It’s a familiar scenario: You’re kicking back with your buds and suddenly you get a craving for a DQ Blizzard with ALL the mix-ins… but it’s after midnight, and you have to wait until tomorrow. Or you get a hankering for a Mickey Dee’s Shamrock Shake, but UGH — it’s summertime. You’d sell your soul for a Sonic Shake, but it’s not in your area. You crave a Starbucks Frappé in the worst way, but it’s not in your budget. It’s even sadder when your favorite go-to drink gets discontinued — looking at you, Arby’s Polar Swirl. Desperate times call for desperate measures, so copycat recipes and drink hacks to the rescue! Here are 18 copycat shake recipes you can enjoy whenever a *serious* craving hits.
1. Copycat McDonald’s Shamrock Shake: If you live for the two months out of the year when you can enjoy this minty concoction in honor of St. Paddy’s day, you’ll love this made-from-scratch version. The Irish Cream whipped topping is a boozy delight. (via Chocolate Moosey)
2. Copycat Chick-Fil-A Frosted Lemonade: Sometimes it’s so hot outside, the only thing you can do is stay indoors and crank up the air. Or you could just whip up a batch of this frosted lemonade! It’s creamy, dreamy, sweet, tart and totally refreshing in *every* way. (via The Domestic Rebel)
3. Cotton Candy Blizzard: Delicious and delightful, this DQ copycat will make your day. Dairy-free folks can enjoy this tasty treat by substituting almond or coconut milk. (via Kelley + Cricket)
4. Steak ‘n’ Shake Copycat Mocha Speculoos Cookie Butter Milkshake: If you can’t stop thinking about Speculoos Cookie Butter since your last visit to Steak ‘n’ Shake, this cookies and milk shake is for you. If you haven’t tried it yet, be prepared to feed the addiction. Yes, it’s that good. (via Bake Happy)
5. Copycat Chick-fil-A Peach Milkshake: You can only get this peach shake at Chick-fil-A in summertime. This copycat recipe features delicious chunks of fresh peaches and vanilla ice cream blended together until creamy smooth. You’re welcome! (via Delightful E Made)
6. Mock Arby’s Jamocha Shake: The creamy concoction of coffee, chocolate and caramel you remember is made healthier with protein powder, cottage cheese and pure maple syrup. It may sound too good to be true, but it tastes just as chocolatey and delicious as the real thing. (via Briana Thomas)
7. Lemon Berry Slush: These lemon-berry slushies, made with fresh strawberries and orange juice, can be whipped up in a blender in just a few minutes. It’s a delicious way to cool down after work — happy hour, anyone? (via Chelsea’s Messy Apron)
8. Lucky Charms Avalanches: This shake tastes just like a DQ Blizzard, and when you make it at home, you can choose from a wider range of mix-ins. Like toasted oats cereal with mini marshmallows, for instance… (via Made to Be a Momma)
9. Peach Lemonade Slush: This taste-alike of everyone’s fave TGI Friday slushie has all the ripe peach flavor you crave in summer, with a requisite pop of tart lemon to quench your thirst. Peach drinks go great with bourbon BBQ, so whip up a batch for your next outdoor get-together. (via That’s What Che Said)
10. Peanut Butter-Chocolate White Out: Like your fave DQ Blizzard with peanut butter cup mix-ins, this copycat delivers on the flavor front, day or night. No peanut butter cups in the cupboard? No problem. Organic peanut butter and chocolate chips make this version even richer than the original. (via Boulder Locavore)
11. Dairy-Free Wendy’s Frosty Copycat: You can be slurping down this DF frosty in the time it would take to find your keys, get in your car and pull out of your driveway. No need to waste gas and get stuck in traffic when you can stay home, relax and enjoy all of this frosty chocolate and coconutty goodness right now. Do you need more convincing? (via Healthy Recipe Ecstasy)
12. Clean Shamrock Shake: This copycat shamrock shake is made with protein powder and all-natural ingredients, but it’s just as creamy, sweet and delicious as the original. The only thing missing is added sugar, artificial flavors and food dye. Clean living FTW! (via Laurenda Marie)
13. Five-Minute Peanut Butter Cup Salted Caramel McFlurry: This creamy, decadent McFlurry copycat is awash in salted caramel and peanut butter, then loaded up with peanut butter cups. Pro tip: Blend Cool Whip into vanilla ice cream to get that authentic McFlurry flavor. (via Layers of Happiness)
14. Samoa Blizzard: In this DQ copycat, chocolate coconut ice cream gets its crunch from the addition of Girl Scout Cookie mix-ins. The whole confection is topped with generous swirls of chocolate ganache. Rally your troops for an impromptu meeting on your porch and you’re sure to earn a merit badge. (via Spache the Spatula)
15. Copycat Starbucks Vanilla Bean Frappuccino: No need to fork over five bucks for what is essentially a cup of sweet frozen milk topped with twice the whipped cream when you can easily hack this Starbuck’s fave at home. Who knew a little milk and ice could taste so heavenly? (via The Lazy Mom’s Cooking Blog)
16. Frozen Mocha Frappuccino: If you find yourself making a coffee run at 4pm every day, it’s time to stock the office kitchen with the essentials. To get a taste-alike shake, just mix any pre-packaged coffee drink with ice cubes in a blender, then top with whipped cream, chocolate syrup and chocolate chips. But you’d better plan on making a double batch — when the rest of the office hears the blender, everyone’s going to want one. (via Jennifer Meyering)
17. Copycat Grape Nerds Slushie: When Sonic came out with their Nerds slush, one sip was like jumping in a time machine. It has exactly that throwback grape flavor you remember. You can get the same effect by freezing grape juice into a slushy and adding grape nerds. The result is fizzy, sweet and delicious. (via Create, Craft, Love)
18. Copycat Canberra Freakshake: You don’t need to hop a plane to Australia to enjoy the Canberra shake trend that gave the Internet a sugar rush. The copycat treat calls for vanilla ice cream, milk, Nutella, whipped cream, pretzels and pretzel crumbs. Any way you layer it on, it’s *all* good. (via Michael Wiltbank / Domino)
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