- November 25, 2024
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The first book of the Harry Potter series, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” was published in 1998, when I was in sixth grade.
Every year after that a new book came out, fueling my Harry Potter obsession, until finally the seventh and last book in the series arrived, when I was in college.
In the third book, “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Askaban,” the young wizards are introduced to a new drink, Butterbeer.
Butterbeer has a slight amount of alcohol in it, but not enough to affect witches and wizards. J.K. Rowling once said in an interview that she imagined it to taste “a little bit like less-sickly butterscotch.”
Recently, a friend sent me a link to a Butterbeer Cupcake recipe, on a food blog, amybites.com.
I immediately knew I was going to have to try these things out. And with the DVD release of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1,” it was the perfect time.
I’ve never had Butterbeer, and until I finally make the trip to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal’s Islands of Adventure to taste the real thing, these cupcakes are exactly what I imagine it to taste like.
Butterbeer Cupcakes

(Makes 18)

What you need:
For the cupcakes:
2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed

3 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon butter flavoring

1/2 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup cream soda
For the ganache:
1 11-oz. package butterscotch chips

1 cup heavy cream

For the buttercream frosting:

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/3 cup butterscotch ganache

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon butter flavoring

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 16-oz. package (2 cups) powdered sugar

Splash of milk or cream (as needed)
What to do:
For the cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line cupcake pans with paper liners. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
In a large bowl, cream the butter until light and fluffy. Add sugars and beat until well combined.
Beat in eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Then beat in vanilla and butter flavoring.
Alternate adding buttermilk, cream soda, and dry ingredients in batches until all are well incorporated.
Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 full, then bake for 15 to 17 minutes until the cake springs back to the touch.
Cool completely.
For butterscotch filling:
In a double boiler (heat-proof bowl over a pot of simmering water on the stove), combine butterscotch chips and heavy cream and stir until completely combined and smooth.
Cool to room temperature.
Fill a squeeze bottle with ganache and insert into the center of each cupcake, squeezing until filling begins to overflow.
For buttercream frosting:
Cream butter in a large bowl until fluffy.
Add in ganache, vanilla, butter flavoring, and salt and mix until well combined.
Beat in powdered sugar 1 cup at a time until reaching desired consistency.
Add milk or cream by the tablespoon as needed.
Frost cupcakes and top with a drizzle of butterscotch ganache.
