Piña Colada Milkshake – Ice Cream Sunday

An easy one today, requiring a blender and not much more. Piña Coladas were my jam upon moving to tropical Florida from Russia many years ago – I remember having a transcendent experience, sitting on a beach chair and drinking the sweet pineapple drink, while it was all snow and sludge in my hometown in Russia. Nowadays, I’m a wuss when it comes to alcohol, and would probably find most of those beachside bar piña coladas to be much too sweet, but I still crave the cooling, tropical flavors of the drink from time to time, hence this milkshake.
All the ingredients here are quite commonplace, but I couldn’t resist to call for an optional infusion with kaffir lime leaves, which come from a tree native to Southeast Asia, and are used widely in the cuisines of that part of the world. Kaffir lime leaves have the most unique and magical, sweet, citrusy aroma that I’ve found to be life-changing (starting out years ago, here). I buy mine frozen at the local Asian market, but I’ve also seen them sold fresh at other Asian and Indian markets, as well as online. Kaffir adds a special, sunny zing to this milkshake, but it’s very good without them as well. Read on for some weekend links and enjoy your Sunday :)

Burrow Bakery Instagram – pastry chef Ayako Kurokawa runs her bakery out of Dumbo, Brooklyn and posts all kinds of jaw-dropping, whimsical creations on her instagram account – macaron cactus, portrait cookies, geometric cake, floral cookie…

Healthy Foods – a fascinating NYT article on foods perceived as healthy/unhealthy, and where the public and nutritionists agree and disagree, with some very surprising findings

Sqirl – excited for this cookbook (the cover!)

Building a Restaurant in Paradise – loved this profile on the chef and co-owner of Hartwood in Tulum, on the challenges and triumphs of owning an outdoor restaurant in a foreign country

SPF – some questions answered, for those long days at the beach (turns out mixing sun screens is a no-no, which I did not know!)

Marie Condo’s War on Stuff – have you read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up? An interesting follow-up article on the author and the controversy some of her methods have caused.

How to Be a Smoothie Criminal – friends over at Green Press are sharing a beautiful, FREE e-book on the ins and outs of smoothie-making, for newbies and experienced blenders alike

To Create a Habit, Tell a Good Story – more amazing Zen Habits wisdom

Blog Love – loving the images, words and recipes over at Rooting the Sun – Green Garlic Gazpacho, Spring Veg in Carrot Broth w/ Popped Quinoa, Red Chard Wild Rice Soup

Purple Carrot – the amazing vegan meal delivery service working with Mark Bittman is featuring my recipe for Zoodles with Pumpkin Seed Pesto, Nectarines, and Crispy Chickpeas in their meal plan, delivering the week of July 17th :)

Piña Colada Milkshake

 

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Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1½ cups canned Thai coconut milk
• handful kaffir lime leaves - bruised (optional)
• ½ small to medium ripe pineapple - chopped, plus more for garnish
• 1 large frozen banana
• 6-8 scoops coconut ice cream (my favorite is Coconut Bliss)
• desiccated coconut - for garnish

Instructions

1. If using kaffir lime, combine coconut milk and kaffir lime leaves in a small saucepan and bring to a gentle boil to infuse. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature, then chill in the refrigerator. Strain and add to a blender together with pineapple, frozen banana and ice cream.
2. If not using kaffir lime, skip the infusion step and add coconut milk, pineapple, frozen banana and ice cream to a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour between glasses (with a desiccated coconut rim - optional), garnish with pineapple slices and an additional scoop of ice cream, if desired.

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