McDonald’s Shamrock Shake returns Feb. 15, alongside Oreo Shamrock McFlurry

After bringing back the heat last week with Spicy Chicken McNuggets, McDonald’s is turning to cold and sweet.

The fast-food giant announced Tuesday that the popular Shamrock Shake will return to participating restaurants nationwide Feb. 15 “to mark the first green of spring.” It will be joined by the Oreo Shamrock McFlurry, which debuted last February in honor of the shake’s 50th anniversary.

The seasonal desserts will be available for a limited time more than a month before St. Patrick’s Day.

“For more than 50 years, fans have eagerly awaited the annual return of the Shamrock Shake, counting on the arrival of Shamrock Shake Season to mark the unofficial start to spring,” McDonald’s Senior Director of Culinary Chad Schafer said in a news release.

The Shamrock Shake — created in 1967 by Hal Rosen, a Connecticut McDonald’s owner and operator, who made the shake for St. Patrick’s Day — debuted in select locations across the nation in 1970. It went nationwide for the first time in 2012.

The light green drink is made with vanilla soft-serve ice cream, artificially flavored Shamrock Shake syrup and whipped topping.

McDonald’s describes the Oreo Shamrock McFlurry as a “twist” on the Shamrock Shake with Oreo cookie pieces blended throughout.

Spicy Chicken McNuggets and the Mighty Hot Sauce returned Feb. 1 and will be available for a limited time. The hot nuggets and sauce both debuted for their first run in mid-September, and it was the first flavor McDonald’s USA introduced to the McNugget since the product debuted in 1983.

Read more at usatoday.com

Some fun facts about the Shamrock Shake as described at corporate.mcdonalds.com:

— Sales from the shake helped to build the first Ronald McDonald House in Philadelphia in 1974.

— The “Shamrock Sundae,” consisting of vanilla soft serve topped with mint-green syrup, was on the menu in 1980.

— In 2017, McDonald’s debuted the Chocolate Shamrock Shake along with a limited-edition straw designed by a team of aerospace and robotic engineers. The straw precisely delivered 50% chocolate and 50% mint in every sip.