Okay, I confess: I’m a fan of the whole Harry Potter universe. It’s even the theme of our halloween party this year. Years ago I composed a recipe for butterbeer, because the recipes I found were so gruesome or just didn’t match the description in the book.

Butterbeer how you could get it in Hogsmeade…

According to secondary sources J.K. Rowling described butterbeer as something like a cream soda with butterscotch flavour – but not as sickeningly sweet as this beverage.
That gave me the idea for a lemonade-syrup-thingy one could use for hot and cold drinks:

a) To get your butterscotch cream soda with vanilla froth on it: Put some teaspoons of the syrup in a tumbler and top it – while stirring it a little bit – with sparkling water.

b) If you want a hot butterbeer: Stir a few teaspoons of the syrup into hot black or rooibush tea and top it with whipped cream.

Recipe for Butterbeer à la Harry Potter

250 g (9 ounces) Sugar
150 g (5 ounces) Water
100 g (3,5 ounces) Cream
50 g (2 ounces) Butter
1 whole vanilla pod
15 g (ca. half an ounce) Whisky
a dash of lemon juice (so that the caramel syrup won’t crystallize later)

Preparation

• Put the the sugar in a little pot and melt it slowly over medium heat. Let it caramelize until it is honey-colored (don’t stir or it will get lumpy!). Please do not leave your caramel unattended, it can get burned very fast and get a bitter taste)
• Pour in the water carefully, please be very cautious, this can splatter a bit and the sugar is very hot! The sugar will harden now for a second, but it will start to simmer after that. Stirring is allowed now.
• Put in the rest of the ingredients plus the cut open and scraped out vanilla pod and let it simmer for 10-15 min over low heat, stirring continuously. (If there is a little residue of the sugar on the rim of the pot after that, it’s alright)
• Fill your butter-caramel syrup into jars or bottles that you boiled out beforehand to sterilize them.
• If you’re careful while pouring it out, the butterbeer syrup should keep fresh in the fridge for a few weeks or even months. The components tend to separate when chilled, so it is a good idea to warm it up to room temperature and stir or shake it well before use.