16 Liquors That Turn Your Smoothie Into A Cocktail

If you are a smoothie fan, you know how satisfying and delicious it can be to blend up a variety of fruits with milk or juice and create a delicious drink. Smoothies can replace a meal or simply act as a snack to prevent the mid-afternoon slump. You may be used to starting your day with a smoothie, but what about ending your day with one instead? As the sun sets, your smoothie can make a delicious base for a creamy or fruity cocktail, with a dash of booze transforming your (usually) innocent smoothie into something a little more grown-up.

Whether adding a shot of rum to your tropical pineapple smoothie or upgrading your creamy banana drink with a luxurious measure of Baileys Irish cream, there's a boozy smoothie combination to suit every situation. Join us as we take you through the best alcohol matches for each drink, to help you elevate your daytime smoothie to a fun evening cocktail.

Tequila may be most famous in the cocktail world for the bright and bold margarita. But it makes a wonderful addition to many drinks, including turning a tropical mango smoothie into a grown-up delight. The strong, earthy notes of tequila contrast perfectly with the sweet flavors of the fruit and create a balanced drink that is lively and satisfying.

To make the smoothie base, you will first have to prepare the mango. The large stone in the middle can make this difficult, but you can get around this by cutting a mango "hedgehog" style. Cut around either side of the stone to remove the two large mango "cheeks". Make vertical slices with the knife, without cutting all the way through, then repeat horizontally to create a criss-cross pattern. You can then push the skin of each wedge upward, slide your knife under the squares, and watch them easily fall off onto your cutting board.

Add the mango cubes to the blender along with coconut water and a generous squeeze of lime. You can also incorporate other fruits such as pineapple if you wish. Add a shot of tequila and blend to a smooth mixture. Pour into a cocktail glass and enjoy.

When contemplating a summery smoothie, it doesn't always need to be creamy and luscious — sometimes a refreshing light smoothie is what you need to hit the spot. A creamy frozen watermelon drink is invigorating and delicious, and when mixed with peach schnapps, makes for a delightful summer's evening cocktail.

Start by preparing the watermelon. As you cut into it, juice will likely escape, so you could try placing a small cutting board on a tray to collect the excess juice and add it to your smoothie. You definitely don't want any seeds making it into your blender, as their texture will ruin your drink, so be sure to remove each seed as you cut through the fruit.

Blend the watermelon until it forms a liquid, then add a shot of peach schnapps and a splash of fresh lime juice before blending again. Serve this fresh cocktail at your next garden party to keep your guests hydrated and happy.

Is there a more quintessentially summery fruit than delicious, ripe strawberries? They feature in many smoothie recipes as they deliver a burst of fresh sweetness that is not overpowering. Strawberries are also a big favorite in fruit-forward cocktails, making them the perfect fruit to star in your smoothie cocktail.

Most fruits go well with strawberries, particularly other berries, so chuck whatever combination you want into the blender. Switching the type of berries each time will lend different flavors to your strawberry smoothie. Half a banana is a good idea too, to bulk out the smoothie and make it more filling. Add any type of milk or fruit juice and blend until smooth.

To upgrade your smoothie to a cocktail, vodka is a versatile option that won't detract too much from the luscious fruity flavor. Add a shot of vodka to your smoothie mixture and blend it again quickly to incorporate the alcohol throughout. If you're not a fan of vodka, you could try making a frozen strawberry daiquiri with white rum instead.

If one cocktail is reminiscent of Italian beaches and watching beautiful sunsets, it's the peach Bellini. Sweet pureed peaches mixed with delightfully sparkling Prosecco, it's a treat for the taste buds with its bubbles and delicious flavor. You can enjoy a more substantial version of this fantastic cocktail by whipping up a peach smoothie and adding a splash of bubbly.

The key to the perfect peach smoothie is choosing beautifully ripe fruits. A good peach will have a vibrant color (without any green) and feel soft if gently squeezed. It should also have a sweet scent that will get your mouth watering before you even cut into it.

Peel the peach and add to the blender along with some honey and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. A creamy base will not work well with the Prosecco, so choose fresh juice or simply water. Citrus juice will work well and enhance the flavor of the peach. Once you are ready to level up your smoothie, add a few spoonfuls to a champagne flute then top it up with Prosecco.

If you're looking for a vibrant, energizing smoothie that doubles as a fantastic cocktail, then an orange and triple sec combo will be right up your street. Triple sec is an underrated citrus liqueur that is a crucial component of a margarita but is often overshadowed by the more prominent tequila. The combination of the orange in the smoothie and the liqueur makes for a tangy and mouthwatering treat.

To create your orange smoothie, add orange segments to the blender, along with some fresh juice such as citrus or apple. The options for adding other fruits are endless, but to keep the flavor bright, try tropical fruit like mango or pineapple. Whichever additional fruit you choose, your smoothie will be bursting with flavor.

To transform your smoothie into evening mode, add a measure of triple sec to the mix and blend quickly to incorporate it into the drink. Serve in a cocktail glass with a garnish of orange peel, and enjoy it as a light, refreshing pre-dinner drink.

For a smoothie-turned-cocktail that is sunshine in a glass, the limoncello and strawberry combination is a must-try this summer. The tangy notes of lemon liqueur are balanced perfectly by sweet berries to create a drink that is refreshing and luxurious at the same time.

Start by blending up fresh strawberries with a few segments of peeled lemon for an extra zingy kick. You can use frozen strawberries instead if you have them, which will give the drink a more slushy texture. Depending on how sweet you want it to be, you can add a few tablespoons of honey to balance the freshness of the lemon.

Once the fruit is blended to a perfect texture, add one measure of limoncello and blend again. Serve your drink in cocktail glasses with a thin shaving of strawberry and some dried lemon peel for decoration. The sweet and tangy notes in this drink make it a perfect accompaniment to a Sunday brunch or garden party.

When you think of classic smoothie ingredients, cucumber likely doesn't feature near the top of your list — but maybe it should. Cucumber can often be dismissed as being composed of mostly water, but it lends a wonderful fresh flavor to drinks. Its water content helps make a refreshing smoothie, which just so happens to pair perfectly with gin to make a light, delicious cocktail.

To create the non-alcoholic version, blend up cucumber with some lime, ice, and a few mint leaves. For a more substantial texture, pineapple pieces work well and will also complement the flavor of the gin. This smoothie is perfect for sipping slowly throughout the afternoon to keep you hydrated and refreshed.

To turn your smoothie into a tantalizing cocktail, add a shot of dry gin and mix well. Serve with a garnish of cucumber and mint to create a wonderful summer cocktail.

For a smoothie that will transport you to a tropical beach with the sun beating down, there is nothing better than a delicious blend of pineapple and coconut milk. The ultra-juicy pineapple and creamy coconut milk is a match made in heaven, and as the evening approaches, it's so easy to turn your virgin piña colada into a grown-up cocktail with a splash of white rum.

To make the smoothie, you can either use freshly prepared or canned pineapple. Although fresh pineapple will taste the most vibrant, preparing a pineapple is a time-consuming and fiddly task, which may put you off making your healthy morning smoothie. Canned pineapple is still a tasty option and only takes seconds to prepare. Either way, add your chosen pineapple chunks to the blender, along with canned coconut milk and some heavy cream if you want it to be extra-luxurious. Blend everything up until you have a creamy, smooth texture.

As dinner time approaches, a measure of white rum can be added into the mix to turn your pineapple smoothie into a cool and refreshing piña colada. Enjoy sipping your tropical cocktail as you relax and unwind.

Is there anything better than a milkshake that becomes a cocktail? Well, yes there is — a smoothie made from delicious fresh fruit that tastes like a milkshake and becomes a cocktail. Enter the strawberries and cream spiked cocktail. Mixing vibrant strawberries with ice cream, vanilla-flavored vodka, and Baileys Irish cream — is there any part of it that doesn't sound fantastic?

The key to making this smoothie better than your average milkshake is to go heavy on the strawberries. The bright fresh flavor will put it head and shoulders above a milkshake made with strawberry milk or syrup, so be sure to make the strawberries the star ingredient.

Add the strawberries to the blender along with vanilla ice cream and some whole cream milk to thin down the texture, then blend until completely smooth. To make it boozy, add equal measures of vanilla vodka and Baileys Irish cream and blend again, then pour over ice cubes and enjoy the decadent, creamy flavor.

If you are a big fan of marzipan, you will love the nutty flavors of the Italian liqueur amaretto. Adding it to a cherry-based smoothie gives delicious cherry tart vibes, making the perfect cocktail for dessert. Despite taking its name from the Italian word "amaro", meaning bitter, amaretto actually has a balanced blend of sweet and bitter notes, with a strong flavor of almonds.

Start with fresh or frozen cherries (frozen ones are more convenient since you won't need to pit them) and add them to the blender with your choice of nut milk. Almond milk would obviously enhance the flavor of the amaretto, but hazelnut or coconut milk will work too. Add a measure of amaretto and blend. You can garnish it with a couple of cherries or some almond slivers, and enjoy this decadent drink whenever you are in the mood for a sweet boozy smoothie.

Chocolate and fruit are always a great combination, and combining a raspberry smoothie with crème de cacao liqueur makes for a delicious cocktail. The sweet, slightly tart flavors from the raspberries balance the rich, luxurious crème de cacao to create a perfectly balanced drink.

Fresh raspberries tend to spoil quite easily, so you may wish to have a bag of frozen ones in your freezer if you are planning to make this smoothie cocktail regularly. Otherwise, make sure fresh raspberries are completely dry before storing them in the fridge, as moisture will encourage them to go off. 

Add the raspberries to the blender with half a banana to thicken it, and your choice of milk or yogurt. Blend until completely smooth, then add a measure of crème de cacao and blend again. If you're feeling indulgent, you may wish to add a shot of Chambord as well to really intensify the raspberry flavor. This decadent cocktail is perfect for an elegant dinner party or a romantic night in.

If you usually enjoy a caffeine hit to get you through the evening, why not switch things up and try a coffee-flavored cocktail instead? Kahlúa is a Mexican liqueur made from coffee beans and white rum, and it makes a fantastic addition to a banana-based smoothie.

The beauty of this banana smoothie is that you can add many different fruits to sweeten things up if you wish. The riper your banana is (the more black spots the better) the sweeter your smoothie will be. Start by adding the banana to the blender, then throw in strawberries, blueberries, or even mango depending on the flavors you want to bring to your coffee delight. Mix everything up with your choice of milk to make a creamy smoothie, then add a shot of Kahlúa and blend again. Serve immediately over ice, or you could even pop it in the freezer for a few hours to create a soft coffee-flavored ice cream.

If you're a fan of having cocktails as desserts, you will likely be familiar with the super-indulgent frozen Brandy Alexander. Essentially a boozy milkshake, it consists of brandy, crème de cacao, and heavy cream. You can turn this into a slightly more substantial treat by making a banana and cream smoothie first, before adding brandy and chocolate liqueur to create the ultimate alcoholic smoothie.

Start by blending up a banana with some heavy cream and a splash of milk to make a smooth banana milkshake. You can add other fruits such as berries that will match the decadent flavors, but citrus fruits are unlikely to work. Add a measure of brandy and crème de cacao, or other chocolate liqueur, and blend again.

Serve this luscious drink over ice and garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon. Whether you are having it as the sweet course at the end of a fabulous meal, or a decadent start to your evening, your brandy, cream, and banana smoothie is a delicious twist on a cocktail.

If sweet cocktails are not really your thing, a refreshing and bitter drink made with Campari and grapefruit may be right up your street. The herbal flavors of Campari may be an acquired taste, but the bitter notes of the grapefruit pair perfectly with it.

Start by selecting a grapefruit — red ones are the sweetest whereas white ones will give you a more sour flavor. If you're not sure, buy both red and white, and add a few segments of each to the blender. Add some orange juice if you want to soften the flavor, or grapefruit juice to enhance the bold, tangy citrus notes.

Once your fruit is blended to a smooth texture, add one measure of Campari. Its bold red color will make the drink look impressive, especially if you use red grapefruit. Enjoy this refreshing drink on a sunny day as an aperitif, or if you want to push the flavors and booziness even further, try making a Negroni slushy instead.

For an aromatic cocktail based on a refreshing orange smoothie, try adding a splash of dry vermouth. The floral notes from the fortified wine will complement the citrus flavors perfectly, creating a refreshing and elegant drink.

Start by making a delicious smoothie from oranges and other citrus fruits. With so many varieties of orange available, you have a wide choice depending on how sweet you want your drink. The Valencia orange will give you a great balance between sweet and tart and won't turn bitter quickly, unlike the usual navel orange. Using blood oranges instead will give your cocktail an intriguing deep color and a pleasant, tart flavor.

Whatever orange you choose, add it to the blender with a splash of lime juice for some added freshness. If you want a real citrusy pop, you could even add a few grapefruit segments. Blend everything until very smooth, adding fresh orange juice if it needs more liquid.

Once your smoothie is ready, it's time to add the booze. Add a dry vermouth into the mix along with a splash of gin if you want something a bit stronger. Blend it all together to combine it well, then serve in a martini glass with a slice of orange and a sprig of mint.

You may have tried adding bourbon to a milkshake before to make a creamy, decadent sweet treat, but adding bourbon to a smoothie probably hadn't crossed your mind. If you get the right combination of fruit and whiskey, the result will be a deeply satisfying drink that works well as an aperitif or an after-dinner dessert.

Berries are the best option to match the smoky flavor of bourbon. Blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries could all work and will create fantastic colors. Add your chosen berries to the blender, along with banana or melon to thicken the texture. Choose your favorite milk and add it to the mix along with a measure of bourbon. Blend everything up to make a silky smooth drink that has a deep flavor and visual appeal with its dark blue or red hues, depending on what combination of berries you choose. Serve in a tall glass with a few whole blueberries on top as garnish.