This vintage post was popular the first time around, and Crowded Earth Kitchen has several hundred new readers (Welcome!) since last St. Patrick’s Day, so I’m sharing this again. Enjoy!
“Mom? Can we just stop at the drive-thru and get a (green) shake?”
“No.”
“Please?”
“Still No.”
“Pleeaassee? I’ll do laundry.”
I’ll admit, this is where the devil on my shoulder told me that I would be a fool not to cave in just this once, and so what if the child glows in the dark for the next two weeks. The fact is, the children in my house generate approximately 817 loads of laundry every week, and the offer of complaint-free laundry labor was enticing (that they will end up helping anyway, albeit under duress, is beside the point). Then I had an idea…
“Still no. But if you help with laundry cheerfully, I’ll make you a (green) shake.”
“Deal.”
Here’s what I came up with. The kids LOVED it! Peppermint extract is strong… a little bit can make, well, just about anything taste like peppermint. 😉 Each serving (approximately 10 ounces) contains 113 calories, 4 grams of fat, 14 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, and 5 grams of protein. Each serving also packs an impressive 60% of the Recommended Daily Allowance for Vitamin A, and 20% of the RDA for calcium. Compare that to the drive-thru green shake… I dare you.
Ingredients (makes 4 servings)
1 cup frozen chopped spinach (Ha! Ha ha ha!)
1 1/2 cups skim milk
1 cup “real” vanilla ice cream, without any weird ingredients (I found a supermarket brand that was made from milk, cream, sugar, egg yolk, natural vanilla extract, and nothing else)
1 teaspoon pure peppermint extract (Very strong! You may even want to try a bit less than 1 teaspoon.)
Dark chocolate shavings (Optional)
Directions
Step 1) Add spinach and about half of the skim milk to a blender. Pulse for a few seconds to thoroughly chop spinach into tiny “peppermint” size pieces.
Step 2) Add remaining milk to blender and blend for a minute or a longer until the mixture is very creamy (almost butter-like) and increases in volume. The photo, left, shows only spinach and milk – it really does get creamy!
Step 3) Add peppermint extract and ice cream to blender. For best results, add ice cream in several tiny scoops rather than one large scoop. Blend until all ingredients are combined.
Step 4) Mixture will be tasty now, but thin. For best results, pour shake mixture into a shallow container and place in the back of your freezer for one hour. After an hour, scoop shake mixture into serving glasses (I used half pint jelly jars). Sprinkle with chocolate shavings, if desired.
Step 5) Try not to laugh as your loved ones unwittingly eat their spinach. 🙂
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Crowded Earth Kitchen 
This is too funny! But I can see how it can work. I’ll be taking this recipe to Arkansas to make for my “shake lovin” granddaughters!
I’m not sure how that popped up as my own comment?
AWESOME!
What a fantastic idea. It looks tasty. How did they enjoy it? Thank you for sharing your cool recipe with us.
I made this for two groups of kids – not one of them suspected the “peppermint” was actually spinach. I’m still laughing over how much they enjoyed this. The recipe will become a staple around here, for sure!
Why you sneaky little so-and-so! Hahahaha
I have one of those insidious recipes for squash, which Germans generally refuse to eat. First, because squash was one of the few foods somewhat available after the World War II, and people associate it with hunger and suffering (no attempt to relativize the suffering caused by NS-Germany between ’33 and ’45 – just an explanation why people don’t like squash here). Secondly the only recipe that is common for squash here is to pickle it with clove and mustard seed. Ugh!
I make a Pumpkin Chiffon Pie with a spice cookie crumb crust. It is orange, creamy, and tastes like Christmas. Folks don’t believe me that it is squash. Hihihi …
(i’ll post it when the season arrives – everything has its time)
Interesting – I don’t think there’s an American equivalent. I can’t think of a food that Americans collectively eschew. I have heard of older military veterans refusing to eat foods (rice, or pineapple) because of the memories invoked.
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie sounds wonderful.
Try offals on your next American guests if you want to see some green faces.
Sour lung soup is a local Bavarian specialty you can order in almost ever traditional restaurant or beer hall there. You usually get a bread dumpling bobbing in the middle. Many an amusing anecdote on account of “Saure Lüngerlsuppe”. (rubbing hands in impish glee)
Oye – a fair point well made. That’s not even on my radar, as the saying goes. While I’m not strictly vegetarian, I would much (much!) prefer to eat an entirely vegan diet than grapple with offals. You have posed a problem for this aspiring-to-be-globally-aware cook… I think I can see you smiling from thousands of kilometers away! 🙂 I’ll have to get over it, I suppose. Sour lung soup… Who’d have thought…
Though i feel no compulsion to eat meat, if i know who raised the live stock, and slaughtered the individual creature, better yet was there at to witness it, i will eat some meat. Animal husbandry, slaughtering, and preparing meats is a craft that deserves respect. I am very fond of smoked fish, and sausages, but seldom eat either for the above reason.
To me nothing speaks against eating animal products, but it is a matter of respect again to have the decency to honor their individual lives and deaths if i am to consume their flesh.
I love it! My kiddo is okay with spinach – it would be a “sneaky” trick for hubby – who needs more green in his life anyway. Thanks!
Have fun! 🙂