In the 19th century, Americans went crazy for pineapple cheese. You might think this is a recipe for combining pineapple with cheese, which doesn't sound bad at all if it's cream cheese or cottage cheese. But there was no pineapple at all in pineapple cheese. It was a kind of cheddar cheese shaped like a pineapple. Form over function, as it were.
Produced by Lewis Norton and his family beginning in 1809, pineapple cheese was made, not cut, into a pineapple shape, and it was covered in lacquer to keep it fresh. It became a popular housewarming gift, to be served during social events. To eat it, you would cut the top off, just as you would a pineapple, and then scoop the cheese out from inside. Pineapple cheese outlasted Norton, and was sold up until 1931. Read about the strange food fad of pineapple cheese from the past at Vintage Everyday. -via Strange Company
PS: If you are still intrigued by the idea of pineapple and cream cheese, try a recipe for a pie, cake, or dip.