Look no further for the perfect copycat frozen butterbeer recipe! This is the most authentic frozen butterbeer recipe you will find outside the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
When we were planning our trip to Universal Orlando and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, what we heard over and over again is to get the butterbeer. Get it all. Enjoy it. Just plan to drink a lot of butterbeer.
Because of this, we worked it into our budget to plan to get butterbeer twice a day each day we were there. We were there 3 days. With 6 people and each butterbeer item costing at least $5-6 , this was not cheap. But it was SO WORTH IT.
Ever since we got back, we have been trying different copycat recipes out there. While we have had some good tries, we have not found something that tasted legit and authentic. So we decided to do some experimenting and we have perfected the frozen butterbeer recipe!
We now have a tradition to have this every Sunday. All 6 of us give this a stamp of approval and agree it is as close as you can get to the real deal. So let’s get to it.
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Copycat Frozen Butterbeer Recipe
There are a few key elements to this recipe. One is the homemade butterscotch. The second is the butterbeer itself. The third is the cream that goes on top. Scroll down to the bottom of this post to get a printable version of the recipe. Be sure to rate it once you have tried it!
Butterscotch Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter (salted or unsalted. We use salted because that is what I typically buy anyway)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp of salt (if you did not use salted butter. NO salt if you used salted butter)
Butterscotch Instructions
This will make enough butterscotch to last you several batches of frozen butterbeer. We just put the extra in a container and store it in the fridge.
- Heat your butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Do not burn the butter. Heat it just until melted.
- Add brown sugar and salt (if you used unsalted butter) and mix well.
- Once the sugar has dissolved some, add the whipping cream. It doesn’t take long to get the brown sugar dissolved a bit.
- Mix well.
- Bring the mixture to a boil. Make sure you stir every so often as it comes to a boil so it doesn’t burn.
- Boil until the mixture thickens. You want it to coat a spoon. This can take up to 10 minutes, but it can be done faster than that. Check the coating frequently.
- Let cool. Add vanilla.
Magical Whipped Cream Ingredients
One of the most noticeable things about the butterbeer in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter was that the whipped cream on top was not just normal whipped cream. I came across a butterbeer recipe from Art of Wizardry on Pinterest. She has a fantastic regular butterbeer copycat recipe. With it was the key ingredient to the whipped cream. I have named it Magical Whipped Cream because it is amazing.
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 1 cup marshmallow creme (I get a 14-ounce container and just use half of it)
Magical Whipped Cream Instructions
- Combine whipping cream and marshmallow creme in a mixing bowl
- With beaters, mix the ingredients just until a little stiff. You want it somewhat runny still and do not want it stiff like whipped cream typically is
Frozen Butterbeer Ingredients
This feeds 6
- 4 cups cream soda ice cubes (put cream soda in ice cube trays and freeze. This should be two trays of cubes. This needs to be done ahead of time so the cubes can be frozen).
- 4 cups vanilla ice cream (or less if you want it a little less creamy)
- 4 tsp butter extract (this is half of a standard sized butter extract)
- 8 Tablespoons homemade butterscotch (it can be warm–if you are using a batch you made previously, it is good to get it out of the fridge an hour or more earlier so it warms up and is easier to work with)
- 2 cups cream soda
- Magical Whipped Cream (to put on top)
Frozen Butterbeer Instructions
- In a blender, add all of the ingredients except the Magical Whipped Cream.
- Mix well.
- Pour into glasses and top with Magical Whipped Cream. Some people like to top with some butterscotch. We don’t do that; the flavor is strong enough without it and that isn’t how it was in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
Enjoy!
Authentic Copycat Frozen Butterbeer
Look no further for the perfect copycat frozen butterbeer recipe! This is the most authentic frozen butterbeer recipe you will find outside the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter (salted or unsalted. We use salted because that is what I typically buy anyway)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup and 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp of salt (if you did not use salted butter. NO salt if you used salted butter)
- 1 cup marshmallow creme
- 4 cups cream soda ice cubes (put cream soda in ice cube trays and freeze)
- 4 cups vanilla ice cream (or less if you want it a little less creamy)
- 4 tsp butter extract
- 8 Tablespoons homemade butterscotch
- 2 cups cream soda
- Magical Whipped Cream (to put on top)
Instructions
- Heat your butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Do not burn the butter. Heat it just until melted.
- Add brown sugar and salt (if you used unsalted butter) and mix well.
- Once the sugar has dissolved some, add 1/2 cup whipping cream. It doesn't take long to get the brown sugar dissolved a bit.
- Mix well.
- Bring the mixture to a boil. Make sure you stir every so often as it comes to a boil so it doesn't burn.
- Boil until the mixture thickens. You want it to coat a spoon. This can take up to 10 minutes, but it can be done faster than that. Check the coating frequently.
- Let cool. Add vanilla. Set aside. This completes your Homemade Butterscotch.
- Combine 1 cup whipping cream and marshmallow creme in a mixing bowl.
- With beaters, mix the ingredients just until a little stiff. You want it somewhat runny still and do not want it stiff like whipped cream typically is. This completes your Magical Whipped Cream.
- In a blender, add cream soda ice cubes, ice cream, butter extract, homemade butterscotch, and cream soda.
- Mix well.
- Pour into glasses and top with Magical Whipped Cream. Some people like to top with more butterscotch.
Should the cream soda be flat? I don’t remember if the frozen butterbeer had “gas” or not.
We don’t make it flat first, but with all of the other stuff in it, it doesn’t have a “gas” component. 2 of my kids won’t drink carbonation and have never complained about it being “spicey” as they say.
What brand of cream soda do you use??
We use A&W
I don’t have enough room in my freezer for ice cube trays. What ratio of cream soda vs. ice would you recommended?
I would do minimal ice. Ice will water it down and make the flavor less intense. So if you want to add ice, I would add cream soda to make up for the cream soda you aren’t adding through the frozen cream soda cubes and just enough ice to make it as cold as you like.
How do you keep the butterscotch from freezing and getting hard before you blend it?
We haven’t ever had a problem with that. Are you using a homemade butterscotch? If so, you might be over-cooking the butterscotch and making it hard (so it might be that and not the cold ice cream causing a problem). If the butterscotch stays nice and smoother outside of the ice cream, just wait and add the butterscotch right before you mix it up.
I had the exact same problem. My homemade butterscotch seized up in the blender after adding it to the ice cream/soda mixture. It ended up having small chunks of butterscotch in it. Not great.
You are probably cooking it too long, then. It should be pliable even when cold.
I think your butterscotch recipe is missing the step where you add heavy whipping cream. That’s why others are having seizing problems. I made it without that on my first try and it made it like hard candy. Adding the whipping cream made it just beautiful. Great recipe! Thanks for sharing.
Hey! I looked and I have that in the written instructions and on the recipe card? It is step 3 in both instructions. That is a good troubleshooting if people aren’t doing it!
do we mix it in a blender because of the frozen cream soda
That is how we do it!
We made this last night, and while it was very yummy, we thought this tasted and looked more like a vanilla milkshake with butterscotch.Even the color and consistency was more like a creamy milkshake and less like the amber-colored butterbeer from the parks. Ours looks like yours in your photo above (more milkshake-y). Is it just as simple as reducing the amount of vanilla icecream and/or increasing the frozen cream soda? Thank you! We had fun making it!
Yes I think if you reduced the ice cream it would decrease the creaminess. I might try straight cream soda first before trying more frozen cream soda. Let me know how it goes!
Currently struggling to find butter extract. I feel like the best substitute would just be actual butter to keep the flavor consistent. Do you agree? Or have suggestions for finding the extract? I’ve tried large chains and small grocery stores without luck. Thanks!
I would do extract. McCormick makes it, so you should be able to find it in any major store. But you can get it on amazon: https://amzn.to/45JAULi
Made this in Germany! Phew! We don’t have cream soda so I had to find a recipe to make this at home! And don’t get me going on all the conversions from ounces and cups to grams! BUT: worth it!!! Tasted like the frozen Butterbeer back at Universal! Loved it!
Oh haha! Sorry about the conversions! I am glad you liked it and very impressed you made cream soda.
What do you use if you don’t want to make homemade butterscotch? Butterscotch syrup?
Yes I would try that. I feel like homemade tastes quite a bit different than homemade, but you can try it. You could also try the Torani Buttersotch Syrup (the syrup they use to make dirty sodas). That might be a better option. You will just need to figure out the right amount to use to get the flavor.