Thursday Recipe - Sneetch Belly Salad

I've been dealing with my dietary restrictions the last couple of months. Posting recipes just got too painful. Sorry about missing a couple of weeks. If you have suggestions or good recipes, I'd love to help share them here. Just leave me a comment.

The day after Thanksgiving, we hosted our annual leftover and games party. It's casual, like most of what I do. Drop in with whatever you've got leftover from Thanksgiving, play a few games, and enjoy a potluck. My sister brought her favorite salad. It's the one with tiny pasta, fruit, and cream. Except this time, she made it dairy free because her husband can't eat dairy anymore. And she couldn't find the tiny orzo pasta so she used tiny stars. It was dubbed Sneetch Belly Salad, because it's got stars upon thars. If you don't get the reference, you haven't been reading your Dr. Suess books. The Sneetches

It's a great salad, fun and easy, dessert or fruit salad depending on what you add to it. Change it up, play with it, but most of all, enjoy it. Because the star-belly sneetch is the best kind of sneetch on the beach.

Sneetch Belly Salad

1 20-oz can pineapple tidbits, drained (reserve juice)
1 20-oz can crushed pineapple, drained (reserve juice)
3/4 c. sugar
1 1/2 T. flour
1/2 t. salt
1 1/3 c pineapple juice (from canned pineapple)
2 eggs, beaten
1 T. lemon juice
1 12-oz pkg tiny stars pasta
2 11-oz cans mandarin oranges, drained
1 8-oz carton whipped topping, thawed

Open pineapple and drain, reserving 1&1/3 cup juice. Refrigerate pineapple in separate container until needed the next day. Combine sugar, flour and salt in medium saucepan. Gradually stir in pineapple juice and eggs. Cook over moderate heat, stirring, until thickened. Add lemon juice. Cool to room temperature. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, rinse, and cool to room temperature. Combine egg mixture and pasta. Mix lightly but thoroughly. Refrigerate overnight in airtight container. Add pineapple, oranges and whipped topping. Mix lightly but thoroughly. Refrigerate until chilled in airtight container.