Raise your hand if you like coconut cream pie! Raise your hand if you like coconut cream pie with rum!
If you answered yes to both of those things, then have we got the cocktail for you. This is coquito ("little coconut"), a Puerto Rican Christmas drink. It is sometimes referred to as Puerto Rican eggnog, but let's not filter everything through our Euro-centric lens, mmkay? This is a thick, rich decadent cocktail that is practically an entire meal if you drink a lot of it. (It probably also has the caloric load of an entire meal, if you drink too much of it! 😉) Sometimes it is made with cooked egg yolks, but this version is quick, easy, and can be blended up for a gathering in a jiffy. It has an entire can of Coco
Lopez in it, which, if you've never had it before, is a dense, sweet coconut cream. It's so tasty, even straight out of the can and eaten with a spoon! (Not that we've ever done that...) It's easy to find; even our little corner family market had a bunch of cans.
Anyway, the other nice thing about coquito is that you can mix it up to suit your tastes. Like chocolate? Add some cocoa powder! Like guava? Add some guava paste. (If you do choose to add in some thicker ingredients like those, balance it with some additional water or regular coconut milk. You want it to be thick, but not sludge!). You can also really lean into the Christmas spices and add in nutmeg, cloves, star anise...you get the gist.
Do yourself a favor and take a break from the other creamy holiday drinks and give this creamy holiday drink a try. Plus, your guests will be super impressed that you're serving something other than corner store eggnog.
¡Feliz Navidad, amigos!
Coquito
1 can (15 oz.) Coco Lopez
1 can (14 oz.) of sweetened condensed milk
1 can (12 oz.) of evaporated milk
1 cup of Puerto Rican rum (we used Don Q)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Add all ingredients into a blender and blend on high for 1-2 minutes. Transfer into glass bottle(s) and refrigerate until completely cold. Give it a good shake before serving, as some ingredients may settle to the bottom. Serve in small glasses (approximately 2 oz. servings) and garnish with a cinnamon stick and/or ground cinnamon and/or ground nutmeg on top. Sip & enjoy!
Note: this lovely beverage is shelf stable in the fridge for a few months, so it also makes a great handmade gift presented in flip-top glass bottles. Cheers!
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