Something Different: Frog Eye Salad

Welcome to a new year, food friends!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. I know mine was certainly was, full of family and wonderful surprises.

I wanted to start off the new year with something sweet and something from the family. I haven't finished sorting through the pictures from my Christmas in Kansas, but I happen to have a neat digital pile of pictures of the Frog Eye Salad recipe from Chase's mom.

Not to worry. The "frog eyes" are are actually a tiny pasta called Acini de Pepe. This is one of those recipes that seems very unusual, and it is, but once you taste the complex sweetness of this side dish, you'll be hooked.

Happy 2012 cooking!

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Frog Eye Salad

NOTE: This recipe requires overnight refrigeration!

Ingredients

1 lb acini de pepe pasta

1 cup white sugar

2 Tbsp flour

½ tsp

salt

1

¾ cup unsweetened pineapple juice (you can get most of this when you drain the canned pineapple)

2 eggs, beaten

1 Tbsp lemon juice

2 cans mandarin oranges, drained

2 cans pineapple tidbits, drained (reserving juice)

1 can crushed pineapple, drained (reserving juice)

1 cup maraschino cherries

1 (8 oz) container Cool Whip

1 cup miniature marshmallows (o

ptional)

Di

rections

1. Cook acini pasta according to package directions. Drain and let cool while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

2. In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, combine sugar, flour, salt, pineapple juice and eggs. Stir slowly and continuously until the mixture thickens to almost pudding consistency.

3. Remove mixture from heat and stir in lemon juice. Let cool for 10 minutes.

4. In a very large bowl (I used the same large pot that I cooked the pasta in), combine pasta and pudding mixture. Then stir in Cool Whip until all pasta is coated.

5. Gently fold in fruits.

6. Refrigerate overnight. Stir in mini marshmallows right before serving. Enjoy.

Package of frog eyes.

Big pot of cooling pasta.

The first time I made this, I made the mistake of stirring in the fruit before the Cool Whip,

and ended up with smooshed mandarine oranges. Oops! Still delicious.

Happy cooking!