Starbucks Strawberry Frappuccino Recipe with Purée Sauce

Strawberries and Cream Frappuccino

Have you tried making your own Starbucks Strawberry Frappuccino recipe, but it just didn’t measure up to the pretty pink drink your barista whips up?

Well, I took on the challenge to recreate this popular Starbucks strawberry drink. This homemade strawberry frappuccino recipe tastes and feels like you’re sipping on the real deal.

With my barista daughter by my side, we tweaked the recipe and did lots of taste-testing until we got it just right.

The result: a yummy homemade strawberry frappuccino with the most delicious strawberry purée sauce and lots of cream.

I’m pretty sure you’ll agree that my strawberry frappuccino recipe is very close to the taste and consistency of a real Starbucks Strawberry Frappuccino.

In my opinion, the homemade strawberry purée really sets this recipe apart from others.

With a little bit of zing, a whole lot of sweetness and a special ingredient, this recipe blends into the perfect strawberries and cream drink.

Starbucks Strawberry Frappuccino Ingredients

Making a strawberry frappuccino is easy, but first let me show you the ingredients Starbucks uses to make one.

• Ice
• Whole Milk
• Creme Frappuccino Syrup
• Strawberry Purée Sauce
• Classic Syrup
• Whipped Cream

If you love strawberries and cream like me, then this is the drink for you. I like to think of it as summer in a cup.

But the good news is, this blended beverage is available all year long whether you get it at Starbucks or make it at home with frozen strawberries.

Here’s how the coffee giant describes this popular drink:

Summer’s favorite berry is the star of this delicious Frappuccino® Blended Beverage—a blend of ice, milk and strawberry purée layered on top of a splash of strawberry purée and finished with vanilla whipped cream.

starbucks.com

The best tool to make the purée is a handheld immersion blender. It gets the job done super quick.

Personally, I use a Cuisinart stick blender and love it. What’s nice is that it comes with a tall measuring cup that has a spout for easy pouring.

How to Make Real Strawberry Purée Sauce

The key to making a delicious strawberry frappuccino copycat recipe is homemade strawberry purée sauce.

Making the purée is a snap and what I love is that it’s perfect on top of other desserts like ice cream.

Strawberry purée is so easy to make. In it’s simplest form it’s just strawberries and sugar.

But we’re going to add a few other ingredients to give it some lovely citric notes.

In fact, the Starbucks Strawberry Purée Sauce ingredients include white grape juice concentrate and citric acid. Additionally, their sauce has xanthan gum to keep it emulsified.

The key is to use strawberries that taste like, well…strawberries. Have you ever bit into a beautiful red, perfectly-shaped strawberry and it tastes like nothing?

That’s why it’s important to only use fresh strawberries when they’re in season. Give them a sniff and if they smell like strawberries then the taste will be good too.

Otherwise, use frozen strawberries. Frozen strawberries are usually picked at peak freshness and flash frozen to lock in flavor.

If you use frozens strawberries, just put them in a bowl to thaw in the refrigerator overnight or thaw them in the microwave.

Ingredients for homemade strawberry purée sauce:

• Frozen strawberries
• Sugar
• Lemon zest
• Lemon juice
• White grape juice
• Xanthan gum
• Salt

To make the purée, simply put all the ingredients in a tall measuring bowl and purée the mixture with a handheld stick blender.

Next, I like to put the purée into a squeezable bottle. It’s easy to squirt into measuring spoons and around the rim of your drinking glass.

This way the strawberry goodness is tasted throughout the entire frappuccino.

Note: Xanthan gum is an ingredient used in both the purée and frappuccino recipes. Make sure to get some since it’s what makes this drink emulsified and creamy.

As a matter of fact, this blended frappuccino will stay emulsified in the refrigerator for about twelve hours without separating.

How to Make Classic Syrup

Classic syrup is another ingredient needed for this frappuccino recipe. Basically, it’s just a mixture of sugar and water.

Here you can see my homemade Starbucks Classic Syrup recipe.

Trust me, it’s super simple to make and nice to have on hand to sweeten drinks like coffee and tea, as well.

In fact, simple syrup is the ideal drink sweetener.

Here are a few more of my favorite simple syrup recipes:

• Starbucks Vanilla Syrup
• Starbucks Caramel Syrup
• Strawberry Simple Syrup
• Honey Simple Syrup

How to Make a Strawberry Frappuccino

After you’ve made a batch of strawberry purée and some classic syrup, you’re ready to whip up a delicious homemade strawberry frappuccino.

Instructions:

Just put the frappuccino ingredients (except the whipped cream) into a blender and blend it up.

Make sure to blend it on high and do so for a solid minute. I like to use the pulse button on mine to make sure the ice is completely chopped up.

While the frappuccino is blending, squirt a ring of strawberry purée inside the cup near the top and let it drip down the sides.

Next, pour the blended frappuccino into the cup and top with whipped cream.

Garnish it with a strawberry if you want to make it extra special for a friend or guest. And last, but absolutely not least, enjoy!

Starbucks Strawberry Frappuccino FAQs