Welcome to summer!!! This coconutty, pineapple, banana with a hint of strawberry smoothie tastes like summer. Kinda reminds me of vacations in Mexico sipping on a Miami Vice (when you mix a Pina Colada with a Strawberry Daiquiri). However, those are terrible for you and this is excellent for you! Also, those probably have around 500-800 calories and one serving of this smoothie only has about 218 calories. Feel free to add rum:) My husband loves it when I make these and my son gets really excited about them as well. When it’s just one of us drinking this for breakfast, I freeze the second serving into Coconut Kefir Pops for my son. Whenever he finishes one he asks for more! Sometimes I’ll take it out frozen and smash it up in a bowl for him to eat that way as well. I steal a bite whenever he allows! I do add a little ice to the recipe for the smoothie, but if your intention is to just make a frozen treat, then you can leave out the ice for a little more flavor (which you don’t really need but it’s another option).
Check out the picture to the right! There are O’s freezer pops - I was trying to take a cool picture but after numerous attempts, I gave up, started chugging the smoothie and took a picture of it in the grass. Seems fitting to drink it outside in the summer anyway. I lost my photography creativity awhile back it seems.
First, a note on the Kefir… I originally bought So Delicious Strawberry Coconut Milk Kefir to give it a shot since, although I love kefir, sometimes the flavor can overwhelm other ingredients in my smoothies. Also, kefir (milk and coconut milk) has probiotics which are great for your digestive health - and although many people that are lactose intolerant can eat yogurt and kefir with no problem- I figured it’s better to be safe than sorry for my husband - who has that intolerancy we think. The flavor of this coconut kefir is far more mild with a fantastic hint of coconut. I love this stuff!
Then there’s the coconut. There seems to be, over the past several years, a huge new wave of coconut lovers and followers, plenty of coconut oil diets and loads of websites dedicated to the health benefits of coconut. In Nourishing Traditions, Sally Fallon talks about the health benefits saying, “It provides calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, iodine and many trace minierals.” She discusses the fact that 60% of the coconut is fat and of that fat, 92% is saturated - but not to avoid coconut products. The main fatty acid in the coconut is lauric acid, a “medium-chain 12-carbon saturated fatty acid that has potent antiviral, antifungal and antimicrobial properties.” The medium-chain fatty acids in coconut also strengthen the immune system. For a few more sources to read on coconut (treating AIDs and candida!), check these out: Coconut Research Center, Weston A Price, Organic Facts and make sure to check out the articles in those sites about Thailand! In Thailand, coconut is part of the staple diet and Sally Fallon says that according to the National Cancer Institute, of the 50 countries tested, Thailand has the lowest cancer rate. Coincidence?
Coconut Milk Kefir Smoothie
- serves 2
Ingredients:
- 1 medium frozen banana ***peel banana first, break in half and freeze, I always have a gallon-sized bag full of them in my freezer
- 1 1/2 cups freshly cut pineapple -add the juices if they’re flowing!
- 1 cup Strawberry Coconut Milk Kefir
- scant 1/4 cup or 3 TB unsweetened coconut flakes
- 1/4 cup chopped ice
Method:
- Throw it all in a blender and blend on high until smooth.
- Note: I never actually measure the ingredients, I just eyeball it. It’s always tasty but sometimes the ratio gets a bit off, so if you actually measure the ingredients as above, it will be perfect - I did it today and am tempted to keep measuring from now on.