Are freakshakes worth the wait (and the calories?)

PEOPLE are driving hundreds of kilometres and queuing for monster shakes, but what’s really jammed into that single-serve drink.

MEGA meals aren’t new. They’ve been on the menu for a number of years — oversized burgers, fries loaded with toppings and frankenstein hybrids (stuffed-crust pizza, we’re looking at you) are a sure-fire way to create hype and increase sales.

A burger by @brissyburgerboys.

Big food know this, and hence our serious fast food players are generally the first to embrace mega-sized portions.

But more recently, a mega milkshake craze has been taking Australian cities by storm and this time it’s a trend that has been driven by smaller local cafes rather than fast food chains (though larger companies such as Wendys are starting to get in on the act).

A candy shake at Muharam Cafe in Melbourne.

When Canberra cafe Pâtissez launched its freakshakes last year, people drove hundreds of kilometres to sample the Instagram-worthy mix of delicious treats jammed into a single-serve drink. And it’s fair to say the last thing on their mind was the thousands of kilojoules that were being injected into their diet.

It certainly rains on the parade a bit when you consider there’s an entire day’s worth of kilojoules in a single drink (and it takes some serious work to burn off even one of the ingredients in a freakshake).

But hey, who doesn’t love a milkshake? What’s not to like — creamy milk, ice cream and your favourite flavours in an icy cold drink that offers between 1200-1600kJ per serve along with 8-10 teaspoons of sugar and close to 20g of fat.

Now adding a doughnut sounds like a delightful idea, but that bumps the kilojoules up another 600-800 per serve along with an extra 3-4 teaspoons of sugar and another 10-plus grams of fat — now we are getting into meal territory in terms of kilojoules and special treat territory when it comes to sugars and fat ... say a once or twice a year indulgence.

And that’s not even the deluxe version of the shake. Some outlets add confectionery, cream, gelato, Nutella and pastry to their shakes. In fact, one outlet in Sydney reported using more than 100kg of Nutella in their shakes over a single weekend which added a massive two million kilojoules into the diets of shake fans along with almost 60,000g of sugar and 30,000g of fat. This serious overconsumption of highly indulgent foods is often justified by thinking the shake is simply a one-off treat.

So if you are a fan of these mega shakes, here are some of the most popular versions out there, and a rough ideas of the kilojoule they are likely to contain (remembering that the average person consumes about 8700kJ a day). Apologies in advance.

PÂTISSEZ, CANBERRA

The Pork Star shake has been the ‘freak of the week’ shake at Pâtissez in the past.

A mix of Bourbon whipped cream, maple bacon, puff pastry and maple syrup could be described as a heart attack waiting to happen with a nice dose of saturated fat given it is unlikely low fat milk, lean bacon or reduced fat puff pastry are the key ingredients. For this tasty treat you are looking at 4000kJ or half your daily intake, at least 80g of fat and 20g of sugars.

FOODCRAFT ESPRESSO AND BAKERY, SYDNEY

The Tellaball shake at Foodcraft Espresso and Bakery ... a shake topped with a Nutella-filled, sugar-coated doughnut.

Adding cake and molten chocolate spread to your favourite milkshake may sound like a dream come true but with the chocolate adding about 1000kJ and at least 12g of fat and another 1000kJ for a small 50g serve of doughnut and 40g of fat, your shake packed with cake and chocolate will give you a hearty 50-60g of fat and at least 3000kJ per serve.

MUHARAM CAFE, MELBOURNE

Peanut butter and jelly shake.

This one sounds a little healthier, and indeed peanut butter is a better option nutritionally than Nutella which is a concentrated mix of vegetable oil and sugar offering very little nutritionally but it is still high in fat. This means that a single shake that contains a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter, and a single jam doughnut will give you 2000-plus kilojoules and 35g of fat before you even have the milkshake part of this drink.

DOUGHNUT TIME, BRISBANE

Shakes with iced doughnuts and fairyfloss from Doughnut Time in Brisbane. Instagram/@khierah_salam

Now doughnuts are one thing, but as soon as you add lollies including concentrated sugars such as fairy floss the sugar content of the shake increases considerably. For example, a single serve of fairy floss adds 35g or seven teaspoons of sugars to a shake.

WHISK CREAMERY, PERTH

Choc Mint Gourmet Shake is made from single origin Venezuela gelato, natural mint, crème fraîche and topped with mint meringue pieces. Instagram/@prajroy

The biggest issue nutritionally with ingredients such as crème fraîche, Nutella, pastry and heavy cakes is that they add massive amounts of fat to a food. For example, just ½ cup crème fraîche gives a massive 40g of fat and 1500kJ — more bad fat than we need in an entire day and more kilojoules than an entire meal from just one ingredient.

Originally published as Are freakshakes worth the wait (and the calories?)