What you should be drinking right now!
It was an absolutely gorgeous weekend in Portland. I spent about three hours on Saturday sweltering in my sunny backyard, working up the motivation to run some errands. While I waited for my lost ambition to find me, I made this delicious concoction: a coconut-milk twist in the Indian treat, the lassi.
I’ve never actually had a lassi before (and upon writing this discovered it’s pronounced luh-see which makes the title of this post little weird) but I can say this version was pretty magical. I got the recipe from my beloved magazine Bon Appetit, where a whole mouth-watering section of the newest issue is dedicated to strawberries.
I literally couldn’t wait to blend one up and the ingredients list is so short, I happened to have everything on hand to make it. Well almost everything, but happily buttermilk can be faked with milk and a squeeze of lemon juice!
What can go wrong with strawberries and coconut milk?
What dreams are made of…
The first sip proved it was exactly as I expected it to be, the perfect cool-down for a hot day. And honestly, while it’s very similar to a basic smoothie, it’s certainly more luscious. The coconut milk adds the creaminess that usually comes from yogurt and the buttermilk adds the tang. And while the coconut flavor isn’t powerful, it’s simply there enough to make you love it.
I gulped it down so fast I was actually surprised when my glass was suddenly empty. Good thing summer is upon us — I can’t wait to play around with other Oregon berries as the season progresses. Strawberries might be the perfect match for the coconut milk in this drink, but I’m thinking cherries might be pretty awesome too. And trust me, I’m going to find out!
Hey look — it’s just like the picture!
Except your straw is bent, whereas in the picture it’s straight. My wife found a recipe she had pulled years ago from a magazine (maybe BA?) for Vietnamese smoothies, made with tropical fruit (mango, papaya, etc.) and condensed milk (and lots of ice). Looking forward to trying that too.
My straws dare to be different! Oh man — smoothies with condensed milk? sign me up!
I love the addition of coconut milk.
yours is prettier than the picture for sure–love that you have amazing fresh berries. We have to wait a bit longer for ours. Good call on the BA recipe! I’ve bookmarked Company Eggs in May’s issue. Looking forward to whatever you come up with next 🙂 and let’s just say that THEIR straw got it wrong.
I have ripe strawberries and coconut milk in my pantry … w00t!
Today is the perfect day for it! And I won’t tell if you add some booze to it too — when I get home I’m definitely mixing one up with a generous pour of Malibu rum. =)
Coconut milk with strawberries! Oh you got me thinking… I love lassi. They are what everyone drinks during the summer months in India because it has yogurt or buttermilk in it to cool you down and put your to sleep. Rum, as you mentioned and a generous amount of it in this lassi will put me exactly where I want to be! 😉
Yes, I’ve found that anything that already tastes good will be even better when booze is added to it! =)
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