The Ultimate Cookies & Cream Milkshake – Your classic cookies & cream milkshake is taken up a notch with the addition of decadent garnishes like marshmallows, brownies, and ice cream sandwiches! You’re never gonna wanna go back to the boring regular shake again!

Cookies & cream has been an OBSESSION of mine since I can remember. I even named my childhood cat after it! Well, we called her CC for short, or else she’d lose interest in what I was going to say before I even finished calling her full name.

But I digress.

There was a time when I wouldn’t eat any other ice cream flavor. Don’t even ask – I’m having cookies & cream. My tastes have broadened a bit but my love for cookies & cream still stands strong.

As I’ve matured, my ice cream tastes have shifted to a new love: milkshakes. And what kind of milkshake do you think I tried first??? Yup, a cookies & cream milkshake. It’s still a go-to of mine, though I do love a peanut butter milkshake every once in a while.

Today, I bring you my version of a KILLER cookies & cream milkshake. Here is my Ultimate Cookies & Cream Milkshake:

Have you seen those insane milkshakes starting to pop up everywhere?? I think they first became famous at shops in NYC but they’ve spread all over, including Atlanta! There’s a place here that is known for their milkshakes with the most incredible garnishes, including brownies, doughnuts, and even slices of cake. Someone even put a freaking SLICE OF CAKE on top of a milkshake. This is America, folks.

So for this milkshake, I decided I had to go big. But I didn’t want to go too big because that wasn’t realistic to me. Sure, when I’m out with friends, it’s fun to buy crazy drinks to share.

But when you’re at home, do you really want to put a slice of cake on top of a milkshake? Not so much. It feels wrong and over-indulgent to make it for yourself. But hey, if  someone else wants to make it, suddenly I don’t feel so bad.

So that’s why I decided to make my ultimate milkshake in a normal size – 12 ounces – and keep the crazy garnishes proportional to that size. So no slices of cake here. But I still included fun stuff like marshmallows, brownies, a cookie crumble rim, and a full Oreo ice cream sandwich. Yup, I went there.

Okay now that we’ve talked garnishes, let’s take a step back and focus on the milkshake itself.

After my years of indulging in cookies & cream milkshakes, I’ve developed my necessary criteria for what a good milkshake must have. Let’s break it down:

1. Extra thick consistency. None of that liquidy and/ or icy mess
2. Noticeable cookie flavor with the occasional nugget of cookie. Those cookies nuggets are EVERYTHING

And that’s it. It’s a short list but you’ll be surprised to find that so many places get it wrong. It’s usually because their ice cream to cookie ratio is off. Not okay.

So you better believe that, for these milkshakes, I had to get it right.

Okay guys, as always, I have a few tips for getting this recipe right the first time. Here we go:

1. When using the hot fudge for the rim, I recommend using it when it’s room temp. I used it when it was hot and it was too thin and caused the chocolate to run down the glass. But when using it to line the inside of the glass, you will need to warm the fudge a little so it can drizzle.
2. I used a homemade hot fudge for this recipe. I just don’t like the taste of the store-bought stuff. If you want to make your own too, here’s the recipe I used from The Pioneer Woman.
3. Don’t overfill the glasses with milkshake – otherwise the garnish will cause it to overflow. I filled mine with about 2 inches remaining. Then, I added whipped cream to the top and added the garnish.
4. You can use whatever garnishes you want. I considered Ho-Hos, Zebra cakes, fudgy brownies, doughnut holes, and even full-sized doughnuts. I ultimately settled on the mini brownie, marshmallow, and ice cream sandwich. But use whatever speaks to you!

And there you have it – you’re new favorite milkshake! Let me know what crazy garnishes you come up with for your creation!

For those of you who entered the giveaway, I will be selecting a winner today and sending an email TODAY. So make sure to check your email!! Thank you for participating!!

Here are all the kitchen tools and serveware that I used in today’s recipe. For each item sold below, I make a small commission. I only recommend items that I own and love so you can trust that each recommendation is tried and true. Thank you for supporting CPA!

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Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

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