Soon Shamrock Shakes will disappear from the McDonald's menu until next year. 

Photo by Dave Murphy

If find yourself craving them year-round . . . or you'd rather make them at home instead of drinking a cup of mysterious, green chemicals . . . here's a recipe that comes pretty close to the real thing but it has REAL ingredients:

--Three cups of a high-quality real vanilla ice cream.

--One-and-three-quarters cups of milk (more or less to suit your thickness preference.)

--1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract (a little bit goes a long way!)

--Green food coloring.

Mix those four ingredients in a blender and enjoy!