I have been in the kitchen this week, and I think I stumbled onto something I’d like to try again. I call it “Sweet Pineapple Pepper Shrimp.”

I was inspired by a recipe I’d originally seen on Pinterest (of course), involving lemons, shrimp, and a packet of Italian seasoning. I had no lemons in the kitchen, but I did have an abundance of sliced pineapple, so I decided to improvise.

First, I melted a stick of butter in the pan. Then I lined the pan with my sliced pineapple and placed the shrimp on top, pouring a little bit of the pineapple juice over everything for good measure.

I didn’t feel like Italian seasoning would be the best pairing with pineapple, so I opted to change that out with brown sugar and crushed red pepper, with the goal of creating a little “sweet heat.”

I definitely got the heat part right.

I admit, I may have been a bit heavy-handed with the crushed red pepper, but it was still tasty. It’s better the flavor is strong than unnoticeable, right? If you want a milder taste, I would recommend only one pass over the pan as you sprinkle your crushed red pepper.

As for the brown sugar, I had sprinkled that over the shrimp like I had the crushed red pepper, but I think next time I will save a little of the pineapple juice and mix with that so I can brush it on a little more thoroughly and evenly. Some shrimp were sweeter than others this go round.

Once everything was seasoned, I put it in the oven for about 15 minutes at 350°F.

To try yourself, you’ll need:

1 stick of butter

1 20 oz. can sliced pineapple

1 12 oz. bag cooked medium shrimp (other sizes would work fine I imagine, that’s just what’s pictured)

Brown Sugar and Crushed Red Pepper to taste