Thirsty Thursdays: Milkshake Edition

Today's offering is by no means a health drink. Consider it a splurge and a somewhat off-beat way to enjoy bourbon - one of our featured ingredients for this month's Thirsty Thursday's Challenge.

Adult milkshakes seem to be on the rise. I've come across more than a few restaurants with boozy shakes on their dessert menus of late and the options really run the gambit. While bourbon seems to be the go-to milkshake spirit - it pairs well with both vanilla and chocolate - I've also seen some made with Irish Whiskey, Irish Cream liqueur, and Cognac as well.

For this particular shake, I've used a combination of Maker's Mark Bourbon and Navan, a vanilla infused cognac. My inner fat cop forced me to use some non-fat chocolate frozen yogurt in place of ice cream, but that's a personal choice. Opt for the ice cream if you're not fat-phobic, doing so will ensure a thicker, richer shake. Frozen yogurt tends to break down in the blending, so the texture will be thinner if you go this route.

Basically, you can add the bourbon, cognac or whiskey to any shake you make, but I will include a recipe for guidance. Its best to have the ice cream soften a bit so that it will blend easily. Leave it out on the counter for 5 to 10 minutes before making the shake.

Diva's Chocolate Bourbon Shake:

• 1/3 cup of milk (non-fat, whole or soy milk will do)
• 1 cup of chocolate ice cream (or frozen yogurt)
• 2 oz. bourbon
• 1 oz. Navan
• some chocolate syrup for decoration

Add the milk, ice cream, bourbon and Navan to a blender and mix well on high until blended, pulsing if necessary, for approximately 30 seconds. Sample the shake for texture, adding a bit more ice cream to thicken if desired.

Drizzle some chocolate syrup around the rim of the glass and into it pour your shake. Serve and enjoy, repeat as necessary!

As written this recipe will yield one shake.

While I always end with "repeat as necessary" ... this shake is mighty filling and one is probably all you need. Feel free to play around with both the flavor of the ice cream and the amount of bourbon as well. I happen to think an adult shake should taste like one - so in this recipe, the flavor of the bourbon will not be lost. Your mileage may vary, of course. Experiment and have fun with it!

If you don't happen to have any Navan on hand, you can leave it out and let the bourbon go solo, or replace it with 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract if you'd like a hint of vanilla. If you'd like a hint of orange, try some Grand Marnier.

Consider this my bourbon entry for May's challenge. I'm still working on the cucumber drink. Stay tuned.

I hope you'll join us with either a bourbon or cucumber themed drink for the May challenge. Details to be found here, the deadline for entry is midnight on Monday, May 31st.

So, are you a fan of adult milkshakes? If so, what's in yours? Thirsty Diva wants to know.

Cheers!