McFlurry may not be an everyday affair for you if you are an adult that pays attention to what goes through your mouth; the same may not be true about most children though, those little humans love sweet things. To them, who cares about body size when it’s so delicious?
As for a younger brother of mine, he used to be one in a million children because he despised sweet foods when he was young; except for McDonald’s McFlurry, of course. He might have refused to take sugar during the course of the week at home, but whenever he got under the golden arches, he relished the sweetest on their menu. Turned out that sugar isn’t so sweet after all, at least for him. This childhood experience made him to propound a theory when he entered high school. The theory states that “the hatred for sweet foods can only be overcame by McFlurry”.
In case you’re guessing already, let me safe you the trouble; my brother is currently in his early forties, so he is not a millennial and the McFlurry is a little younger than him. McFlurry was first served in 1995 in Canada; and the parent company, which by far lay claim to the largest fast food chain in the world, is a little older than the Baby Boomers (McDonald’s was established in 1940).
So, what is McDonald’s McFlurry?
McDonald’s McFlurry is a vanilla-flavored ice cream distributed by the globally renowned fast food company, McDonald’s. The first fact you should get now is that McFlurry was invented in 1995 by one of McDonald’s Canadian franchisee, Ron McLellan, at Bathurst, New Brunswick, Canada.
However, the popular McFlurry is not so complex, if you have the right ingredients; the desert comprise the signature McDonald’s vanilla ice cream flurried with a lot of candies or cookies using a specially designed spoon in a cup with the aid of a blender.
So that’s where the differences came from, the varieties of McFlurry flavors in the world came from the differences in the choice of candies or cookies combined with the ice cream.
If you knew that McDonald’s is only behind Walmart as the largest private employer of labor in the world, then the popularity of one of their most sold deserts will not surprise you.
No doubt, the McFlurry has travelled far, globally, and it has been reinvented everywhere it got through touches of traditions and cultures.
The McFlurry ice cream family lay claim to a vast array of members worldwide; and some of them on the menu in America include: McFlurry with Oreo cookies, McFlurry with kit kat, McFlurry with m&m’s, McFlurry with kit kat and caramel toppings, Snickers, and Rolo. On the McFlurry menu in Australia we may have: Double Choc fudge, Bubblegum squash, Strawberry crumble and Caramel cookie; Australia surely has a rich history with McFlurry, the McFlurry in Australia and New Zealand is usually handcrafted, not mixed with blender as it is in other part of the world. Then we may have “Fuse of my Life” on the McFlurry menu in Malaysia.
What Are Desserts?
Desserts are foods used to “conclude a meal”, or better put, to “clear the table“.
Desserts generally have two major features in common, their sweetness and very high calories; I’m sure I don’t need to tell you they have lots of sugar that way.
These two features of desserts significantly contribute to their significance in “concluding meals“.
While people need to eat balanced diets, deserts, because of the potential attraction to their sweetness, will not make people do so if they take it as food; and so the better alternative is to take it after a proper meal. After all, a sweet food will always say “take more”, and this fact is seen even from the attraction people still show towards desserts after a proper meal by going ahead to consume these tasty things, even more.
Moreover, the high calorific value of desserts gives people a “filling feeling,” albeit, the sweetness feeling overcomes the calorific feeling for most people.
Daily Calorie Requirements
If you are the type that think about your waist every time something goes into your mouth, then you deserve to know how much calories you get from what you eat. The amount of energy in the foods and beverages you take is measured in the unit called calories.
According to healthline, an average active woman should consume about 2,000 calories per day to keep her current weight, while she will need to consume about 1,500 calories daily for her to lose one pound of flesh every week. On the other hand, an average active man should consume 2,500 calories daily to keep his current weight, while 2,000 per day will be enough for him to lose one pound of weight every week. Also, young children, between the age 2-3 years will require between 1,000 to 1,400 calories everyday.
Some of Your Favorite McFlurry Flavors and Their Calories
Now that we have an idea of how much calories we need per day, we can go ahead to compare how much calories some McFlurry flavors give us with the amount of calories we get from notable drinks. You will be surprised what fraction of your daily calorie requirement a cup of that soft serve can give you when consumed.
McFlurry with Oreo Cookies (regular)
McFlurry with Oreo cookies remains the best McFlurry flavor for a lot of McFlurry fans because of how perfectly the Oreo cookies were blended into the McDonald’s soft serve. The crunchy Oreo Cookies were not just blended into the signature McDonald’s ice cream, you will still be able to see a substantial amount of it to relish, unblended. McFlurry with Oreo Cookies will always give you the best taste that you can ever get from milk.
McFlurry with kit kat (Regular)
McFlurry with kit kat is a dessert that features kit kat candies in a pool of McDonald’s vanilla reduced-fat ice cream to give a satisfying tasty meal course.
1 serving of regular American McFlurry with Kit Kat will give you 580 calories when consumed.
McFlurry with m&m’s candies
McFlurry with m&m’s candies is another McFlurry flavor that features m&m’s chocolate candies whirled in a pool of McDonald’s vanilla soft serve.
1 serving of American McFlurry with m&m’s candies (Snack Size) will give you 387 calories
In case it seems, we’re dueling too much on McFlurry and surprisingly, none of its flavors is your favorite on McDonald’s menu; then let’s check out some other desserts you can find on their menu.
Plain McSundae
McDonald’s Plain McSundae is a vanilla-based ice cream made from reduced fat with an extra measure of milk to make a delicious paste of great simplicity.
A single serving of American Plain McSundae will give you 210 calories.
McSundae ice cream with caramel toppings
McSundae ice cream with caramel toppings is Plain McSundae vanilla soft serve with buttery caramel topping, crowned with chopped peanuts.
1 serving of American McSundae ice cream with caramel topping will give you 290 calories.
Comparison of The Calorific Values of Your Favorite Desserts and Drinks
Now, compared to 330ml of Coca-Cola bottle that gives 150 calories, a serving of McFlurry with Oreo cookies (285g) have more than three times the calories contained in a canned coke. Not only that, if we extend our comparison to an alcoholic drink, like Jack Daniels Whiskey, whose 44ml shot gives 98 calories, we will see that the difference in calories is even more pronounced. A serving of McFlurry with Oreo cookies have more than five times as many calories as in a shot of Jack Daniels Whiskey. Isn’t it interesting?
From the varieties of McFlurry flavors we’ve discussed, our findings have emphasized the significance of the various cookies and candies combined with the soft serve in the determination of the amount of calories each McFlurry variety gives. For example, when we compare ordinary McFlurry with kit kat (giving 580 calories) and McFlurry with kit kat and caramel toppings (giving 368 calories); we can notice the magical difference in the amount of calories given by both.
However, such calorie variations are not present only in the McFlurry brand; Plain McSundae (that gives 210 calories) and McSundae ice cream with caramel toppings (that gives 290,4 calories) emphasized this fact as well. A topping of caramel raises the calorie stake here too. Someone may be thinking of putting red flag on all foods containing caramel now.
Also, a McFlurry flavor can have similar names in different countries, but the calories embedded in them may be quite different. This results from the variations in the quantity of the ingredients or the different use of one or more ingredients.
In conclusion, like I said before, McFlurry is not so complex; and whenever you go under the golden arches always remember that the more the toppings slapped on the soft serve, the more the calories embedded in the whole. The question is, are you okay with that additional topping? If yes, then continue to enjoy the sweet life afforded you by the crowned soft serve.
