cereal milk milkshake with caramel corn & cornflake clusters

Ok, so the title is a bit of a tongue twister but I have been wanting to make a cereal milk ice cream since I heard about years ago and tasted the famous Momofuku cereal milk ice cream on my trip to NYC this year. It was a soft serve and despite tasty and crispy cornflake bits on the side, the overall experience underwhelmed me and the flavour was too mild. I’m still planning to make the ice cream, but in the meantime, I decided to make this utterly delicious milkshake.

I had no idea how much cereal to add to the milk but figured 2 cups added to the quart Ball Jar (this holds about 750ml) was a good place to start, and I used corn flakes. The jar was also the perfect container in which to mix and infuse the flavours of the milk and the cereal and store this sealed in the fridge overnight.

The next step was to make the crunchy texture to go with the milkshake and I adapted my spicy caramel popcorn recipe from my book and added corn flakes to the mix. I took out all the spices because I wanted the cereal milk taste to shine through, and submerged a few of the clusters into the milkshake which remained surprisingly crispy. If the caramel coats the whole popped corn kernel it will protect it from getting soggy. Top the shake with as many as you can possibly pile on.

This milkshake teeters on the verge of a sundae so a spoon is recommended, but if you prefer yours a little thinner, add less ice cream. Served in the Ball® drinkware jar (now also available in South Africa) it will definitely impress.

*Cooks notes ~ make the cereal milk ahead of time and overnight is best. The caramel corn and cornflake cluster recipe makes way more than you will need for the milkshakes but it’s a delicious snack so you won’t be sorry. You can also fill empty Ball jars and store for later snacking or give them away as a gift.

Recipe – makes one large milkshake that serves 2

• 3 cups of milk
• 2 cups corn flakes
• 6 scoops vanilla ice cream plus extra for topping (optional)
• 1/2 cup caramel corn and cornflake clusters

Caramel corn and cornflake clusters

• 90 g corn kernels
• 10 ml coconut oil, or any other neutral oil
• 2 cups corn flakes
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 150 g butter
• 200 g granulated white sugar
• 2 Tbsp golden syrup
• 2 cups cornflakes

To make the caramel corn and cornflake clusters

Preheat the oven to 120 °C. Line a baking tray with silicone or baking paper.

Make the popcorn any way that your prefer. (I like to use a large skillet with a glass lid.) Transfer the popcorn to a large, deep bowl; it should only half fill the bowl, allowing space to toss the sauce. Add the corn flakes and mix.

In a medium-size, heavy-based pot bring the butter, sugar and syrup to the boil. Continue to let it bubble, stirring continuously, until the mixture turns golden-brown and reaches the hard crack stage of 155 °C. Add the salt and bicarb and stir vigorously for a few seconds, then remove from the heat. Pour the hot caramel over the popcorn and corn flakes and toss to coat.

Spread the caramel-covered popcorn evenly on the prepared baking tray and bake for 15 minutes. Remove it from the oven and toss to ensure it’s evenly coated. Return it to the oven for a further 10 minutes, then remove, toss again and leave to cool.

Once cool, break it up into clusters and store in an airtight container.

To make the milkshake

Add the 2 cups of corn flakes to the Mason jar with top this up with 3 cups of milk. Shake and allow to stand overnight in the fridge to infuse.

Strain the corn flakes from the milk using a fine sieve and force all the milk out that you can. You will lose quite a bit of volume in this process. Either eat the soft corn flakes which are alike porridge or discard.

When you are ready to make the milkshake, add the ice cream scoops and cereal mil to a blender and whiz until smooth. Fill your Ball Mason drink glass about 3/4 of the way. Add a few caramel corn clusters and then top up. Finish off by either adding 2 more ice cream scoops on top or just a few more clusters.

Enjoy!

This post has been sponsored by Ball