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This healthy Shamrock Shake tastes better than the kind you’d buy at a drive-thru. It’s a nutritious, mint-flavored milkshake that is naturally green– no food dye required!
Why You’ll Love It
It’s naturally green. Instead of relying on green food coloring like the McDonald’s version, this copycat recipe gets its green hue from simple ingredients, like spinach and avocado. You can’t taste it at all, so it’s the perfect treat for St. Patrick’s Day! (No gel food coloring required.)
It’s easy to make. Just toss a few ingredients into a blender, and blend until smooth. Then you’ll add the ice and blend again until it has a slushy texture, just like a milkshake! Unlike the version that is available only for a limited time, you can make this one anytime a craving strikes.
It’s a delicious treat. This smoothie recipe tastes like a sweet, mint-flavored dessert, without using refined sugar or vanilla ice cream.
It’s easy to customize. If you’re not a fan of avocado, you can skip that and use a frozen banana for creaminess, or add a spoonful of almond butter, instead. Either will add a dairy-free creaminess, without relying on ice cream.
Ingredients You’ll Need
The spinach will add a green color, but you can’t taste it at all! The peppermint extract will add a minty flavor, but you can also use a few fresh mint leaves, if you prefer. (Any other mint extract available at your grocery store should work here, too.)
You can use any milk as the base of this recipe, including whole milk, almond milk, or coconut milk, if you need a dairy-free option.
How to Make a Healthy Shamrock Shake
1. Blend.
In a high-speed blender, combine the almond milk, avocado, spinach, pitted Medjool dates (or maple syrup), and peppermint extract. Blend until the dates are totally pulverized, and the mixture has a creamy texture, almost like a green pudding.
Note: If you don’t have a high-speed blender, omit the dates and use 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, instead. This will be much easier to blend!
2. Add the ice.
Once the mixture is smooth, add the ice and blend again to achieve a slushy texture, or your desired consistency. Keep in mind that the more ice you add, the more diluted the flavor will become.
Taste the smoothie and make any adjustments, as needed. You can add more mint extract for a minty flavor, or a little more maple syrup for extra sweetness.
3. Enjoy!
Pour the smoothie into a glass and serve it right away for the best taste and texture. To make it look like McDonald’s shamrock shake recipe, garnish it with whipped cream and a cherry, or a few green sprinkles, if you keep them on hand.
Storage Tip: Smoothies don’t always store well in the fridge overnight, so if you have leftovers, pour them into a popsicle mold and freeze them for a treat later!
Variations & Frequently Asked Questions
This seasonal milkshake is usually available starting in late February through March, but you can make this homemade version anytime!
Yes, you can add a few chocolate chips to this recipe in the final step (when you add the ice) to distribute bits of chocolate throughout the smoothie. Or, try drizzling some chocolate syrup on top, for an easy mint chocolate flavor.
This recipe calls for minimal liquid, since the ice added later might dilute the flavor slightly. You can always add a little extra milk or water to help thin out the consistency, if you need to!
Looking for more St. Patrick’s Day ideas? Try Sweet Spinach Muffins, Mint Matcha Cookies, or Pistachio Ice Cream for more delicious recipes.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup almond milk (or water)
- 1/4 avocado , pitted
- 1 cup fresh baby spinach
- 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 5 Medjool dates , pitted (or 2 T maple syrup)
- 1 to 2 large handfuls of ice
Instructions
- Combine the almond milk, avocado, spinach, peppermint extract, and dates and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust the any flavoring as needed, but keep in mind that the flavor will be diluted slightly when you add the ice in the next step.
- Add the ice and blend again, until the smoothie is as thick as you’d like. Serve right away.
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Notes
Nutrition
If you try this copycat Shamrock Shake recipe, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how you like it.
Exactly the smoothie I needed this morning – stressful day with work and everything else going on in the world! But a little bit of tradition and fun put a smile on my face. Deliciously sweet but healthy. The only change I made was to use beet greens because I just harvested my beets from the garden and have a lot of those greens. Worked perfect and it was still green. Thanks!
I made this today to make sure I liked it before bringing it to a St Patrick’s day breakfast this weekend. It was delicious! I feel other recipes I’ve tried are always too creamy or too bland, but this is perfect! (1/4 avocado is exactly the right amount of creaminess) So easy and my kiddos drank it up, too! Another winner from Detoxinista!
YUMMY!!!
And I only used 3 dates to cut sugar. Some would need the extra sweetness, I imagine.
Thank you ! I can always count on you to have wonderful recipes!
Has anyone made it without Spinach? I can’t have it wondering if it would taste good without?
Yes! The spinach doesn’t really affect the flavor either way, it’s just for the green color. 🙂
This is one of my favorite smoothies of yours. I do think it tastes better than McDonald’s!
I love this milkshake! Not too minty or too sweet, and the spinach is just enough to make it green. You can’t even taste it! The avocado makes it so smooth like ice cream does to an actual milkshake. I make it for my little brother at least once a week. Thank you Mrs Gilmore!!💖😁😉
Can I use fresh mint instead of the peppermint extract?
Thanks!
Sure!
Thanks for the avocado substitution suggestion. I’m going to try to make this tonight. Avos are a migraine trigger for me, so I avoid them at all costs.
Of course Megan has just what I am craving and so delicious! I added some Enjoy Life chocolate chips to this and it hit the spot. Yum!
This was SO good. My daughter loved it. Especially with dark chocolate bits in it 😉
Thank you!!