Cotton Candy Frappuccino {Starbucks Copycat}

This Starbucks Copycat Cotton Candy Frappuccino tastes just like the fan-favorite secret menu drink. It's sweet, creamy, packed with nostalgic flavor, and so easy to make at home!

Jump to:

• ☁️ What is the cotton candy Frappuccino?
• 🗒 Ingredients
• 🥤 Tips for making at home
• 🎉 More secret menu Frappuccinos
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

Cotton candy has such a wonderfully nostalgic distinct taste. The sweet spun sugar melts in your mouth and tastes like the perfect combination of vanilla and berry flavors.

Way back in 2015, Starbucks added a Cotton Candy Frappuccino to their menu. But it didn't stay on the menu for long... And fans have been talking about it and wishing for it to come back ever since.

It doesn't seem likely that it will return to the menu any time soon and it can't even be ordered as a secret item menu anymore since Starbucks has discontinued their raspberry syrup.

But the good news is, it's an incredibly simple and easy Frappuccino to make at home!

☁️ What is the cotton candy Frappuccino?

Even after Starbucks removed the Cotton Candy Frappuccino from their official menu, you could still order it as a secret menu item for a long time.

It's actually a very simple Frappuccino consisting of a Vanilla Creme Frappuccino base with raspberry syrup. That's it!

But when Starbucks stopped offering raspberry syrup in 2023, it became impossible to order this item in stores and now your only option for getting cotton candy in a Frappuccino form is to make your own.

🗒 Ingredients

Here's everything you need to make your own super easy Cotton Candy Frappuccino at home (be sure to view the recipe card at the bottom of this post for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions):

• Whole milk
• Heavy cream
• Vanilla syrup: you can either make a homemade vanilla syrup or buy a bottle of store-bought syrup.
• Raspberry syrup: again, you can either make a homemade raspberry syrup or buy a bottle of store-bought.
• Xanthan powder: this helps thicken the Frappuccino. If you can't find it, you can substitute with cornstarch, but you'll need to use a little bit more.
• Ice
• Whipped cream: for topping
• Optional toppings: I love adding cotton candy crunch sprinkles and a little bit of real cotton candy, too.

🥤 Tips for making at home

• This is actually one of the easiest Frappuccinos I've made at home with the least amount of ingredients. You just need to add the milk, cream, vanilla syrup, raspberry syrup, xanthan gum, and ice to a blender and process until smooth.

• Xanthan gum helps get your Frappuccino thick and frothy and more like the coffee shop drink. You can substitute with corn starch, but I recommend using a little more than the ¼ teaspoon I recommend for xanthan gum.

• You can make this recipe even easier by buying bottles of vanilla syrup and raspberry syrup, but I love making homemade syrups. I have an easy vanilla syrup recipe and an easy raspberry syrup recipe.

• I haven't tried it, so I can't vouch for it, but you could also try simplifying things and making this drink with an actual cotton candy syrup. If you try this, please let me know how it is!

• You can top the Frappuccino however you want, but I believe a Cotton Candy Frappuccino deserves to be a lot of fun!! I use whipped cream, cotton candy crunch sprinkles, and actual cotton candy. Even WITH raspberry syrup at Starbucks, you can't get a Cotton Candy Frappuccino that looks like this!

I love that this is not only the easiest Frappuccino I've ever made, but also the most fun! OK, the Firework Frappuccino is also pretty fun, but it's a whole lot more work!

It's such a fun drink for kids or any cotton candy lover in your life. It also works as a drink to serve at carnival or circus themed parties.

It even has possibilities at a baby shower or gender reveal party!

🎉 More secret menu Frappuccinos

Even though you can't order the Cotton Candy Frappuccino at Starbucks anymore (aside form the times they temporarily bring raspberry syrup back!), there are tons of fun secret menu drinks you CAN order.

And also lots that you can make at home with copycat recipes! Here are some of my favorites:

I know there are hundreds of other secret menu drinks that can be ordered so long as you know the ingredients to tell the baristas.

Do you have any favorites? Or any flavor combinations you want to see recipes for?

This Frappuccino makes me so happy and I hope it brings a little joy into your life, too!

📖 Recipe