Here are classic milkshake recipes to make at home

Homemade milkshakes are twice as good as the creamy treats served at diners, fast food places and fine restaurants. Learning how to make milkshakes at home is easy. Perfecting your technique is all about practice, practice, practice. You never know when the craving for a delicious milkshake will strike.

The first step to learning how to make great milkshakes involves accepting that you are about to indulge. Did you feel guilty drinking a milkshake when you were a kid? Probably not. Treats, by design, are meant to be enjoyed without guilt. 

Aside from the ice cream scooping, your handy blender does most of the milkshake-making labor for you. Prior to blenders, people had to literally shake milk, crushed ice and ice cream to make their own milkshakes at home? that is, after they churned or cranked their own ice cream. 

A good milkshake recipe starts with quality ice cream. Lighter ice cream will create a fluffy shake and heavy ice cream makes thicker, creamier milkshakes. If you?re going classic, use a chocolate, vanilla bean or strawberry ice cream. Rocky road, chocolate chip mint and other fun flavors will result in a more adventurous milkshake.

Milkshake aficionados debate the finer points of making a milkshake: do syrups do more harm than good, how long to blend to achieve proper consistency and whether or not only whole milk can suffice. As a rule of thumb, your milkshake is thick enough when the straw stands up on its own. While syrups do intensify flavors, they?re easy to go overboard with so you may want to consider adding only a light squeeze prior to blending and a drizzle on top for garnish. The thickest, creamiest milkshakes are made from whole milk, but in a blind taste test, reduced fat milk and soy or almond milkshakes taste just as rich. 

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You?ll need the following items to make milkshakes at home:
Blender, long spoon, straw, tall glass or metal cup

A variation of ingredients:
Ice cream, milk, whipped topping, cherry, syrup

For all milkshakes, adjust consistency by adding more milk to thin or more ice cream to thicken. Once blended to your liking, pour into glass, top with a swirl of whipped topping, cherry and a drizzle of syrup or crushed cookie.

Milkshake Recipes

Chocolate Milkshake:
Add 4 scoops chocolate ice cream, 1 1/2 cups milk, and a hardy squeeze of chocolate syrup into blender. Blend until consistency is smooth. 

Strawberry Milkshake:
Add 4 scoops strawberry ice cream, 1 cup milk, and 4 fresh or frozen strawberries into blender. Blend.

Vanilla Milkshake:
Add 4 scoops vanilla bean ice cream, 1 ®  cups milk into blender. Blend.

Malted shake:
Add 4 scoops chocolate, vanilla or strawberry ice cream, 1 cup milk, 3 tablespoons of malt syrup OR a handful of chocolate malt balls into blender. Blend.

Black and White Milkshake:
Add 4 scoops vanilla ice cream, 4 tablespoons chocolate syrup, 1 cup milk into blender. Blend.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Milkshake:
Add 3 table spoons peanut butter, 3 scoops chocolate ice cream, 2 tablespoons chocolate syrup, and 1 cup milk into blender. Blend.

Crunchy Oreo Shake:
Add 3 scoops vanilla ice cream, 1 ® cups milk, and 3 chopped oreo cookies into blender. Blend and to with crushed cookies.

Peanut Butter Banana Milkshakes:
Add 1 whole sliced banana, 2 tablespoons peanut butter, 4 scoops vanilla ice cream, 1 1/3 cups milk, and 1/3 cup of crushed ice. Blend.

Kick back and take your time enjoying the sweet satisfaction of this classic dessert.

References:
Today on MSNBC
Homemade Dessert Recipes