Butterbeer: A Harry Potter Party Essential Recipe

No Harry Potter fan is complete without a delicious mug of Butterbeer in hand! Make the wizarding world’s favorite drink at home.

Anyone who knows me can tell you that I am a HUGE Harry Potter fan. I’ve loved it since I first watched The Sorcerer’s Stone when the movie was released. Then I devoured the books. I’ve been to midnight book releases (dressing up for one of them) and midnight movie releases. I listen to the soundtracks while I write almost daily. Tyler’s nursery was the Gryffindor Common Room when he was born. When we moved, that became Ryan’s room. I’ve made my own wand and, of course, Butterbeer. No HP fan is complete without a mug of Butterbeer! We also tend to do a Harry Potter movie marathon about once per year as a family. And I read through the Harry Potter books annually as well. 

Probably the “nerdiest” Harry Potter thing I’ve done, according to my family, is hosting a monthly Harry Potter Club at my house. We all wear our House colors, watch a movie, play the co-op board game, and revel in our love of all things Hogwarts. It started when a friend had some people over to watch Fantastic Beasts when it was released on DVD. We decided we should all get together to watch the movies. I decided on once a month, starting in January 2018, and we would watch one movie per month. We skipped June and July since they are such busy months. It worked out that we watched the eight original movies, then Fantastic Beasts again at the start of November. We then all saw Crimes of Grindelwald when it premiered.

Yes, we are a bunch of nerds. To top it off, we make Harry Potter-inspired food every month to share with each other. There’s no better recipe for Harry Potter fans than Butterbeer!

“Harry drank deeply. It [butterbeer] was the most delicious thing he’d ever tasted and seemed to heat every bit of him from the inside.” -Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Butterbeer is always mentioned as a warm drink, although if you go to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios (known by many simply as Harry Potter World), you can purchase it frozen as well. When we go to the parks, I always prefer frozen Butterbeer, but Justin likes regular butterbeer. The recipe I make is room temperature. I don’t chill it, but it isn’t hot either.

Next time I make it, though, I want to try to add the cream soda and butterscotch flavoring to a blender with some ice. If it works, that would be close to the frozen version sold at Universal. 

It has become such a popular drink, they have Butterbeer carts all around Universal Studios in both the Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley sections of the parks. I first tried Butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks, but have now had it at the Leaky Cauldron as well once they opened that section of the park.

Believe it or not, this copycat recipe is actually a pretty easy recipe to have Harry Potter’s Butterbeer whenever you want. You can make your own butterscotch syrup or purchase butterscotch sauce from the grocery store. This tasty drink only has a few simple ingredients but tastes like the real thing from the parks. 

In the books, the drink is described as possibly having a little bit of alcohol in it. The students are allowed to drink it, so it must not be much. But it is enough to get a house elf drunk. If you want to add a bit, try mixing some vanilla vodka or light rum to the delicious drink. 

Butterbeer Step by Step

Ingredients

Cream Topping

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup butter (melted)

Butterbeer

• 2 liters cream soda
• 1/4 cup butterscotch syrup

Preparation

To make butterbeer, you have to have butterscotch syrup. It’s the same kind you would use as an ice cream topping. I couldn’t find any at the grocery store, so I made some from home. It tasted so much better than anything storebought. I recommend making the butterscotch syrup at least a few hours before you want the butterbeer if not a day or two before. It keeps well in the refrigerator as long as it is sealed tight in a glass jar.

Empty 2 liters of cream soda into a serving pitcher. Whisk in 1/4 cup of the butterscotch syrup (if your syrup hardens in the refrigerator, leave it out for a few minutes to soften).

Make the whipped cream topping by using an electric mixer or stand mixer to whisk the heavy cream in a large bowl until soft peaks form. 

Then fold in the sugar and vanilla extract.

Add the butter and stir until it is no longer streaky.

Pour the butterbeer into tall glasses and top with a scoop (or two) of the whipped topping and enjoy!

Butterbeer Leftovers

Storage: Store the cream topping separately from the butterbeer drink. Keep both in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. Make sure to stir the butterbeer well before serving and top with the cream. The cream may also need to be whisked before adding to the cups. 

Recipe

Butterbeer

No Harry Potter fan is complete without a delicious mug of Butterbeer in hand! Make the wizarding world’s favorite drink at home.

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Course:

Drinks

Cuisine:

American

|

British

Diet

Vegetarian

Keyword:

butterscotch

|

cream soda

|

Harry Potter

Dietary Needs:

Egg-Free

|

Gluten-Free

|

Nut-Free

Servings: 4 servings

5 from 3 votes

Ingredients

Cream Topping

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup butter (melted)

Butterbeer

• 2 liters cream soda
• 1/4 cup butterscotch syrup

Recommended Equipment

• Saucepan – Medium
• Whisk – Nylon
• Candy Thermometer
• Mason Jars – 16oz
• Electric Mixer
• Rubber Spatula
• Glass Pitcher

Instructions

Cream Topping

• When you are ready to serve the butterbeer, whisk the heavy cream with an electric mixer until soft peaks form
• Fold in the sugar and vanilla extract
• Add the butter until it is no longer streaky

Butterbeer

• In a large serving pitcher, whisk the cream soda with 1/4 cup of the butterscotch syrup
• To serve, pour butterbeer into a serving glass and top with a scoop or two of the cream topping

Click the buttons below to share and print this recipe

Pin Recipe Print Recipe

Nutrition Facts

Butterbeer

Amount Per Serving (8 oz)

Calories 668 Calories from Fat 369

% Daily Value*

Fat 41g63%

Saturated Fat 26g130%

Cholesterol 140mg47%

Sodium 215mg9%

Potassium 55mg2%

Carbohydrates 74g25%

Sugar 72g80%

Protein 1g2%

Vitamin A 1535IU31%

Vitamin C 0.3mg0%

Calcium 77mg8%

Iron 0.3mg2%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutrition content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.

More Harry Potter-Inspired Recipes to try

• Butterbeer: A Harry Potter Party Essential
• Harry Potter’s Birthday Cake
• Crystallized Pineapple: A Sweet Treat with Only 3 Ingredients
• Harry Potter’s Treacle Tarts Recipe: Sweet and Vegan
• Canary Creams from Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes
• Sorting Hat Cupcakes
• Sweet and Creamy Butterbeer Ice Cream
• Soft and Sweet Treacle Fudge
• Rock Cakes that Won’t Break your Teeth
• Paczki: Polish Doughnuts
• Pumpkin Juice
• The Welcoming Feast Roast Beef
• One-Pot Goulash
• Kreacher’s French Onion Soup
• Nearly-Headless Nick’s Deathday Cake
• Chocolate and Caramel Cockroach Clusters
• Dumbledore’s Apple and Sage Pork Chops
• Pumpkin Pasties from the Hogwarts Express

Recipes that use Butterscotch

• Butterscotch Syrup
• Sweet and Creamy Butterbeer Ice Cream
• Butterbeer: A Harry Potter Party Essential
• Better-Than-Sex Cake or Chocolate Caramel Poke Cake