As many of you know, I was born and raised in Venezuela. A country that right now is going through a tough time and is fighting for its freedom. In honor of all the brave people fighting in my home country I dedicate this Coconut Smoothie recipe.
When I was growing up we spent many weekends in a nearby beach town. During the hour drive, my dad used to stop at a small shop that sold these creamy and refreshing Coconut Smoothie. No trip to the beach was complete without drinking Cocadas. They are sweet and creamy with tons of coconut flavor.
The original Coconut Smoothie recipe calls for fresh coconut pulp but the thought of using a hammer and an ice pick to open up a Coconut was a little daunting.. But after some experiments I found the solution: FROZEN SHREDDED COCONUT!!. I found it in the frozen section of my supermarket.
Photo courtesy of Walmart.com
The idea is to make a big pitcher and then serve it with ice. Great smoothie to drink in the morning or as an afternoon delight. I promise you will love my Cocada Venezolana.
- 4 - 14 oz . bags of Frozen Shredded Coconut
- 2 Cups of Milk
- 1 Can of Condensed Milk
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In a blender combine the Frozen Coconut and milk.
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Strain mixture (optional)
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Add the condensed milk
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Enjoy!
My heart is breaking for Venezuelans today.
We left in Jan 2003. We were at the airport, having our final aerapa, when the exchange controls were announced. Can you believe it’s been eleven years under exchange controls?
Wow Tammi 11 years…unbelievable.. I left a year before you.
I am still hoping that something good will come out of this
Hi!
As I have come to learn now that a live abroad, there is quite a lot of discussion about what an “original” cocada is. The places I used to visit in the coast of venezuela (margarita, los roques, chichiriviche, choroni, morrocoy) used to pride themselves in makiing the “original cocada” and wrote on their signs ” without milk or condensed milk”. This recipe calls for a very young coconut (which is green on the outside, and has coconut water and plenty of soft white flesh (not pink or it will taste kind of bitter). The white flesh blended perfectly with the coconut water, producing absolutely pristine white coconut milk, without needing to add any other milk. Now that I live in Canada a friend ofmixne who is from the central part of the country ( barinas) assures me that what they know there as the original recipe uses dry coconut ( which will not completely blend with the coconut water because of its hard texture) milk and condensed milk. Which one is truly the original cocada? I guess that could be a pointless discussion and it would depend on which region you are from.
I guess you are right Patricia! I used to get mine from La Guaira and that’s how it tasted.
I hope someday I get to try from other regions as well!.
Thanks for stopping by!
We just moved back to Canada from Venezuela as well and I will be making these drinks and fondly remembering all the great people I met there and the beautiful places I saw. Praying for that country! Thanks for posting!
You’re welcome Lara! Hope you can try it and let me know how it turns out 🙂