I’m not a huge fan of coconut, but I love piña coladas.  Go figure.  I’ve been making piña colada smoothies a ton lately and trying different recipes.  Sadly, I’ve been disappointed more than once.  More often than not, the recipe calls for at least one frozen banana, if not more.  Let me just say that every time I’ve used a banana I end up with a banana tasting smoothie with barely a hint of pineapple.  The banana overpowers all the other flavors and I’m left thinking, “How did anyone think this tastes like a piña colada?”  Anyway, I like recipes to be fairly simple, and taste like they should.  I’m not a huge fan of “Let’s make it because it’s healthy even if it’s not going to taste the way it’s supposed to.”  

This smoothie has pineapple, it has coconut milk, coconut oil and ice.  What more do we need?  The sweetness of the coconut milk is enough that you don’t need to add honey or sugar.  I added the coconut oil because the milk alone didn’t have enough flavor on it’s own, plus it’s good for you!  The coconut milk is also creamy so you don’t even need yogurt.  And if pineapple isn’t on sale or it’s snowing outside but you’re craving something tropical, you can use a can of pineapple and call it good.  Trust me, I’m pretty sure this is the simplest piña colada you’ll ever make.  The one and only problem with this is that as I’m drinking it I am always longing to be on Kauai.  And then Blake Shelton’s country song starts playing in my head, “Some beach…somewhere… There’s a big umbrella casting shade over an empty chair…”  followed by Ziggy Marley’s “I wish you were here with me, on the beach in Hawaii..”

Ingredients

• 1 20 oz can crushed pineapple or 2 1/2 cups fresh
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 cup ice

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth!

Recipe by Life’s Sweet Seasons