Sugary, Sour Fun Dip Is The Final Touch On Copycat Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccinos

Some folks head to Starbucks for their essential daily dose of caffeine, but plenty of others prefer to indulge in the sweeter side of the coffee chain's selections. While there's certainly no shortage of decadent, dessert-worthy beverages available at Starbucks on any given day (especially if one knows their way around the Starbucks "secret menu"), the chain's more elusive creations tend to garner the most hype. Case in point? The mythical Unicorn Frappuccino. 

Debuted in April 2017, at the height of the social media-driven "unicorn food" era, the colorful, cotton candy-hued concoction was made available at Starbucks locations for just five days. However, according to reports from Starbucks baristas at the time, the sugary sip outsold many stores' supplies much sooner than that. The fleeting nature of the Instagrammable drink has made it all the more coveted among Starbucks' sweet-treat connoisseurs, and though the Unicorn Frappuccino is unlikely to make an official comeback anytime soon, it is possible to whip up your own version at home. 

Thanks to writer Jake Vigliotti over at Mashed, we're now privy to some of the secrets behind the infamous Unicorn Frappuccino, including this unexpected key ingredient: sugary, sour Fun Dip. Yes, the powdered treat that resembles instant Kool-Aid mix is a must-have addition when making a copycat version of the fabled beverage, so you may want to stop by a candy store before attempting to DIY the drink.

As documented across social media at the time, Starbucks' unicorn-inspired beverage featured neon-bright swirls of pink and blue. As Jake Vigliotti of Mashed personally confirmed with a Starbucks barista, the drink's pink hue is achieved by adding food coloring and powdered sugar to the cold, creamy Frappuccino base. (For those following at home, that can be duped by using vanilla ice cream with some mango and coconut flavoring.) The secret behind the drink's signature blue drizzle and sour-sweet taste, however, lies in the Fun Dip.

Concocted from a rich base of melted white chocolate, the blue drizzle gets both its color and flavor from the powdered candy you probably haven't thought much about since childhood. Per Vigliotti's copycat recipe, about a half teaspoon of blue Fun Dip should first be incorporated into some sugary simple syrup, which should then be mixed into the white chocolate as it begins to melt. Then, you can add the remainder of the pack (or more) of Fun Dip directly to the mixture before letting it cool in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

After you've created your copycat Unicorn Frappuccino's pink ice cream base, you're ready to assemble your sip. First, drizzle the Fun Dip and white chocolate blend inside your cup, creating splashes of blue along the sides. Then, you can pour in your pink component and top it all with whipped cream. But you're not done with the Fun Dip just yet. The final touch? A sprinkling of the powdered candy on top of the whipped cream to garnish, in true unicorn style.

Static Media owns and operates Tasting Table and Mashed.