2-Ingredient Copycat Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard Recipe

Dairy Queen's Blizzards are in a league of their own. They're not thin enough to sip through a straw like other fast food milkshakes, but they're significantly more flavorful than a simple ice cream cone. This rich, decadent treat is packed full of chunks of cookies, candy bars, or fudge, and it's ready to eat minutes after ordering it. And the best part: It gloriously defies gravity each time the employee turns it upside down when they hand it to you.

Although Dairy Queen comes out with limited-edition Blizzards all the time, the Candy Classic Blizzards continue to capture our hearts with their simplicity. As it turns out, each of these Blizzards can be made with only two ingredients: vanilla ice cream and the candy of your choice. So we set out to give it a try, choosing the Oreo Cookie Blizzard Treat as our test subject. We wanted to know if we could make a 2-ingredient copycat Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard that would taste as good as the original and (more importantly) if it would be a pain to make at home. How did it turn out? Read on to find out!

The ingredients list couldn't be simpler for this 2-ingredient copycat Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard. In fact, the recipe was so straightforward that we double-checked it against a few different sources. Sure enough, Dairy Queen's website lists only two ingredients: artificially flavored vanilla reduced fat ice cream and Oreo cookies. We also stumbled across a video from Kentucky's 92.5 WBKR that confirmed the ingredients list. In the video, a Dairy Queen employee shows the newscaster how to make a Blizzard by filling the cup with ice cream, adding the desired toppings, and turning on the mixer.

From there, the only thing we had to do was determine the right quantity of toppings. Dairy Queen's Oreo Cookie Blizzard Treat contains enough Oreos to satisfy, but not so many that they overpower the sweet vanilla ice cream. After a few (delicious) test batches, we determined that six crushed cookies (or about 2/3 cup) was the perfect amount for our one-serving batch.

For the full list of ingredients, including the ingredient quantities and step-by-step instructions, scroll down to the directions portion of this article.

In the past, we've used a blender to make copycat ice cream drink recipes, like our 3-ingredient copycat McDonald's Oreo McFlurry or Starbucks Vanilla Bean Créme Frappuccino. This time around, we're going to skip the blender and use a stand mixer (or a handheld electric mixer) to make a 2-ingredient copycat Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard recipe. What makes the Blizzard different from the McFlurry is its consistency. The end result needed to be thick enough to hold it upside down. If we used a blender, we would add heat and melt the ice cream, resulting in a more milkshake-like drink.

Instead, we'll use the stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Whipping the ice cream softens it just enough to incorporate the Oreo toppings without melting it. It also incorporates air into the ice cream, which would make our ice cream more similar to Dairy Queen's soft serve. According to Spoon University, air is added to Dairy Queen's soft serve during the freezing process. That air increases the ice cream's volume and decreases its weight, making it more likely to stick to the cup instead of falling out when you turn it upside down.

Dairy Queen is famous for its "served upside-down of the next one's free" promotion. The idea is that the drink is thick and creamy instead of melty and runny, allowing it to defy gravity. It's one of the things that differentiates Dairy Queen from other fast food restaurants selling milkshakes. The chain has even gone so far as to prove its Blizzards are made the right way by giving you a free Blizzard (at participating locations) if the drink falls out of the cup when the employee turns the Blizzard upside down.

If you work quickly enough when making this 2-ingredient copycat Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard, you can definitely hold your drink upside down. Since this recipe is nothing more than whipped ice cream with Oreo cookies, it should turn out just as thick as regular ice cream. Where you'll run into trouble is if you take more than five minutes to create the drink. If it starts to melt, the runny ice cream on the bottom of the glass can cause the whole drink to plop out onto the countertop. So only flip it if you dare!

It turns out that Dairy Queen's ice cream is not technically "ice cream." According to the FAQs on their website, its "soft serve does not qualify to be called ice cream." Ice cream must be made with ten percent or more butterfat content, and Dairy Queen's only contains five percent butterfat content. That makes the product fit into a "reduced-fat" ice cream category, according to the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) guidelines.

That said, you'll have a few choices when determining the best ice cream to use to make a 2-ingredient copycat Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard. If you want the most authentic homemade version, you'll have to stop by Dairy Queen and pick up a pint of its soft serve. But your Blizzard still might not turn out perfect, even if you use Dairy Queen's product. Soft serve starts out creamier and lighter than regular ice cream because it contains more air, but it's also served from a machine that holds the product at 23 degrees Fahrenheit. Your freezer at home will keep it closer to 0 degrees, which will harden the soft serve and affect the texture. So, you may as well pick up a grocery store ice cream that has a soft serve-like texture, like Edy's or Tillamook. We chose Tillamook Old-Fashioned Vanilla Ice Cream for our test batch, but feel free to swap in your favorite vanilla ice cream brand.

Before you get started whipping the ice cream, you'll want to prepare your Oreo cookies. It's important to work quickly when making this 2-ingredient copycat Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard because the ice cream will start to melt as soon as it's removed from the freezer. Melt it too much, and the texture will be more milkshake-like than Blizzard-like.

Place the cookies on a large plate. Using the bottom of a glass or bowl or a rolling pin, gently crush the Oreos until they're broken up into small pieces. You don't want to completely obliterate the Oreos, as the original Blizzard definitely has chunks of whole Oreos in the mix. So just crush them until you end up with bite-sized pieces.

Six crushed cookies creates about 2/3 cup of crushed Oreos, so feel free to make some substitutions here if you want. Use 2/3 of M&Ms, crushed Butterfinger cookies, Reese's peanut butter cup chunks, Snickers, or Heath bars to make copycat versions of your favorite Blizzard.

When the Oreos are crushed and ready to go, it's time to create your 2-ingredient copycat Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard. Place the ice cream in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl if you're using an electric hand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, beat the ice cream on medium speed for about a minute until the ice cream is smooth and slightly softened. You may need to stop the motor and use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl if the ice cream sticks to the edges.

When the ice cream is nice and creamy, add all but one tablespoon of the crushed Oreos. Beat the mixture on low speed until the Oreos are well incorporated into the ice cream. Scoop the ice cream into a glass and top it with the remaining tablespoon of crushed Oreos. Serve immediately, before it starts to melt!

If you don't have a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer, you can certainly mix the Blizzard by hand with a whisk or a large spoon. Since it takes longer to whip the ice cream this way, we recommend storing the bowl in the freezer for 15 minutes before getting started to keep the ice cream from melting.

For starters, we had no real complaints with our 2-ingredient copycat Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard. In addition to tasting incredibly delicious, we were super pleased with how easy it was to create. It also had a similar texture to the original — maybe not spot on, but close enough that we didn't really notice a difference. Where the drink diverged was the flavor. Dairy Queen's ice cream is made with milk and nonfat milk, along with sugar, corn syrup, and several thickening ingredients like guar gum and carrageenan. It turns out sweet and slightly vanilla-flavored, but it definitely has a light, delicate flavor. The Tillamook ice cream we used had the right texture, but it was way richer, probably due to the addition of cream and egg yolks.

Even though our copycat Blizzard might not have tasted exactly the same, we loved the flavor of the ice cream we chose, so it was a win. We did notice that our 16-ounce medium drink felt a lot larger and was more filling, so we calculated the calories in the two drinks. Ours had over 1300 calories as compared to Dairy Queen's 790 calories! So, maybe it's best to split the homemade version, unless you're opting for a less rich, reduced-fat ice cream.