"If You Like Piña Coladas . . . " - Recipe - Tasty Low Carb (2024)

The song is really titled “Escape.” Is it time for you to escape to an island, relax on the beach, and sip a delicious piña colada while listening to the ocean waves? It was a few years ago when we were enjoying our escape to the British Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. The piña coladas were plentiful and delicious. It was also before our low-carb lifestyle began. Finding a low carb piña colada recipe has been a challenge. We think we finally have one that will offer the same flavor and virtually without carbs!

The Original Piña Colada

Piña Colada translates to “strained pineapple” since the original recipe calls for pineapple juice. It is made with rum, coconut cream, and pineapple juice. It is usually mixed with plenty of ice in a blender to yield a frothy, creamy, milk shake consistency of delicious flavor. Piña coladas are sweet drinks – perfect for the sun and the beach.

The Rupert Holmes song from 1979 is generally known as “The Piña Colada Song” and it certainly spread the popularity of the drink world wide. Music and memories seem to go together. The song becomes linked to the drink when you are at the beach. It is difficult to sip on one without hearing the words and melody in your head!

Our Low Carb Piña Colada Recipe and Ingredients

Our first step to mastering the perfect low-carb piña colada was to recognize that you need great rum! We like a mixture of light and dark rum. Light rum is fermented in steel casks and has a sweeter flavor than dark or amber rum. Dark rums are fermented in oak barrels and that produces the darker caramel color and a much deeper flavor.

Puerto Rican rum is famous, but many believe the best dark rums come from Barbados. We agree and like to use Kaniché XO. The rum is aged for 11 years and begins its journey in oak bourbon casks in Barbados. It is then shipped to France to age in cognac casks, bottled, and exported throughout the world. It is delicious and has a smooth aroma. The best part is it is not at all expensive. For around $30 for a bottle you will have a wonderful flavor for your piña colada. We use a 50-50 ratio of light and dark rum. If you like a bolder oak flavor adjust the blend to favor the darker rum.

We like a frothy creamy drink so we use heavy whipping cream and tend to let our blender do its magic for a longer spin. The creamier the better! We also use plenty of ice to keep our mixture cool and delicious – really necessary here in the Southwest.

We garnish our Keto Piña Colada with pineapple and use a glass rimmed with toasted coconut. Just use unsweetened coconut flakes that have been lightly toasted in a small skillet, until slightly browned. We do not eat the pineapple, but it does add to the presentation!

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Try Using Torani Sugar Free Coconut and Pineapple Syrup

As an alternative to using the water enhancers, we also often useTorani Sugar-Free Coconut Syrup and Torani Sugar-Free Pineapple Syrup. These contain zero carbs and add a similar flavor. In fact, we have done blind taste tests and cannot tell the difference. Check the notes in the recipe for this revised Low Carb Piña Colada recipe.

Whether you use the water enhancer or Torani Syrups, mix up a pitcher of this tasty concoction, turn on some Rupert Holmes to sing along, close your eyes and imagine you have your own “Escape” with a low-carb piña colada and the sun!

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