Keto Piña Colada (alcoholic or virgin)

Cool down with a creamy frozen Keto Piña Colada! Make this low-carb and dairy-free cocktail with or without alcohol.

I rarely drink alcohol, but when I do, it has to be sweet and bursting with flavor, like my Spiced Mulled Wine. A piña colada, of course, fits this description perfectly! It is filled with the tropical flavors of coconut and pineapple. And as soon as I’m holding a glass in my hand, I feel like I’m vacationing on a tropical island.

This cocktail is so creamy and delicious, it doesn’t require any alcohol to taste good. So, if you want to make it virgin, go ahead. Just add some rum extract (if you wish) and enjoy.

What is a Piña Colada?

Piña colada is a creamy, frozen cocktail from Puerto Rico and is usually made with cream of coconut, pineapple juice (or frozen pineapples), and rum. Many variations exist that use different kinds of alcohol or juices or heavy cream. It is sometimes just shaken with ice, but you will see it most often blended into a frozen drink.

Are Piña Coladas keto-friendly?

No. Regular piña coladas are high in sugar. Pineapple is a high-carb fruit and builds the basis of this cocktail. Additionally, they are often made with cream of coconut , which is quite sugary. Cream of coconut is not the same as coconut cream of coconut milk (both of which are keto-friendly ingredients). Often, even more sugar is added to this cocktail in the shape of brown or turbinado sugar.

How do we make this cocktail keto-friendly?

It’s actually quite simple. First, to give our Keto Piña Colada a pineapple flavor, but no sugar, we will use a natural pineapple extract. Secondly, for the creaminess and coconut flavor we will use canned coconut milk instead of cream of coconut. Lastly, to add even more sweetness, add a low-carb brown sugar substitute – Swerve Brown. So easy!

Watch the recipe video here!

Tips for making a creamy Piña Colada without the carbs!

Blender. You will need a blender to make a frozen piña colada. I use a medium-powder blender and it works well for this recipe. If you don’t have a blender, you can also make this cocktail shaken with ice. Just keep in mind that it won’t have the same thick consistency, unless it’s blended.

Ice. For two servings, you will need about 1 1/5 cups of ice cubes. On a hot day, you may want to go ahead and use a bit more.

Coconut milk. The major component of this Keto Piña Colada is coconut milk. Make sure to use canned, unsweetened coconut milk. That’s the kind with the cream on top. Don’t use cream of coconut that’s usually used for piña coladas! You will need 1 can (13 oz).

Pineapple extract. There are different extracts on the market, but I quite like the clean ingredients of Native Vanilla Pure Pineapple Flavor. One 1 tablespoons is sufficient for some pineapple flavor, but if you like a stronger flavor, feel free to add more.

Sweetener. To make this into a sweet drink, I like to add 1/2 cup of Swerve Brown, a keto-friendly brown sugar substitute. The flavor of vanilla and molasses simply go great with the tropical flavors of coconut and pineapple. If you don’t have Swerve Brown on hand, simple use an equivalent amount of another low-carb sweetener, like erythritol or stevia.

RUM. Traditional piña coladas are made with white rum and that’s a great choice for this recipe, too. However, I enjoy the richer, deeper flavor of dark or golden rum, and find it really brings out the tropical side of this cocktail. For two servings, 4 ounces of rum will do.

When you pick your rum, just be careful to pick a low-carb product. Pure rums are always keto-friendly, but there are many mixes on the market like Malibu Rum (which is quite popular for piña coladas) that have added sugar and therefore will not work for this recipe.

Virgin version. To make a non-alcoholic piña colada, aka. piñita colada, simply leave out the rum. You can instead use 1-2 teaspoons of rum extract.

Garnish. Piña coladas are usually garnished with a pineapple wedge and/or maraschino cherries. You can still do that if your willpower is strong enough not to eat them (I know I can’t resist). Instead, I opt for lime slices and pan-roasted shredded coconut (unsweetened). Roasting the coconut brings out a deeper flavor and more crunch. Simple toast them over medium heat in a frying pan (without oil) until they turn golden brown.

Feeling tropical yet?

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