set on medium/high heat until it thickens to a pancake syrup consistency. If it gets too bubbly and you don't want pineapple juice on everything or burning the skin off your hands, obviously turn it down to medium/low heat.
So when that's thick, mix your cool whip into it, and pour it on top of your crust. Sprinkle the top of that with some crushed graham cracker crumbs and sprinkle the walnuts on top of that. Then spread the remaining cool whip over the top of all of that and throw it in the fridge overnight.  Serve cold.

If you want more filling you can certainly double the filling ingredients! I had more then enough room in my pan for more filling and less cool whip topping. You could also try pecans/macadamia/brazil nuts if you aren't into walnuts. This recipe would be super easy to use any fruit packed in liquid such as peaches/pears/cherries/mango/even grapefruit would be yummy in this!

There you are! I hope you enjoy! Let me know what other fruit you would use with this! I'm always looking for new desserts.