This dazzling drink is a healthier homemade Unicorn Frappuccino with blue swirls, pitaya pink smoothie, and a magical mango drizzle–a fantastical fruity treat!
Oh yes, this is happening.
Unicorn frap healthy, homemade, and vegan style!
I am diving back in to the magical realm of unicorn recipes, this time swapping spoon for straw and taking a little inspiration from Starbucks. This trend is getting more out of control by the day and making me wonder whether unicorns are slowly taking over the earth via irresistibly sparkly snacks. But with how mesmerizing and yummy this copycat frappuccino is, I’m willing to risk it.
The limited edition Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino debuted on Wednesday and has pretty much taken over Instagram in the 48 hours since. So I thought I’d whip up my own homemade blender version in case you can’t make it to Starbucks before it gallops off. Or in case you prefer fruit sweetness and real foods to a cup full of colored sugar.
The Starbucks version has some sort of flavor-shifting effect that changes from sour to sweet as you drink, but I am not a chemist nor do I want my ingredient list to be as long and complicated as theirs. So my version is just one flavor, and that flavor is quite fruity! Banana + pitaya + coconut + optional frozen cauliflower blended in plus a sweet mango drizzle on top. If you are really craving the sour -> sweet experience just squirt some lemon juice in your mouth with one sip and toss in some sugar with the next.
Blue swirls. For the blue swirls, I used coconut butter as the base and butterfly pea flowers for the natural blue coloring. Simply steep the flowers in a small amount of hot water to keep the color as concentrated as possible, add the blue water to the coconut butter, and stir while adding nondairy milk a little at a time until smooth. If you pop your frappuccino glass in the freezer for a few minutes while you mix up the blue, it will be nice and frosty which helps the swirls stay in place. A spoon or a ziplock bag with one corner snipped off works best for creating beautiful squiggles on the inside of the glass.
You can order the butterfly pea flowers on Amazon. Or alternately use this homemade blue food coloring made from red cabbage. Or blue matcha powder works too if you have it.
Pink drink. What better to make a mythical creature-inspired drink so vibrantly pink than a little bit of dragonfruit! Also known as pitaya. The pink part of this frappuccino is made of frozen pitaya, frozen banana, optional frozen cauliflower, and non-dairy milk of choice to blend (I used coconut to make it extra creamy). Pitaya is not super sweet or flavorful, so don’t add too much cauliflower or you will taste it. If you do run into that problem, more banana can usually solve it with it’s extra sweetness to cover up the veg taste.
Sparkly extras. Whipped cream is a frappuccino must, of course. Taking a tip from the Starbucks version, I blended up a simple mango drizzle to go on top too. I am not sure why Starbucks thought a pink and blue unicorn drink needed a mango drizzle, but personally I think mango is a magically delicious fruit in any form so I am fully on board!
The finishing touch is a dusting of pink and blue sprinkles. I used my homemade coconut sprinkles briefly blended to be extra fine. The exact ingredients and amounts for pink and blue sprinkles can be found in this Cotton Candy Cake recipe…or just wing it.
Happy fantastical frappuccino sipping!
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Vegan Copycat Unicorn Frappuccino
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 1 person 1x
Description
This dazzling drink is a healthier homemade Unicorn Frappuccino with natural blue, pitaya pink, and a magical mango drizzle–a delicious fruity fantasy!
Ingredients
Blue Swirls
- 2 tbsp coconut butter
- 1 tbsp natural blue food coloring ((*see notes for options))
- 2–3 tbsp non-dairy milk
Pink Smoothie
- 1 cup frozen pitaya cubes/pack
- 1–2 frozen bananas
- 1 handful frozen cauliflower ((optional))
- Non-dairy milk to blend ((I used coconut))
Toppings
- 1 ripe mango
- Coconut whipped cream or Cocowhip
- Pink and blue sprinkles
Instructions
- Place the glass/jar you will be using in the freezer for at least 10-15 minutes.
- For the blue swirls, soften the coconut butter by microwaving/heating just slightly. Add the blue food coloring and stir. Add the non-dairy milk 1 tablespoon at a time stirring vigorously. It will clump at first, but keep stirring until it becomes smooth and creamy
- Use a spoon or ziplock bag with one corner snipped off to draw squiggles on the inside of the chilled glass. Place the glass back in the freezer to set.
- Blend the mango until smooth. Transfer to a squeeze bottle (or you can just drizzle it on with a spoon).
- Blend all the ingredients for the pink smoothie on high until smooth. Pour into the glass.
- Top with coconut whipped cream, mango drizzle, and sprinkles.
- Enjoy!
Notes
*Homemade blue food coloring from red cabbage (tutorial HERE) OR a small handful of butterfly pea flowers steeped in 1/4 cup boiling water OR blue matcha powder
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I was wondering if you were going to do this!! Ahhh it looks so good and so much better than Starbuck’s and of course, healthier! Did you see Kathy’s on Finding Vegan today? I saw hers over email first thing this morning and stated on my FB page and omg, people went nuts over it, lol! I imagine people will do the same over this one! People are just wacko lately over unicorn stuff. I like that you added coconut butter to yours, I love coconut butter. I heard so many mixed reviews on their drink…some said yummy, some said nasty, but I imagine everybody would say yummy to your version! So fruity and healthy! And my goodness, I love how close you got the look of it like the Starbucks one, the colors are just fantastic girl!!!
I especially love that you threw cauliflower in this, Nat 🙂 it looks so amazing, much better than coloured sugar any day!!!
I certainly don’t have to tell you how easy it is to sneak veggies into the sweet stuff? But I am obsessed with cauliflower in everything right now, extra magical that way I think?? Thanks Kyra!
Hi 🙂
Thank you so much for your recipe! Just wanted to tell you that you are amazing and as long as you keep doing vegan recipes I think your story about veganism and where you are now is just so admirable and a sign of strongness 🙂
Oh wow Lydie, thank you so much for this incredibly beautiful comment and for your support?
Yours is so much prettier than Starbucks’ anyways. It’s really amusing to me to see how fast it has blown up the internet, whether it’s loving it or hating on it – a very great marketing strategy by Starbucks.
I still can’t get over butterfly pea flowers!!!! They’re so magical.
Also your advice for the sweet sour experience killed me. So good.
Isn’t it strange and so funny how it has taken off!? I am a little mind-blown still? I so badly want to order that blue matcha powder just because it looks 10 times easier to throw into stuff, but watching the flower water change color is pretty magical so I’m resisting? Hehe thanks Leah!
I read this –> “If you are really craving the sour -> sweet experience just squirt some lemon juice in your mouth with one sip and toss in some sugar with the next” while sitting at my desk at work and LOLed so loud my coworkers gave me concerned looks.
Anywho a friend of mine bought the original from Starbucks and I was not impressed. The mango + heavy cream base + sour punch was non-magical (some things just aren’t meant to be “found”). Your version not only looks prettier, I’m sure it tastes 10000x better. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Bahahahaha!!! I should’ve put a “read at home/in privacy” warning before that part?? But I’m glad I could add a little laugh to your friday? Oh really? Good to know. The mango addition is a little strange, although I was thinking in retrospect making the drizzle a sour with some lemon juice would’ve been fun. Ah well, always time for a unicorn frap round 2 since this recipe will be around long after the Starbucks one is gone?? Thanks Natalie!
This is AMAZING. I can’t even keep up with all of your beautiful, neon, rainbow-ness over here! So in love. You’re so right about that drink seriously taking over instagram though, it’s literally everywhere all of a sudden! And speaking of takeovers, I have to say I think I’d be perfectly fine if unicorns did decide to take over 🙂 But anyway, as gorgeous as this drink looks it sounds like it would taste even better! Such great fruit combos going on. And your ways of getting those beautiful colors are SO creative. Looks (almost) too pretty to drink!
Instagram and youtube and just the internet in general–total unicorn frap takeover!!! Which still blows my mind a little bit? Thank goodness neon pink is the official unicorn color, because getting any other color so bright and neon naturally would’ve been much trickier. Thank goodness for frozen pitaya! Hehe almost☺️ Thanks Sara!
Are unicorns vegan? Asking for a friend.
★★★★★
Unicorns don’t like labels.
Your version looks MUCH prettier and sounds delicious! I’m going to be making this for sure 🙂
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Thanks Nichole! Happy magical shake making to you?
lol. I think I’m the only person who has not heard of this frappuccino until it hit insta — starting with your remake here. Yes, I live under a rock ?. Thank goodness for IG for keeping me in touch with what’s going on in the world ?.
This sounds delicious, but is it weird that I’m most excited about that radiant mango drizzle?! How good does that look ?
Living under a rock has it’s positives though, actually I get most of my “news” from IG and facebook too. Going out in the world, what is this you speak of? Ha!
this is way cooler than anything Starbucks will ever make! love your colorful and vibrant creations, Natalie!
Hehe thanks Nisha! But I do appreciate their inspo?
Natalie, bravo! I cooked it with strawberries, it turned out just amazing !!! thank you
★★★★★