*Note: This roasted strawberry basil milkshake recipe first appeared on February 21, 2012. The recipe has been edited slightly to now include a fun pistachio cacao nib crumble and roasting the strawberries for the milkshake and the topping (a great way to bring out sweetness in any fruit out of season) and the photographs have been updated. I still stand by my hatred of Kelis’ song and Gnarls’ stupid name though in the text, which is original. This is a great one for Valentine’s Day if you’re not quite into the chocolate thing or, save it for spring and strawberry season which is hopefully right around the corner!
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This roasted strawberry basil milkshake with a pistachio cacao nib crumble is a grown up and healthier version of the classic treat. Perfect For Valentine’s Day!
There’s one very tragic and unfortunate thing about this roasted strawberry basil milkshake:
It comes with a severe case of the Milkshake song getting stuck in your head for hours on end.
And if you’re anything like me it goes something like this, “my milkshake brings all the boys to the yard and they’re like, it’s better than yours”…repeat x54234756 because you have absolutely no idea what she says after that since you’re so preoccupied with how utterly annoying the song is in the first place.
There are two songs from this century so far that I absolutely, 100% cannot stand.
Crazy by Gnarles Barkley (Gnarls? Is that even for real?) and Milkshake.
Thankfully, the actual milkshake was pretty damn good and worth the annoyance.
So far at least.
It’s been about 18 hours, if it continues past 24 I have the right to revoke that statement.
Milkshakes weren’t really my thing growing up.
We didn’t have any Dairy Queens near me, just the hole in the wall local ice cream joint that was a once a week treat in the summer.
I was way more of a vanilla cone with cherry dip or rainbow sprinkles kind of kid though than a milkshake one.
If I was getting ice cream, I wanted to be able to SEE it, eat it, lick it, not drink it.
So my only memory of a milkshake is actually from college.
It involved my two best college friends, a loooong happy hour at the local bar, the Gingerbread Man with a few too many whiskey sours, a 2 mile walk to Dairy Queen where local neighborhood trash cans were picked up, put on our heads and moved down the street and a really delicious strawberry cheesecake milkshake of some sort.
The walk back also involved a sober friend with a car picking us up, people flailing about on the sidewalks and passing out in bed by 9pm but that’s beside the point.
We’ve grown up a bit since then.
In fact, one of those friends had a baby two days ago, so I’d like to say that this strawberry basil milkshake is the grown up version of that milkshake too.
Although, I’d totally be game for happy hour and a few whiskey sours again.
And since St. Paddy’s Day is right around the corner, check out my healthier version of the classic McDonald’s Shamrock shake too!
Roasted Strawberry Basil Milkshake
Ingredients
For the milkshake:
- 1 cup strawberries, hulled and sliced
- 3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- 1 cup strawberry ice cream, divided
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4-5 drops liquid stevia
- 3 leaves fresh basil
- 1/8 teaspoon xanthan gum, *optional for thicker milkshake
For the crumble:
- 1 tablespoon shelled pistachios
- 1 tablespoon cacao nibs
- 1/2 teaspoon honey
Instructions
For the milkshake:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place strawberries on a baking sheet and roast for 10-15 minutes, tossing a couple of times until juicy and starting to caramelize. Remove from oven and set aside.
- Place almond milk, 1/2 cup of the ice cream, yogurt, vanilla, stevia, basil and xanthan gum if using in a blender. Add half the roasted strawberries and blend until smooth.
- Pour milkshake into two glasses. Top with remaining 1/2 cup ice cream and spoon the leftover roasted strawberries on top.
For the crumble:
- Place the pistachios, cacao nibs and honey in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Garnish milkshakes with a crumble before serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
Oh how I wish I’d known you back in the day.
could NOT agree more with you on that stupid Gnarls Barkley song. Hate it with a red hot passion. And not the good kind. And thanks for getting milkshake stuck in my head.
The shake looks really good and while I agree that the Milkshake song is incredibly annoying, there is no way on earth I could justifiably put Crazy on the same level of annoying/suckiness as it. It’s not THAT bad.
It’s his voice! I just can’t.stand.it! ;)
Gotcha, I was thinking lyrically haha I could see people being annoyed by his voice.. that’s fair lol :)
Oh no, not that song! Ahh, I hate it too. Love the milkshake. Although I’ve always been curious(but not enough to try) the strawberry basil combo. I see it being delicious but I’m still scared of it. Must try when I have some nice fresh basil :)
I was a little nervous too but the basil is very subtle :)
I’ve had a craving for milkshakes and I’ve been resisting, but I think you might have pushed me over the edge. And I would like to nominate ANYTHING by Ke$ha for most annoying songs of the century. She must have terrible teeth and a very rich dentist if she brushes her teeth with a bottle of Jack.
good nomination…she’s up there with Gnarls and Kelis. Just her name alone irks me.
Like a kid-friendly strawberry mojito. I’m in. ;)
I almost used mint instead of basil and then it totally would’ve been! Although if we take Cat’s advice we could turn it into an adult version ;)
That looks great! I love the addition of the basil.
Hahaha!! I hate that crazy song too!!!
Ok, to die for…these milkshakes look amazing, what a fun combo! Obviously I could use almond milk instead of milk….greek yogurt is fine on my belly ;)
xxoo
This looks so good!!!!
And I love that you used strawberry ice cream. I am not really an ice cream eater (cookies and brownies, etc are more my thing…lol) but I have fond memories of strawberry ice cream from childhood!
Ahhh I miss G-Man!!
p.s. My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard…
I don’t know what has me drooling more in this post, the strawberry milkshake or all that phenomenal natural light!! I think the milkshake wins by a hair…but JUST a hair… ;)
I know, I’m so lucky that my house has awesome light. If we ever move that’s like #1 on the list. Well maybe #2 behind walk in closets…
It’s seriously the #1 thing on my list when I finally buy a home. I’ll trade you my walk-in closet for your natural light. Deal?!