Lava Flow Recipe! Fantastic Tropical Cocktail!

It's always 5 o'clock somewhere, so let’s have a Lava Flow! I love relaxing with a tropical drink on Friday evenings and dreaming of tropical island vacations!

Lava Flow Recipe

One of my favorite things to do when we visit Hawaii is enjoy the sunsets. There is something magical about watching the sunset over the water. Our favorite place on the island to take pictures of the sun’s descent is A-Bay, also known as Anaehoomalu Bay.

You can see why it is called A-Bay by the locals. If you walk down the beach at A-Bay, there is an excellent chance of seeing turtles resting on the beach.

Please remember to give the turtles lots of space. There always seems to be a new beach bar at A-Bay that we have yet to have a chance to visit.

We like walking on the beach and enjoying the sunset beside the water.

One of my favorite tropical drinks is a Lava Flow! I love how sweet this drink is without being too overpowering. The molten lava effect of the strawberries and coconut cream is mesmerizing.

Plus it reminds me of our favorite tropical vacation. This lava flow drink recipe tastes amazing and is easy to make.

Transport yourself to tropical paradise with this tropical frozen cocktail!

Ingredients

Here is a quick overview of the simple ingredients needed to make an epic alcoholic Lava Flow Drink! The printable recipe card at the bottom of the post includes specific measurements and step-by-step instructions.

• Light Rum/white rum
• Malibu Rum
• Fresh Strawberries
• Banana
• Pineapple Juice
• Cream of Coconut

Garnish - Pineapple wedge/ pineapple slices, maraschino cherry, paper umbrella

Equipment Needed

• Blender
• Hurricane Glass

How to Make a Lava Flow Drink

I've included complete instructions in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post, but here's a quick version.

1. Blend Light Rum and Malibu Rum with the strawberries to make the strawberry mixture
2. Pour syrup into the bottom of your hurricane glass or into a pitcher.
3. Rinse out the blender.
4. Blend Banana, Coconut Cream, and Pineapple Juice until smooth. Add ice if you would like a super cold frothy drink.
5. Slowly pour the pineapple coconut mixture over the strawberry puree.
6. The strawberry syrup should slowly move up the sides. If it is not moving up the sides, you can use a straw to draw it up the glass and create swirls to create the lava flow effect. 

Preparation and Storage

Make Ahead + Storage + Freezing/How to Freeze: 

This blender cocktail has enough alcohol to freeze beautifully and maintain its slushy texture, even with the coconut cream it contains.

Freeze leftovers in an airtight container for up to a month, then thaw at room temperature or blend until you can transfer portions to serving glasses; you want a slushy and not a melted cocktail pool. Regardless of how you prepare your frozen cocktail for service, you may need to stir the mixture to get it to your desired consistency.

Recipe Variations

Substitutions: While the Lava Flow cocktail gets creaminess and tropical flavor from bananas, skip it if you don’t like this fruit. You can also replace the light rum with a spiced rum for a warmly spiced tiki cocktail.

Vegetarian Option: This tropical cocktail recipe is vegetarian-friendly!

Vegan Option: Vegans should substitute the Malibu Coconut Rum for an unflavored rum, as the liqueur’s FAQs confirm that Malibu is not vegan-safe.

Gluten-Free: Malibu is gluten-free, so whether this recipe is gluten-free depends on whether the rest of your ingredients are also gluten-free. Check each product label to confirm.

Alcohol-Free Option: Use any NA rum substitute or remove the rum to make a Lava Flow Mocktail/virgin lava flow.

Make it Spicy: We’ve seen versions that add muddled jalapeños for a tropical drink with a kick.

Larger Group/More Servings: Since this cocktail freezes well and comes together in your blender, making large batches for groups is easy! Scale the written recipe to your desired yield.

Sugar-Free: This recipe contains 61 grams of sugar per serving, and making it sugar-free as-is isn’t possible since Malibu has no sugar-free substitutes. Replace the Malibu with unflavored rum and the pineapple juice and cream of coconut with sugar-free substitutes to make it sugar-free.

Tips for the Best Lava Flow Drink

• We recommend using frozen strawberries to give your Lava Flow Cocktail an even icier consistency.
• Strawberries are typically the primary fruit in this cocktail, but you can experiment with other berries or tropical fruits to create different fruity variations.

What to Serve with a Lava Flow Drink

Make this splash of sun-kissed paradise in a glass part of your next summertime gathering or tiki cocktail night! Here are some menu pairing suggestions.

Sides: Pineapple Stuffing, Hawaiian Hurricane Popcorn, Watermelon Salad, CrockPot Jamaican Jerk Wings, Hawaiian Mac Salad, CrockPot Spicy Mango Jerk Wings

Main Dishes: CrockPot Teriyaki Chicken, Funeral Sandwiches, CrockPot Hawaiian Chicken, CrockPot Teriyaki Chicken and Veggies, CrockPot Pineapple Salsa Chicken Tacos, CrockPot Hawaiian Pulled Pork

Desserts: Pig Pickin' Cake, Mandarin Orange Jello Salad, Pineapple Angel Food Cake, CopyCat Sonic Coconut Cream Pie Shake, 2 Ingredient Coconut Macaroon Cookies, Bahama Mama Popsicle, Piña Colada Poke Cake, Key Lime Bars, Coconut Pineapple Drop Cookies

Drinks: Vodka Sunrise, Malibu Sunset, Carnival Rum Jumper Cocktail, Carnival Ting Mojito, Pineapple Upside Down Cake Shot, Blue Shark Cocktail, CopyCat Carnival Caribbean Breeze Cocktail, Dirty Banana Cocktail, Mai Tai, Guavaberry Colada, Coral Reef Cocktail

When to Serve a Lava Flow

• Summer Parties
• Tiki Parties
• Memorial Day
• Fourth of July
• Labor Day
• Remember your beach vacation

Great Tropical Cocktails

Key Lime Colada

Blue Hawaii Cocktail

Hurricane Cocktail

Miami Vice

Mango margarita 

Check out all of our fun red cocktails.

Do you love recipes? Check out our copycat recipes, dessert recipes, and our CrockPot Recipes.

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Lava Flow Cocktail Recipe

How to make a delicious Lava Flow Frozen Cocktail Recipe

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Print Rate

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes minutes

Servings: 1

Calories: 530kcal

Author: Tammilee Tips

Ingredients

• 1 Ounce light rum
• 1 Ounce Malibu Coconut Rum
• 2 Ounce Strawberries
• 1 Banana
• 2 Ounce Pineapple Juice
• 2 Ounce Cream of Coconut

Instructions

• Blend Light Rum and Malibu Rum with the strawberries to make a thick syrup.
• Pour syrup in the bottom of your hurricane glass
• Rinse out the Blender
• Blend Banana, Coconut Cream, and Pineapple Juice until smooth. Add in ice if you would like a super cold frothy drink
• Slowly pour the banana blend over the strawberry syrup.
• The strawberry syrup should slowly move up the sides. If it is not moving up the sides you can use a straw to draw it up the sides

Blender

Hurricane Glass

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Lava Flow Cocktail Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 530 Calories from Fat 90

% Daily Value*

Fat 10g15%

Saturated Fat 9g56%

Sodium 32mg1%

Potassium 583mg17%

Carbohydrates 78g26%

Fiber 6g25%

Sugar 61g68%

Protein 2g4%

Vitamin A 76IU2%

Vitamin C 49mg59%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Recipe originally shared on February 22, 2013. Updated October 2020, September 2023