This vegan treat tastes just like McDonald’s McFlurry. Here’s the secret.

Portland’s newest vegan ice cream shop recently launched ThickFlurry — a vegan take on McDonald’s McFlurry. Ice Queen, a vegan Mexican frozen treat shop known for its vegan paletas (Mexican popsicles), offers thickflurry flavors like S’mores (homemade chocolate shells, marshmallows and graham crackers). Fruity Flurry (house-made strawberry sauce, sour patch kids, and Smarties dust); and Secret Admirer (cherry chocolate base with cherries and chocolate chips), among others.

ice queen

If you can’t settle on a flavor, Ice Queen allows customers to create their own with the store’s more than 20 topping options — all of which are vegan, like pink sprinkles imported from Canada.

The shop team is currently in the process of adding several more ThickFlurry versions to the menu as they have become so popular.

How the Vegan Flurry Came to Be

Flurries are traditionally made with blended dairy-based soft serve-style ice cream mixed with toppings. For Ice Queen, the first step in recreating this classic treat was to get rid of the dairy. To further differentiate, owner Rebecca Smith created a base that’s extra thick and creamy.

“Milkshakes are very popular in Portland and a lot of times people don’t realize there’s actually a difference between a milkshake and a Flore’s,” Smith tells VegNews.

“We call them ‘thick’ because our flurries are thicker than any milkshake you’ve had because they’re not diluted with milk,” Smith notes.

Although flurries are often associated with McDonald’s McFlurries, Smith says they’ve been around long before the fast-food chain popularized them. “Contrary to what many people believe, a shakeout was actually a thing before a big company claimed it,” Smith says.

For its part, McDonald’s continues to drag its feet when it comes to vegan options in the US, including Vegan McFlurries. However, last year, McDonald’s introduced a vegan KitKat McFlurry at its locations across Germany, adding dairy-free soft serve in 2020.

The frozen treat was made with strawberry sauce and pieces of KitKat V, a vegan version of the nostalgic chocolate bar that Nestlé has launched in 15 countries.

ice queen

While the Ice Queen shop has become well known in town for its vegan palettes—it currently offers 18 different flavor palettes—Smith’s inspiration to add vegan flourishes to the menu came out of necessity.

“We sell so many pallets that the Thickfluries come out of necessity to alleviate some of the pallet demand,” Smith explains.

“It was a bit of a (welcome) can of worms though, because now we’re struggling to keep up with them, ironically.”

Ice Queen opens in Portland

Ice Queen first opened last year in Portland’s all-vegan strip mall in the city’s Southeast neighborhood after four years of countless pop-ups. Last October, the stop expanded to its own walk-in storefront a few blocks away.

ice queen

In addition to its paleta, the shop also serves chocolate-covered bananas, vegan soft serve and house-sliced ​​cotton candy. The store’s palette will also be available in 60 grocery stores across the Pacific Northwest.

What’s next for Ice Queen? “We plan to continue growing both ways with no plans to slow down anytime soon,” Smith said. “As for Thickflurry, they’ll be here but Paletara is always the star.”

Where can you get Vegan Blizzards?

Similarly, last December, vegan fast food chain Plant Power took on the challenge of veganizing fast food Dairy Queen’s most popular treat, the Blizzard. The San Diego-based vegan chain has come up with its own frozen treat to fill the void: Snow Days.

Plant power fast food

The Snow Days are made with oat milk as a creamy base and are available in four basic, throwback mix-in flavors: Cookies and Cream, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Chocolate Brownie and Butterfinger (or PPFF’s take on Vegan Butterfinger candy bars).

“The joy of feeling like a kid shouldn’t stop just because you’re all grown up,” Plant Power Fast Food CEO Zach Vouga said in a statement. “Snow Days—our thick, creamy soft serve with baked goods and chocolate toppings—instantly transports you back to being a carefree child in the ’80s.”

The chain also created an ad for its Snow Days that features Dairy Queen’s first Blizzard commercial, complete with a radio-announcer voiceover and retro film quality. The ad’s tagline is also clever: “When life’s a blizzard, have a snow day.”