Okay, I’ve been keeping this secret for about four months now and I am soooo excited to finally share it all with you along with this perfectly appropriate Lightened Up Double Strawberry Milkshake…
Baby Girl Deem will be arriving in October!!
That’s right, our little family is growing, and at a rapid rate at that, because there’s something else I haven’t told you yet (unless you’ve been peaking at my Insta-stories)…
We got a puppy!!
And oh my goodness we are just over-the-moon with excitement. Brooklyn is an 8-week old red golden retriever and she has completely stolen our hearts. We picked her up on Mother’s Day, which also happened to be the day we did our gender reveal with both of our families, so it was an exciting one! Good thing we have about five months to get used to Miss B. before our other little bundle of joy arrives in the fall 😉
So, yes, Chris will be going from just having to deal with me and my crazy hormones and Type A personality to a household full of girls in a matter of months…I hope he’s ready for all of this! Actually, I have no doubt that he is because he is the best and I know he is going to be the world’s greatest father to both our fur baby and our real baby. No questions asked!
To celebrate all of this big news and the sudden plethora of females in our little corner of the world, I decided to whip up this Lightened Up Double Strawberry Milkshake. After all, there’s nothing better than a festive (and yes, non-alcoholic) pink drink to get a pregnancy (or new puppy) party started!
Now, I know many of you tune in every Friday for a new boozy cocktail recipe, so I hope you can bear with me here. And I also know what you’re thinking…There have been an awful lot of boozy cocktail recipes here on the blog over the past few months. Well, I’m loathe to report that I have not been drinking any of them (sad face) but have instead been working on my spitting game and handing the taste-testing reigns over to the hubs to make sure they’re suitable for your consumption and enjoyment. It’s a tough job but someone’s got to do it 😉
And if you’re really wanting a boozy recipe to get you through the weekend, I’m just going to throw this out there and say that a splash (or glug) of bourbon would be an absolutely AMAZING addition little addition to a frosty Lightened Up Double Strawberry Milkshake.
In other news, these shakes just also happen to be dairy-free and vegan…and I’m very happy to report that you’d never even know it. They’re just as deliciously creamy and indulgent as your average strawberry milkshake, yet contain absolutely no milk or cream.
So here’s what I used:
Strawberry Coconut Ice Cream from Trader Joe’s
(I didn’t even know this existed but trust me when I say it’s amazing.)
Frozen Strawberries
Vanilla Extract
Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk
Simple Syrup
That’s it! I picked up some strawberries at the Farmer’s Market that were possibly not quite ripe, so a little more on the sour side (although still delicious.) If you find some really ripe strawberries or can only find sweetened vanilla almond milk, you may want to decrease the amount of simple syrup or eliminate it altogether.
After you have all of the ingredients, the cooking process is as easy as throwing everything together in a blender and pressing “Start!”
One quick note: I did make some homemade whipped cream to dollop on top of these bad boys for photography purposes that is NOT vegan. I know some folks have had success making coconut whipped cream (I have not) so please feel free to use that if you want to go completely vegan and dairy-free, or just omit the whipped cream altogether. The shake will still taste super-delicious!
I know this is all a lot of excitement for one post, so I don’t want to keep you too long. What I do want to know, though, is what (if anything) you’d like to hear about how my pregnancy is going, how my diet and workouts are changing, what I’m buying (for myself AND baby girl,) etc. I know you come here primarily for the recipes, but I know there may also be some of you out there who are in the same boat as me, so please drop me a line!
Looking forward to sharing all of these new adventures with you 🙂
Lightened Up Double Strawberry Milkshake
Ingredients
- 1 pint strawberry coconut ice cream
- 2 cups frozen strawberries
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon simple syrup
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until combined. Pour into milkshake glasses and garnish with whipped cream and fresh strawberries, if desired.
So happy for your growing family! 💗
I’m also glad this recipe is dairy free/vegan!
I want to hear about your food cravings and how you are satisfying them as you go! Congrats mama.
Thank you, Debbie! Hope you enjoy the recipe…It’s really yummy! We’ll have to catch up soon 🙂 xo