Name: Healthy Shamrock Shake
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 2 smoothies
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 frozen bananas; 1 cup baby spinach, packed; 1/2 avocado, pitted and scooped; 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves; 1 cup plant-based milk (like homemade hemp seed milk); 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract; Whipped cream (plant-based, dairy-free, or coconut cream); Raw cacao nibs or Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day anytime with this homemade, creamy, minty Healthy Shamrock Shake made with wholesome ingredients like spinach, mint, and bananas that make a naturally vegan, plant-based, gluten-free, Paleo-friendly shake that is still incredibly delicious.

Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with a homemade, creamy, minty Healthy Shamrock Shake!! Made with wholesome ingredients, this shake is just as easy to whip up at home as it is to make a run through the drive through - with an added nutritional boost!

Healthy Shamrock Shake Recipe

Let’s be real here.

This is a green smoothie dressed up as a Shamrock Shake.

And honestly, there is nothing wrong with enjoying a Shamrock Shake from McDonald’s once a season if that is something you really enjoy.

Personally, I just can’t handle a real Shamrock Shake. The last time I had one, I felt sick the entire day with a stomachache and a headache.

Perhaps it was all that sugar, perhaps all of those mystery ingredients? Perhaps it just was so different than what I’m accustomed to with my typical holistic lifestyle? Regardless, I felt like crap.

Drinking this version leaves me feeling so much better, mentally and physically, and doesn’t leave me feeling like I’ve missed out on anything.

This delicious Shamrock Shake Smoothie is proof that a natural, whole-foods approach is always best for our health and wellness, especially for those with autoimmune conditions.

Plus, it still tastes delicious, and even my 5-year old will drink it.

The Traditional Shamrock Shake

You know that when McDonald’s rolls out their ever-popular Shamrock Shake, St. Patrick’s season has officially arrived. And this year is extra exciting because they are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the beloved shamrock shake.

Sure it is easy and festive to roll through the drive-through and pick up that delicious minty green shake, but did you know each shake contains over 50 ingredients?

That’s right – 50 ingredients including high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup solids, and artificial dye. Not only is the list of over 50 ingredients questionable, but a large shake will set you back 820 calories and 115 grams of sugar.

Holy moly, that is 29 teaspoons of sugar and more than 2 days’ worth of your daily recommended sugar intake.

Luckily, it is super easy to create your very own Healthy Shamrock Shake at home in as little as five minutes using only a handful of ingredients, many of which you may already have on hand or can easily pick up from the store.

What’s more, is that each of these ingredients is wholesome and provides your body with important nutrients such as vitamins and minerals that are needed to help keep your body functioning properly, and more importantly, you feel happy and healthy.

My Healthy Version of the Shamrock Shake

My version of the Shamrock Shake is sweet and minty, and creamy and delicious. It is also packed with antioxidants, heart-healthy fats, dietary fiber, and important vitamins and minerals.

If you haven’t frozen bananas yet, you’re missing out. When frozen and then blended, they make a wonderfully delicious, smooth and creamy texture that is mild in flavor, to allow the other ingredients shine.

Combined with half an avocado, this smoothie is unbelievably creamy and satisfying.

Shamrock Shake Protein Options

Depending on your health goals, you may want to add protein powder to this Healthy Shamrock Shake. I prefer a grass-fed collagen peptides protein powder, but you can use any type of plant-based protein powder if you want to keep this shake vegan.