This challenge was suggested by my milkshake-a-holic brother.  Despite being nearly 30, Si regularly orders milkshakes when we go out for dinner.  Over the last few years, I think he has become a bit of an expert.  With this, Si didn’t just suggest any old milkshake for this challenge, he specified that it should be the mother of all milkshakes.  I started thinking about all the different flavours I could bring together but then spoke to Si about what the mother of all milkshakes means to him.  And do you know what he said?  Just a good, simple, chocolate milkshake.  So here it is, my attempt to make a simple chocolate milkshake be the mother of all milkshakes.

I started by having a little look at what makes a good milkshake.  It’s not rocket science and a few simple things help make a good milkshake great.  In particular:-

• Freeze your serving glass beforehand
• Use good quality ice cream
• Use full fat milk
• Use a nice thick straw to drink through

I did some quick searches online and found a recipe for a homemade chocolate syrup here.  So to make this chocolate syrup and my mother of all milkshakes, you’ll need the following ingredients:-

• 120ml water
• 3 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 6 tbsp cocoa powder (plus a little extra for dusting)
• 1 tsp grated dark chocolate (plus extra to put in the milkshake)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• pinch salt
• Vanilla ice cream
• Milk (full fat is best!)
• Double/Whipping cream

With everything ready to go, I ran my glass under cold water and popped it in the freezer to chill.  I then got started on the chocolate syrup.  I put the water, sugars and cocoa powder into a small saucepan and mixed it all together. 

I put the saucepan over a medium to low heat to bring it to a simmer.  I then reduced the heat to low and let it simmer for 5 minutes, being sure to stir the mix regularly. 

I took the saucepan off the heat and stirred in the grated chocolate.  Once it had sat for a minute, I added the vanilla extract and a pinch of salt.  I poured the chocolate syrup into a pot and let it cool to room temperature whilst I had a yummy lunch with my family. 

Judy had the pleasure of licking the spoon clean 🙂

Once we were all well fed, I started to make the milkshake for us to enjoy as pudding.  I added the ice cream into my blender.  I actually used 500ml of ice cream as I was making enough milkshake for 7 of us. 

Next up, I added the milk.  I started off with just a small amount and gave it a blitz.  I then checked the consistency and added a little more milk

Practical tip: if you add too much milk, you can just add more ice cream and vice versa.  It’s best to add a little at a time until you have it exactly as you want – plus you get to taste after each addition! 🙂

I then added about three table spoons of chocolate syrup and some chopped up chocolate before giving it another blitz.  Once the milkshake was at the right consistency and level of chocolate-goodness, I got my frozen glass out and poured in the milkshake.

I put some of the double cream into a bowl and whisked it with a balloon whisk until stiff.  I topped the milkshake, drizzled over some extra chocolate syrup and a sprinkling of cocoa powder.

So here it is, my mother of all milkshakes and I have to admit it was pretty amazing! Unfortunately, my brother wasn’t there to try this one, although the spare chocolate syrup has been saved for him to use.   However, as I’ve said above, there were 7 of us to enjoy this milkshake and it was a resounding success.  We all had great fun enjoying this together and even my 86 year old nan had some 🙂

This milkshake was so rich and creamy with a perfect texture and the bits of chocolate added a delicious bite.  The chocolate syrup was amazing and I’ll definitely be making this again to try in other drinks and recipes. 

Coming up next week, Challenge No. 36  – eggs benedict