Vanilla Milkshake
Blend ∙ 4 min ∙
The Vanilla Milkshake is a blended non-alcoholic drink of vanilla ice cream, cream, milk, and vanilla syrup, served thick and cold. Thick and creamy with a rich vanilla sweetness up front, the milk loosening it just enough to pull through a straw.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Blend all ingredients: Vanilla ice cream 100 gSingle cream/half-and-half 100 mlMilk 50 mlVanilla syrup 20 ml
- Pour into the glass
Tips
- Pre-chill the glass before blending so the milkshake doesn't start melting the moment it's poured.
- Use ice cream straight from the freezer, not softened, to keep the shake thick rather than runny.
- Blend just until smooth and stop — over-blending warms the mixture and thins it out.
History
The vanilla milkshake traces back to the general history of the American milkshake rather than a separate origin story of its own. The term "milkshake" first appeared in print in 1885, when it described an alcoholic concoction of eggs, cream, and whiskey served as a tonic. By 1900 the word had shifted to mean a wholesome drink made with chocolate, strawberry, or vanilla syrup, and in the early 1900s customers began asking for it with ice cream added.
The version people now recognize as a vanilla milkshake is credited to Ivar "Pop" Coulson, an employee at a Walgreens drugstore in Chicago, who in 1922 dropped scoops of vanilla ice cream into the store's standard malted milk drink of milk, chocolate syrup, and malt powder, thickening it into the modern shake. The result, marketed by the Walgreen drugstore chain, helped popularize the ice cream milkshake nationwide and, together with the spread of electric blenders later in the 1920s and malt shops in the 1930s, established the format still used for vanilla milkshakes today.
FAQ
What do you need to make a vanilla milkshake?
Vanilla ice cream, single cream, milk, and vanilla syrup, blended smooth and poured into a pre-chilled glass.
How is a vanilla milkshake made?
Blend the vanilla ice cream, cream, milk, and vanilla syrup together, then pour into a pre-chilled glass. Chilling the glass first keeps the shake from thinning out before serving.
Is a vanilla milkshake just ice cream and milk?
Not quite in this build — it's ice cream and milk plus single cream (or half-and-half) and vanilla syrup, blended together. The added cream gives it a noticeably thicker, richer body than a simple ice-cream-and-milk shake.
What is the secret to a good milkshake?
The ratio of ice cream to liquid is what separates a good milkshake from a thin one; this build uses more ice cream and cream than milk to keep it spoon-thick. Blending briefly, just until smooth, also prevents the shake from warming and loosening too much.
What is a boozy milkshake?
A boozy milkshake is a milkshake blended with a spirit or liqueur added to the ice cream and milk base, unlike this vanilla milkshake, which is entirely non-alcoholic.