Scotcheroo Milk Shake

It has become tradition in our house to make something special to celebrate the first day of school. This year, I decided to recreate the Scotcheroo Milk Shake that we had earlier this month at the Iowa State Fair. The shake is rich, creamy, and full of that delicious combination of chocolate, peanut butter, and butterscotch. It was the perfect way to top off the first day of school for our whole family!

Scotcheroos are a true Midwest specialty and the dessert my mother-in-law was always known for. When I first started dating my husband, I quickly realized I could never quite live up to her perfectly made, and perfectly cut, Scotcheroos. (She would even trim off the edges so every piece was exactly the same size.) While I’ve made countless pans over the years, they’ve just never matched her quality. I even made a batch to go with our shakes — using her exact recipe and even dropping the pan on the table to smooth out the chocolate like she always did — but she just had the touch. Maybe it’s genetic, and hopefully one of my kids will inherit it so they can keep her legacy going!

At this year’s Iowa State Fair, the Over The Top Ice Cream Shop featured a Scotcheroo Shake as one of the new fair foods, and my family gladly stood in line to try it. It was amazing on a hot day at the fair! They used their own Scotcheroo ice cream — peanut butter and butterscotch ice cream swirled with fudge and chewy chunks of Scotcheroos. Since I couldn’t find Scotcheroo ice cream at my local grocery store, I recreated the shake at home using a mix of chocolate peanut butter ice cream and vanilla as the base, then added peanut butter, hot fudge, and butterscotch sauce to get that rich flavor I remembered from the fair.

Scotcheroo Shake Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 scoops vanilla ice cream (about ½ cup)

• 2 scoops chocolate peanut butter ice cream (about ½ cup)

• ½ cup milk (add up to ¼ cup more if you prefer a thinner shake)

• 2 tablespoons butterscotch sauce

• 1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter

• 1 tablespoon hot fudge

• Optional toppings: whipped cream, butterscotch drizzle, hot fudge, Scotcheroo

Instructions:

1. Blend together both ice creams, milk, butterscotch, hot fudge, and peanut butter until smooth.

2. Pour into a glass.

3. Top with whipped cream, extra butterscotch drizzle, hot fudge, and a small Scotcheroo bar.

After a long first day of school, everyone loved relaxing and enjoying their Scotcheroo Shakes. They made us smile, think back on summer memories, and remember my mother-in-law — who I know is watching our kids from heaven as they grow up.

Speaking of growing up, here are the kids this morning as they headed off to their first day of school!

The Scotcheroo Shake might just become our new back-to-school tradition. If you’re a Scotcheroo fan, I hope you’ll give this shake a try — it’s a sweet way to celebrate everyday moments. Do you have any first-day-of-school traditions in your family? I’d love to hear about them in the comments!