22 Sep Summer’s Final Days: The Coconut Pineapple (Mock)tail
Temperatures have hovered in the upper 80s this past week in DC. And my friends in Boston did a beach day on Saturday. And let’s not get started about the year-round summer weather my family in So Cal experiences [though I did hear to everyone’s surprise that it rained for 2 whole days, straight(!) in July]. Septummer is clearly a real thing; don’t tell me it’s not.
And in case you thought yesterday, September 21st, was the official end of summer, don’t be fooled! The last day of summer, is tomorrow, September 23. And in honor of one final day of God’s-most-beloved season, we have the perfect drink to celebrate!
The Coconut Pineapple Mocktail/Or Not
Having both a large number of church-going friends and a large number of child-rearing friends (the two might be related), means at any given time I have a decent amount of people who are in the mood for something non-alcoholic. (My sister, who asked me for a cocktail that really didn’t taste like alcohol at all, being one of them). And while we’re cocktail enthusiasts, we see people’s preferences as fun challenges to accommodate. Cocktails sans liquor it is!
This drink is super easy to make, great for a group, easily doctored into being alcoholic (if so desired), and screams ‘summer’!
For One
Ingredients
- 2 oz pineapple juice
- 1 oz canned coconut milk*
- 1 oz dark rum (optional)**
- Frozen pineapple (optional)
Instructions
Open canned coconut. Stir coconut so it has an even consistency. Alternatively you might want to transfer all the contents to a liquid measuring cup for ease of stirring. Coconut is very sensitive to temperature. You should store this at room temperature.
Pour 1 oz of canned coconut, 2oz of pineapple juice and 1 oz of dark rum (optional) into a shaker.
Add ice. Shake vigorously. (The shaking helps the pineapple juice and coconut blend and creates a much better consistency than just stirring).
Strain into glass. Add a few pieces of frozen pineapple to the glass and serve immediately. The frozen pineapple serves both as a nice garnish and also helps to keep the drink chilled.
For Many
Ingredients
- 1 cup canned coconut milk*
- 2 cups pineapple juice
- 1 cup dark rum (optional)**
- 1 bag frozen pineapple (optional)
Instructions
Add coconut milk, pineapple juice and dark rum (if using) to a large pitcher.
Stir as quickly as possible for 1 minute until all ingredients are well blended. Alternatively, if you have a blender throw ingredients in there and blend for 10-20 seconds. This creates another dish you have to wash, but blends everything so nicely.
Add bag of frozen pineapple to the pitcher. Serve immediately.
If drink ends up sitting for a bit, you’ll need to give it a good stir.
*Note about coconut: I’ve used both regular coconut milk and coconut cream. I think the milk works slightly better as it combines better to create a better overall drink consistency. But if you’re in a pinch, either will work. Also please note, that coconut water does not work so well as the pineapple juice (and rum) completely drown it out.
**Note about rum: We taste tested several different types of rum and hands down thought the dark rum out beat both light and spiced variety. Light rum and spiced rum both seemed to overpower the rather delicate flavors of coconut and pineapple. You’re welcomed to do your own taste testing if you like.
