The 59 flavors of a strawberry shake (not a joke)

[tonioseven]

Posted Apr 24th 2006 7:58AM by Nicole Weston
Filed under: Science, Dairy, Newspapers, Did you know?, High-fructose corn syrup

I have made strawberry milkshakes at home before. I like them thick, so I use strawberries and ice cream, sometimes thinning it with a touch of milk. Occasionally, I will add in some chocolate. Other people like to use yogurts or add sweeteners, like honey to their shakes. Chances are good that no one makes a McDonald's-style shake at home, though. Why? According to the Guardian, that shake has 59 ingredients, most of which are verging on unpronounceable and found in the "artificial strawberry flavoring."

That milkshake probably contains the following: "milkfat and nonfat milk, sugar, sweet whey, high-fructose corn syrup, guar gum, monoglycerides and diglycerides, cellulose gum, sodium phosphate, carrageenan, citric acid, E129 and artificial strawberry flavor."

That flavoring, on the other hand, has:

"amyl acetate, amyl butyrate, amyl valerate, anethol, anisyl formate, benzyl acetate, benzyl isobutyrate, butyric acid, cinnamyl isobutyrate, cinnamyl valerate, cognac essential oil, diacetyl, dipropyl ketone, ethyl butyrate, ethyl cinnamate, ethyl heptanoate, ethyl heptylate, ethyl lactate, ethyl methylphenylglycidate, ethyl nitrate, ethyl propionate, ethyl valerate, heliotropin, hydroxyphrenyl- 2-butanone (10% solution in alcohol), ionone, isobutyl anthranilate, isobutyl butyrate, lemon essential oil, maltol, 4-methylacetophenone, methyl anthranilate, methyl benzoate, methyl cinnamate, methyl heptine carbonate, methyl naphthyl ketone, methyl salicylate, mint essential oil, neroli essential oil, nerolin, neryl isobutyrate, orris butter, phenethyl alcohol, rose, rum ether, undecalactone, vanillin and solvent."

Yum.

[quteasabutton]

eww..good thing i go to burger king the few rare times i ever want a chocolate shake..

[2.2 Straight six]

i like shakes of a different kind...

[1986Z28]

hhm. dont really want one now!

[fredjacksonsan]

Nice chemical cocktail there....gotta love getting ketone and other solvents in your shake!

Sad that it's cheaper to put a shot of chemicals in your drink rather than actual ingredients, to get a certain flavor.

McD's is evil.

[KustmAce]

who cares. it still tastes good

[beef_bourito]

meh, when i go to mcdonalds i dont expect to eat anything that was naturally cultivated other than the mealworm burgers

[fredjacksonsan]

Originally Posted by KustmAce

who cares. it still tastes good

Ethlyene glycol tastes good too; but it's poisonous.

[Muscletang]

Originally Posted by fredjacksonsan

Ethlyene glycol tastes good too; but it's poisonous.

Only if you're not tough enough.

[fredjacksonsan]

Originally Posted by Muscletang

Only if you're not tough enough.

If you drink enough poison it doesn't matter HOW tough you are.

[Muscletang]

Originally Posted by fredjacksonsan

If you drink enough poison it doesn't matter HOW tough you are.

You and your crazy "claims" Fred...

If you drink poison you'll die.
Swimming with Great White Sharks will get you ate.
Never smoke while pumping your gas.
Don't kick a cop in the nuts.

[fredjacksonsan]

God, I must be insane to hold those opinions.....

[beef_bourito]

Originally Posted by Muscletang

Never smoke while pumping your gas.

a lit cigarette cannot ignite gasoline. but lighting a cigarette can.

[ThatRoundHeadedKid]

I'm not a chemistry freak...but what's particularly bad bout the ones in bold? I know chemicals aren't good for you (especially those from the way the sound), but why in particular are they bad?

[fredjacksonsan]

Originally Posted by ThatRoundHeadedKid

I'm not a chemistry freak...but what's particularly bad bout the ones in bold? I know chemicals aren't good for you (especially those from the way the sound), but why in particular are they bad?

Google is your friend. "MSDS" is the government Material Safety Data Sheet, which is required for chemicals:

Methyl Benzoate:
http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/englishhtml/m3146.htm

isobutyl anthranilate
http://physchem.ox.ac.uk/MSDS/IS/iso...hranilate.html

hydroxyphrenyl- 2-butanone
https://fscimage.fishersci.com/msds/31874.htm

Rum Ether:
http://www.adv-bio.com/msds/Rum%20Ether%201206.pdf