Vegan Homemade Shamrock Shake (Dairy-free)

One thing I appreciate about my food allergies is how they enable me to eat a lot more healthful than I might otherwise. That's not to say I never indulge in treats now and again, but I'm of the mentality now that treats can be made quite healthy and beneficial. I regularly like to hide veggies in my homemade desserts and stay away from refined sugars. Most of the time, my trusty taste tester can't tell the difference.

With all the hype around the McDonald's Shamrock Shake returning this March for St. Patrick's Day, I definitely wanted in on the creamy minty goodness. Since I'm lactose intolerant, I knew that wasn't going to happen; not conventionally anyway. I was inspired by Emily over at Cupcakes and Cashmere to embark on creating my own homemade dairy-free and vegan version of this coveted shake. With no added sugars, fresh mint leaves, almond milk and SO Delicious vanilla bean no sugar added dairy-free ice cream, this shake came out better than I anticipated and was pretty close to how I remember the original tasting. The best part? I even added a handful of baby SPINACH to increase the green hue of the shake! It can't be detected at all in the taste! This would be a great trick to get an extra serving of veggies in for the kids. I topped it with my own Coconut Whipped Cream recipe featured in Delight Gluten-Free Magazine's Winter 2012 issue which can be found here on Delight's Recipe page (I substituted 15 drops of liquid stevia instead of xylitol in this recipe).

So I might be a lot more French than Irish, but from a partially Irish girl to all of you, have a happy and safe St. Patrick's Day!

Vegan Homemade Shamrock Shake (Dairy-free)

This recipe is free of: Gluten, Soy, Dairy, Eggs, and Peanuts. Can be modified to be free of tree nuts.

• 2 cups SO Delicious No Sugar added Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
• 1 cup almond milk
• 6 to 8 fresh mint leaves
• 1 handful baby spinach (optional, but adds great nutrients and natural green color)

1. Add all ingredients to a high speed blender.
2. Blend until creamy and smooth consistency is reached.
3. Top with my Coconut Whipped Cream (dairy-free) recipe. Enjoy chilled, garnish with a sprig of fresh mint leaves.

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