Count on rich, full-flavored ice cream and milk to produce a thick milkshake. Ice milks and “frozen yogurts” might be palatable in a bowl, but they often lack the fat and richness that results in a hearty shake. Likewise, whole milk is more likely to produce thicker shakes than 1 percent or skim milk.

Crush some ice cubes to thicken your milkshake. Your ice cream may be cold, but crushed ice will bolster the chill in the milk to produce a thicker shake.

Substitute heavy whipping cream for the milk. The cream will create almost a fluffy texture – and just might require a spoon.

Add a little yogurt or crème fraiche – a naturally soured cream – to thicken your milkshake. If you cannot find the latter in a store, combine 1 tablespoon of buttermilk or plain yogurt into 1 cup of heavy whipping cream. Cover it with plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature for 24 hours before folding the thick mixture into your milkshake. But taste it beforehand; crème fraiche has a nutty flavor that might alter your milkshake experience.

Add some chocolate syrup or chocolate fudge to thicken chocolate shakes. For example, you might combine 1 cup of rich chocolate ice cream, ¾ cup of whipping cream and ¼ cup of fudge for a milkshake that could pass for a rich dessert.

Mash a complementary fruit to thicken a milkshake. A cold, mashed banana, for example, will add bulk to a frothy banana milkshake. Cold strawberries will add dimension to a strawberry milkshake.

Infuse meaning in the second syllable of “milkshake” and shake up the ingredients mightily, preferably in a blender. Those hand-held plastic shaker bottles – well-known to dieters who consume liquid shakes on the run – cannot compete with the intensity of an electric blender and the thick consistency you’ll find when you uncover the pitcher.