This Black Forest Shake recipe was shared with us ages ago by Blue Diamond, the makers of Almond Breeze non-dairy beverage. It’s rich and ultra creamy! If you aren’t a fan of cherries, or don’t have any on hand, swap in another chocolate-friendly frozen fruit. We think raspberries or strawberries would be delicious!
This Black Forest Shake is Dairy-Free Chocolate-Covered Cherry Bliss
Homemade shakes are an easy treat. It’s just about picking the right ingredients for your needs. I’ve linked up to some options in the recipe, but here are a few extra ideas and tips.
Dairy-Free Milk Beverage
If you want a less sweet finish, you can use unsweetened dairy-free chocolate milk beverage. If you can’t locate a suitable dairy-free chocolate milk option, you can substitute vanilla milk beverage plus cocoa powder to taste (usually around 1 tablespoon). Or you can use vanilla milk beverage and chocolate dairy-free ice cream!
Dairy-Free Ice Cream
For homemade, I use the Very Vanilla Ice Cream recipe in Go Dairy Free: The Ultimate Guide & Cookbook. You can also find a version of it as the base for my Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Recipe. For store-bought, I personally like vanilla coconut ice cream in this black forest shake. The undertones of coconut seem to meld well with chocolate and cherry. Coconut Bliss, Nadamoo, and O’My Gelato offer coconut-based vanilla flavors. If you can’t do coconut, Cado has a new Vanilla option, which might go nicely.
Dairy-Free Chocolate Syrup
Believe it or not, Hershey’s classic chocolate syrup is actually dairy free! Some of their newer varieties aren’t, so read the label carefully. If you prefer organic, then Ah!laska and Santa Cruz are two other brands without dairy ingredients. And of course, there is homemade! This easy Vegan Hot Fudge Sauce works great.
Dairy-Free Chocolate Chips
You won’t believe how many dairy-free chocolate chip brands there are now. Check out my Dairy-Free Chocolate Chips Guide to be amazed. I use Enjoy Life most often, but you can use almost any of those varieties to garnish this dairy-free chocolate-covered cherry shake recipe.
Special Diet Notes: Black Forest Shake
By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, gluten-free, grain-free, optionally nut-free, peanut-free, optionally soy-free, vegan, and vegetarian.
- ¾ cup dairy-free chocolate milk beverage
- ½ cup cherries, frozen, whole, pitted
- ⅓ cup dairy-free vanilla ice cream
- 1 tablespoon vegan chocolate syrup
- 4 ice cubes
- 1 tablespoon dairy-free mini chocolate chips or shaved dairy-free chocoate
- Place the milk beverage, frozen cherries, ice cream, chocolate syrup, and ice in your blender. Blend on high until smooth.
- Pour into a glass and sprinkle with the chocolate chips or chocolate shavings.
Want More Dairy-Free Recipes? Get Eat Dairy Free:

1 Comment
This was such a great dessert, can’t wait to make it again!