On a recent hot night, I decided to make pina coladas for a pre-dinner cocktail. My first taste of this intoxicating drink was in Puerto Rico where it was born. It was made with fresh pineapple, local rum, and a hint of fresh coconut along with the coconut cream. I couldn’t duplicate those tastes in my New York kitchen, but I decided to give it a less tropical version a try. In my exuberance, I made enough for an army and, rather than drink ourselves silly, I froze most of it. And, then when unexpected guests arrived on another hot night, I pulled out my frozen mix, whirred it in the blender, and had the most delicious slushy you could possibly imagine. I’m not sure of the exact proportions I used to make the original mix – I just kept pouring, but following is what I think is a pretty accurate method to make the traditional Puerto Rican cocktail.
For 2 cocktails:
1½ cups pineapple juice
½ cup light rum
½ cup cream of coconut (such as Coco Lopez)
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice or to taste
Ice
You can either mix the liquids together and pour into a glass filled with ice or whir them in a blender filled about half way with ice. The former will give a more potent mix and the latter a refreshingly icy one. Garnish with a fresh pineapple spear, a sprig of mint, or a wedge of lime.
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