Grown-up Milkshake and Ice Cream

Summer is winding down. How can I tell? Because all of the back-to-school signs are there: Sales on clothes and school supplies. School registration announcements in the newspaper. And, if I listen carefully, I can hear the cheering of parents anticipating the first day of school and the return to a normal schedule.

Here are two summer-ending recipes to help adults celebrate this unofficial season. The Hard Chocolate Milkshake Cocktail recipe was originally created by The New Hampshire Ex many years ago, and was a big hit with the neighbors. We spent many a summer evening sipping on the frosty beverage and fighting off the mosquitoes while the kids played on my front lawn or road their bikes up and down our small-town street.

 

I have since tinkered with the recipe a bit. This is not a traditional blended shake, but a cocktail where the ingredients are mixed in a cocktail shaker (or, in my case, by pouring the mixture between two glasses until it is combined and frothy.) A word of caution: This is a potent drink! Like a Long Island Iced Tea, it is more alcohol than other ingredients. The recipe makes one large drink, but can also be easily divided between two glasses.

As I was testing the milkshake recipe, I wondered, “Wouldn’t this make a tasty grown-up ice cream?”

After some research, I came up with the right alcohol measurements to allow this Hard Ice Cream recipe to reach the correct consistency. It doesn’t pack the punch you get from the milkshake, and even though there is chocolate syrup in the mix, it doesn’t have a strong chocolate flavor. However, this ice cream has an elegant, adult taste perfect for the end of summer.

Hard Chocolate Milkshake Cocktail

Serves 1 or 2

1 ounce creme de cacao

1 ounce Kahlua

1 ounce Frangelico

1/2 ounce vodka

3 ounces cream, or half and half

1 squirt chocolate syrup (about 1 tablespoon), plus more for garnish

Fill a tall glass with ice. Add the ingredients. Shake until blended and frothy. Squirt a line of chocolate syrup around the inside rim of a clean tall glass. Pour in the milkshake mixture. Add a straw and serve. 

Hard Ice Cream

Serves 6 to 8

1 cup whole milk

3/4 cup sugar

pinch of salt

1 ounce crème de cacao

1 ounce Kahlua

1/2 ounce Frangelico

3 tablespoons chocolate syrup

2 cups heavy cream

In a medium bowl, add the milk, sugar, and salt. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

Prepare in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions to a soft-serve consistency. Spoon into an airtight container and place in the freezer for at least 2 hours. Scoop into bowls and serve.