I used to get a Shamrock Shake at McDonald’s every St. Patrick’s Day and this Paleo Shamrock Shake is bringing it BACK. This shake is gluten-free and dairy-free. It’s also naturally egg-free and tree nut-free.

This recipe is based off my Paleo Ice Cream which uses 4 simple ingredients. It combines coconut cream, milk or creamer, honey, and extract to create a smooth ice cream. Like what?! Ice cream with 4 ingredients?

YES.

I was frustrated that many of the dairy-free ice creams have 15+ ingredients in them. There had to be a more simple and nourishing solution. The coconut cream takes place of the heavy cream traditionally used in homemade ice cream. The only sweetener is honey. Plus dairy-free milk or creamer for consistency and extract for flavoring. That’s it! 

About that Coconut Cream

I get a lot of questions about coconut cream. Coconut cream is similar to coconut milk but is much thicker and four times richer. Make sure to use canned coconut cream in this recipe. We need that richness to make a thick ice cream. Using coconut milk (even just the solid part of coconut milk) will result in an ice cream that will never get thick. 

Also, note that in this recipe you only used the solid part of the coconut cream. I keep my coconut cream in the fridge, especially in the warmer months of the year. Chilled coconut cream means the rich healthy fats will solidify, making it easier to scoop out. What you scoop out and use for this recipe should be thick, solid, and white (see ingredient photo below). The remaining more opaque liquid you don’t use, and can save for smoothies.

As this recipe only has 4 ingredients, getting the coconut cream right is essential. I prefer the Thai Kitchen brand for great consistency, which I get cheapest at Walmart. Some canned coconut creams have a weird chunky texture out of the can. If the texture isn’t smooth (solid, but smooth) out of the can, your ice cream won’t be smooth either!

Ice Cream Maker?

My ice cream maker is one of my most favorite kitchen gadgets I never thought I would need. However, this Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker is so so simple. No rock salt or complicated mechanism. You keep the base in the freezer. Then, when you are ready to us it, you pour in the ice cream “batter” and turn it on. It’s delicious and creamy within 20 minutes! 

Can you make it without an ice cream maker? Not really. The closest I could get was if you mix up the recipe, put it in glasses, and put it in the fridge for 2-3 hours, you get a thin but still enjoyable milkshake.

Ingredients

• Canned Coconut Cream – See above notes to make sure you get this one right!
• Dairy-free milk or Creamer – I love using Vanilla Nutpods for my ice cream. Again, there are only 4 ingredients in the recipe so using delicious, high quality items makes a difference. The added richness in flavor of Nutpods for me wins every time. Also, you can use regular vanilla almond milk or some other dairy-free milk.
• Honey – I just use whatever pure honey is the most affordable. For me, that’s usually from Sam’s Club. 
• Mint Extract – I just used this basic McCormick Pure Mint Extract I found at Walmart. 
• Green Food Coloring, Optional – Locally, at my Raley’s, I found “Natures Inspiration” powdered food coloring. It’s cool as it’s made from plants, veggies, and seeds. A little hard to find though. Usually though I get this natural Watkin’s brand from Amazon that works great too!

Paleo Shamrock Shake

Autumn @wholefoodfor7

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Prep Time 5 mins

Churn Time 15 mins

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

  

• 2 15-oz cans full-fat Coconut Cream
• 1 cup vanilla nutpods or vanilla dairy-free milk of choice
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 teaspoons mint extract
• Optional toppings: dairy-free whipped cream, chocolate syrup or bits, sprinkles. Can also mix in crushed chocolate cream cookies.

Instructions

 

• Open the coconut cream cans and scoop out ONLY the solid white cream. Set aside the opaque liquid, we will not use it in this recipe (great for smoothies!).
• In a blender, combine coconut cream, creamer or milk, honey, and mint extract. Blend on low until smooth. Result should be very smooth.

  *Note: blender speed will range greatly based on the power of your blender. If you have a high power blender like a Vitamix, start at speed 2 and then increase to a 3. But do NOT go higher than a 3. If you blend at too high of a speed, the mixture will get chunky and there is no repairing it! If you don't have a high powered blender, blending up to medium is fine.
• Add mixture to an ice cream maker. Run the ice cream maker until mixture is *just* starting to get thick and remove. Voila, you made a milkshake!

  Alternatively, run it in your ice cream maker until thick ice cream. Then blend in a blender with additional dairy-free milk to make a milkshake (the more milk you add, the thinner your milkshake).
• Top with desired toppings and enjoy!