With our easy copycat recipe, you can enjoy a refreshing Starbucks Pink Drink at home any time! Just 4 simple ingredients!
Starbucks Pink Drink
Be your own barista with this tasty shortcut recipe to make Starbucks’ famous “pink drink” at home!
The original Starbucks Pink Drink started out as a secret menu item, but gained so much popularity on social media that it can now be ordered right off the main menu! However, it’s so easy to make your own version of this refreshing drink with just 4 ingredients, so you might just decide to skip the drive through and DIY it!
What Is In A Starbucks Pink Drink?
The original “pink drink” is essentially the Starbucks Strawberry Acai Refresher shaken in a blender cup with coconut milk. This creamy, strawberry-flavored, lightly caffeinated drink is a tasty pick-me-up when you want something that’s not coffee flavored.
Because it has green coffee extract, the original recipe isn’t kid-friendly…but our copycat recipe is! I’ll also show you how to add caffeine if you DO want that extra energy boost. That’s why I love this homemade recipe…you can customize it to make it exactly how you like!
Did I mention that it’s easy?!
Ingredients
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- Ocean Spray White Cranberry Strawberry Juice — You can also use plain white cranberry juice or white grape juice for the base
- (1) packet of Crystal Light Wild Strawberry — Or similar sugar free strawberry flavored drink mix. Crystal Light has both caffeine free and caffeinated options available.
- Freeze Dried Strawberries — Or fresh sliced strawberries
- Coconut Milk or Coconut Cream — The Starbucks original is actually non dairy, made with coconutmilk, but you can use dairy milk or heavy cream if you prefer.
Helpful Kitchen Tools
- Mason Jar or Starbucks Tumbler With Lid
Instructions
- Fill a tall glass at least halfway with ice cubes.
- Pour in the white cranberry juice, until the glass is about 3/4 of the way full.
- Stir in one packet of strawberry flavored Crystal Light.
- Top with freeze dried strawberries and coconut milk, then stir until well blended.
Prep Tips
- You might notice that this recipe doesn’t have exact measurements, so you’ll want to just taste and adjust as needed. That way you can make any size you like, from a grande to venti to a trenta! You can even make a pitcherful (and just add the strawberries to individual glasses when serving). Don’t worry, you really can’t “mess up” this recipe…it’s foolproof!
- If you can’t find the white cranberry and strawberry juice blend, you can use regular white cranberry juice or even white grape juice. Since we’re adding strawberry Crystal Light and dried strawberries, you’ll still get plenty of that pink color and strawberry flavor.
- If you don’t have dried strawberries on hand, you can substitute fresh strawberries for the garnish.
- You can also use white cranberry juice concentrate or white grape juice concentrate (from the freezer section) to make your own juice for this recipe.
- We used canned coconut milk because it is thick and creamy; be sure to shake well before opening the can to mix up the cream!
Frequently Asked Questions
Is There Caffiene In Starbucks Pink Drink?
Starbucks’ strawberry acai base is made with green coffee bean extract, which does contain caffeine. A Grande Starbucks’ Refresher (16 ounces, any flavor) contains 45 mg of caffeine, which is comparable to the caffeine content in a cup of brewed black tea. So even though it looks like a kid-friendly drink, it isn’t a good option for anyone that is sensitive to caffeine.
However, our pink drink shortcut recipe is caffeine free! So it is a drink that you can make to share with the kids, or if you want something tasty and refreshing without the caffeine buzz.
Our pink drink shortcut recipe does not call for green coffee extract, because we wanted to keep this recipe simple by using only ingredients that are available at most local grocery store options. But you CAN add caffeine if you like!
If you want caffeine, you have a few options:
- Use Crystal Light with Caffeine (they have Wild Strawberry flavor!)
- Take a green tea bag and steep in the white cranberry juice for a couple minutes before mixing up the drink.
- Make our authentic Strawberry Acai refresher recipe (which does contain caffeine) for the strawberry base.
- Add 1/2 teaspoon green coffee bean extract to this recipe.
Can You Make This Recipe Sugar Free?
Starbucks Refreshers are sweetened and do contain added sugars. While it varies depending on the specific flavor, all refreshers contain at least 20g added sugars in a grande size beverage. Some contain upwards of 40g sugar per serving.
The great thing about making your own refreshers at home is that you can control the amount of sugar. Our recipe, as written, is similar in sugar and carbohydrates to the Starbucks original. The sugar comes from the juice and the strawberries. The sugar in the freeze-dried strawberries is natural fruit sugar, but many fruit juices do contain added sugar. If you find a no sugar added juice, you can reduce the amount of sugar in the overall recipe. It won’t be a totally sugar free drink, but it may be less than the drive-thru version!
More Starbucks Copycat Recipes To Try
- Starbucks Chocolate Cream Cold Brew Coffee with Cold Foam
- Copycat Starbucks Iced Coffee Mocha
- Starbucks Cinnamon Dolce Latte Recipe
- Cranberry Bliss Bread
- Keto Pumpkin Spice Latte
- Gluten Free Starbucks Pumpkin Loaf
Copycat Starbucks Pink Drink Recipe (Printable Recipe Card)
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Copycat Starbucks Pink Drink Recipe
Equipment
- Tall Glass
Ingredients
- 6 oz White Cranberry Juice
- 1 packet Crystal Light Strawberry
- 2 oz Coconut Milk or Heavy Cream
- 2 TB Freeze Dried Strawberries
Instructions
- Fill a tall glass with ice, at least halfway full.
- Pour in white cranberry juice, until the glass is 2/3 full.
- Stir in Crystal Light packet until dissolved.
- Top with freeze dried strawberries and fill remainder of glass with coconut milk. Stir to blend.
Notes
Nutrition
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