How to make an at home milkshake

The first sip of a thick, yummy milkshake is always completely satisfying. But the next time you're craving this sweet dessert, you don't necessarily have to take a trip to the drive-through or your favorite restaurant. If you want to learn how to make a homemade milkshake, all you really need is your favorite ice cream, a splash of milk, and a blender to help make it thick and creamy. Or, if you're running low on ice cream, you can also learn how to make a milkshake without ice cream (it just takes a couple of extra ingredients). Choose your flavor, whether it's classic vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, or something a little more out-of-the-box like cookie dough or mint chip, grab a straw, and get started!

How to Make a Milkshake with Ice Cream

If you're planning to use ice cream as the base for your milkshake, the steps couldn't be simpler. Just combine ice cream with milk in a blender (the less milk you add, the thicker the shake will be), and blend until smooth. For a one-serving milkshake, plan to use about one cup of ice cream with a quarter cup of milk. If you want the shake to be a little easier to sip through a straw, adding extra milk will help thin it out. You can also make the shake a little more rich by substituting milk for something like half-and-half. You can also choose dairy milk and ice cream alternatives to make a vegan or dairy-free milkshake.

Choose whatever flavor of ice cream you want the shake to be. If you want a stronger flavor, you can also add extra ingredients. For example, if you want to know how to make a strawberry milkshake with a lot of fruity flavor, try adding fresh strawberries to the blender alongside your milk and ice cream. Or, for how to make a chocolate milkshake richer, blend in a squeeze of chocolate syrup. Other ideas include cookie dough bites, chopped candies, chopped fruit, hot fudge, sweet cereal, cheesecake bites, and crushed cookies.

If you don't have a blender to use, you can also mix up the ingredients using an immersion blender. Or, combine in a bowl and whisk or stir until smooth (if you choose to stir, it'll help to let the ice cream soften at room temperature for about 10 minutes before you start mixing).

How to Make a Milkshake Without Ice Cream

No ice cream? No worries! You can still blend up a mouthwatering milkshake with just a few pantry ingredients. To help thicken the shake and ensure it's good and cold, start by adding ice cubes to a blender. Top with a splash of milk, and add a couple of spoonfuls of sugar to sweeten it. Finally, add a small amount of vanilla extract. If you're just wondering how to make a vanilla milkshake, that's all you'll need–just blend until it reaches the consistency you like. But you can also dress up this basic no-ice cream recipe with other add-ins. Add a spoonful of cocoa powder to make it a chocolate milkshake, or turn it into a refreshing mint shake with a little mint extract.

How to Dress Up a Basic Milkshake Recipe

It's super easy to make a simple homemade milkshake, but there are also tons of ways you can dress it up into something a little more special. Before pouring your milkshake into a glass, try drizzling syrup around the inside of the glass. Use chocolate or strawberry syrup or caramel sauce to give your shake a little extra sweetness and flavor.

You can also add extra goodies to the rim of the glass. For a summertime s'mores milkshake, use a knife to smear marshmallow fluff around the rim of the glass. Then, roll through crushed graham crackers before pouring in the shake. Or, to add extra color to the glass, dip the rim in chocolate syrup, then roll through colorful sprinkles. You could also try crushed cookies, chopped nuts, or your favorite cereal.

Finally, toppers can also push your shake to the next level. A generous dollop of whipped cream is almost a given, but you can also garnish the shake with almost anything. Think fruit slices, cookies, a drizzle of chocolate sauce, candies, chocolate chips, or sprinkles. If you like a combination of sweet and salty, even something a little unusual like pretzels or crushed potato chips can make a tasty, one-of-a-kind shake. If you have a favorite restaurant milkshake, try using that as inspiration, or just combine the flavors you're craving—the possibilities are endless!

Jump to Recipe

Today, we're learning a very important life lesson. In my opinion, How to Make a Milkshake should be taught in schools. We will go over exactly how to make them and how to further customize them, all using my special formula! So grab your blenders, your favorite ice cream flavor, and let's start mixing!

I am trying so hard to be a fun ‘summer mom’ lately, even though I want some form of learning to continue over the summer months. My kids are getting their math lesson by practicing fractions while they make Mommy's Cinnamon Dolce Latte first thing in the morning.

If the kids can measure out milk and cinnamon for my latte, then I think they deserve to learn the formula for how to make a milkshake! The formula below makes a perfect milkshake in any blender, of any flavor!

Ingredients

• Ice Cream. Select your favorite flavor of ice cream for the base, as this will become the building block of the flavor of the milkshake.
• Milk. For every 3 scoops of ice cream, we will need 1 cup of milk to thin it out. This is just how you make a milkshake. It's essentially like drinking ice cream.
• Flavor Component. This can be anything from malted milk powder to amp up the vanilla flavor, mini chocolate chips for a chocolate milkshake, frozen fruit, chunks of cookies or baked pie crust.
• Toppings. It really wouldn't be a milkshake without whipped cream and a cherry on top, would it? My daughter also thinks sprinkles of any color are mandatory, and I happen to agree with her.

After typing in ‘how to make a milkshake’ on my phone and being overwhelmed with results, I came up with my own plan. I decided to keep it really simple: just ice cream, a splash of milk and some fun, optional additions. 

I also made the executive decision to always keep the ingredients in my house for the remainder of the summer months. Soon, it will be pumpkin season, and these milkshake ingredients will remind us of our fun summer days.

If you want something slightly fancy, try my Cheesecake Milkshakes!

Basic Milkshake Recipe:

The formula for how to make milkshakes is simple: 3 scoops of ice cream + 1 cup of milk. Anything else you want to add is entirely up to you!

1. In a clean blender, add the 1 cup of milk. It's helpful to add the liquid at the bottom because it's closest to the blender blades and will help everything puree faster.
2. Add 3 scoops of ice cream on top of the milk.
3. Now is the time to add any additional flavorings: chocolate syrup, mini chocolate chips, crushed cookies, frozen fruit, cooked pie pieces (for a cherry pie milkshake).

Strawberry Milkshake Recipe:

When I’m making a strawberry version, I like to toss in a handful of fresh strawberries to make it extra delicious. Fresh strawberries with 3 scoops of strawberry ice cream plus 1 cup of milk is perfect!  

Another fruity version is my Pineapple Milkshake made with roasted pineapple!

Vanilla Milkshake Recipe: 

When I’m making a vanilla milkshake, I like to add 3 tablespoons of malted milk powder for that classic soda fountain flavor. So, it’s 3 scoops of your favorite vanilla ice cream with one cup of milk, plus malted milk powder.

Chocolate Milkshake Recipe:

If I’m making a chocolate milkshake, I also add malt powder because my husband loves a good chocolate malt! This is why he loves my malted chocolate chip cookies, by the way.

His perfect chocolate malt recipe is 3 scoops of chocolate ice cream with one cup of milk, plus malted milk powder. If I have chocolate milk in the fridge, I use that instead of plain milk to make it a double chocolate milkshake!

A fun twist on a chocolate milkshake is a Smores Milkshake. If you can fit in a few extra steps, you won't be disappointed with that one.

Variations

• Ice Cream - Any type of ice cream works here, so use whatever works for your dietary preference. I make this with vegan ice cream and dairy-alternative ice cream frequently.
• Milk - Similar to ice cream, any type of milk works here, even vegan milks!

Equipment

While there are special milkshake gadgets, we always use our regular blender. It's a Vitamix, and it's just the best blender on the market. This is just my unpaid opinion based on decades of using alternate blenders.

Storage

This always happens in my house: my kids can't finish their milkshake and they want to save it in the freezer for another day. The truth is, these are best enjoyed the same day. Once frozen, the milk turns icy and often thaws into more of a slush. This recipe is to make one at a time, and if you make a small batch, you shouldn't have leftovers.

If you keep these milkshake ingredients in your freezer all summer long, you’re just minutes away from a smile on every face in your family! If you’re like me and enjoy things like this, keep these items stocked up in the freezer means you’ll have them on hand when you need them.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Total Time 5 minutes

Ingredients

For chocolate milkshake:

• 3 scoops chocolate ice cream
• 1 cup whole milk
• 3 tablespoons malted milk powder (optional)

For vanilla milkshake:

• 3 scoops vanilla ice cream
• 1 cup whole milk
• 3 tablespoons malted milk powder (optional)

For the strawberry milkshake:

• 3 scoops strawberry ice cream
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 cup chopped fresh strawberries

Toppings:

• whipped cream
• hot fudge sauce
• sprinkles
• Maraschino cherries

Instructions

1. Make each flavor one at a time in the blender: combine the ice cream, milk and malted milk powder (if using) or strawberries in the blender.
2. Blend on high speed until smooth.
3. Pour into a glass and serve with any toppings of your choice.

Notes

*Each recipe makes 1 milkshake; double or triple the recipe as needed to serve more.

Storage: This is a small batch recipe that makes one milkshake at a time, so you shouldn't have leftovers. This is for the best because leftovers cannot be refrozen.

Ice Cream: Use any type of ice cream you prefer, even alternative dairy ice creams.
Milk: I'm using whole milk here, but any type of milk works, even vegan milk.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

How do you make a thick milkshake?

How do you make milkshakes in a blender?

What materials and ingredients are needed to make milkshake?

Does a milkshake need ice?