How to make 'Star Wars': Galaxy's Edge Cold Brew Black Caf Coffee at home

Forget about blue milk. When I'm visiting Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, the very first drink I lay my hands on is the Cold Brew Black Caf — an outer rim-themed cold brew coffee drink topped with a dense creamy foam and Cocoa Puffs-style cereal. And since I'm usually visiting Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort and I'm of legal drinking age, you can bet your light saber it's going to be a Spiked Cold Brew Black Caf from Kat Saka's Kettle. (At Disneyland Resort, you'll find the non-alcoholic version of the drink at Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo.)

It checks all the boxes for an early morning Disney vacation drink: iced (because it's probably hotter than Tatooine in Florida), strong coffee, Star Wars-themed and gently boozy. I grab one first thing in the morning, when Kat Saka's opens at 8:30 a.m., then again sometime in the afternoon before waiting in line to ride Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. A breakfast of Cold Brew Black Caf and a Ronto Morning Wrap is the absolute best way to start the day, as far as I'm concerned. And I'm not the only one who thinks so.

"Guests line up waiting for Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo to open just to get their favorite coffee," Amy Benson, the executive chef at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland Resort tells Yahoo Life,. "We also see that mobile order is consistently booked specifically for this offering.

This galactic cold brew is one of the things I miss the most once I'm home from vacation. But since I live roughly 1,000 miles away from Hollywood Studios, I realized I'd either have to go without it for another few months or try to recreate it at home. Naturally, I chose to recreate it.

Cream cheese makes this cold brew out-of-this-world

The menu lists the Cold Brew Black Caf ingredients as, "Joffrey's Coffee cold brew topped with sweet cream cheese and chocolate puffs." The spiked version has the addition of chocolate liqueur.

Cold brew coffee is a necessity first thing in the morning, but where the drink gets interesting is the "sweet cream cheese" topping that floats like a thick cloud on top. Also known as cheese foam or cheese mousse, the topping took social media by surprise a few years ago when it became popular served atop boba tea.

Disney Parks was quick to pick up on the trend and released the first Cold Brew Black Caf exclusively at Disneyland in June 2021. "Originally, the Cold Brew Black Caf was a pilot to see how guests would respond to a new offering and I think it is safe to say it was a hit and won't be going anywhere for a while," says Benson. It took nearly a year after the original launch in Disneyland for the drink to be released to fans at Walt Disney World in June 2022, but it was absolutely worth the wait.

"The Cold Brew Black Caf is a Southeast Asian-inspired iced coffee," explains Benson. "The team wanted to create a unique guest experience that cross-utilized multiple cultures. Seeing the drink take on a life of its own through social media and becoming one of the best-selling Disneyland Park cold brew offerings has been very rewarding."

The "sweetened cream cheese" foam is similar to a delicately-sweetened thick-whipped cream made with cream cheese, powdered sugar and a combination of milk and cream. It's whipped together, spooned over your cold drink and can be used on both coffee and tea. If you're having trouble wrapping your mind around drinking whipped cream cheese on top of your cold brew, just imagine a less-sweet frosting made specifically for coffee, or a very thick and stable whipped cream. And believe me when I tell you, it doesn't taste nearly as cheesy as you might be imagining.

In fact, this coffee isn't especially sweet either, unlike a lot of other theme park drinks. Most of the gentle sweetness comes from the cheese foam or the chocolate liqueur. So, even though it's fun to look at with the foam floating on top, you'll want to stir it into the drink for the best-tasting flavor.

How to make your own copycat Black Caf

In an effort to re-create the Cold Brew Black Caf as closely as possible, I ordered a bag of Joffrey's Cold Brew Blend online and made my own at home. I used about one cup of ground coffee with two quarts of water and brewed it overnight in the fridge before straining it. Although Joffrey's is the official coffee of Disney, you can really use any kind of cold brew coffee beans or buy a bottle of pre-brewed coffee for the same effect.

If you're making the spiked version of the drink, pour about two ounces of chocolate liqueur (I used Godiva) into eight ounces of cold brew and stir together with ice.

Next, I whipped together softened cream cheese with a pinch of salt and confectioner's sugar until it was combined and looked like frosting. To turn it into the whipped topping, I added half-and-half in three small parts, blending it thoroughly each time before adding more. Then I whipped the mixture into soft glossy peaks, just like I would when making whipped cream. I poured a few spoonfuls of sweet cream cheese foam on top of the cold brew, then finished the drink with a handful of chocolate puffs cereal.

If you're craving a little bit of Batuu at home, this copycat cold brew recipe is easy to put together and makes about three drinks' worth. Bright suns indeed.

Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge Copycat Cold Brew Black Caf

Courtesy of Jenny Kellerhals

Makes 3 drinks

Ingredients:

• 3 cups cold brew coffee

• 4 ounces softened cream cheese

• 5 tablespoons powdered sugar

• Pinch of salt

• ¼ cup half-and-half

• 6 ounces chocolate liqueur (optional)

• Chocolate puffs cereal (Cocoa Puffs, or similar)

Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl, mix together softened cream cheese, powdered sugar and a pinch of salt with a hand mixer or milk frother until completely combined.

2. Slowly pour in the half-and-half in three portions, fully incorporating the liquid into the cream cheese mixture each time.

3. Once all of the half-and-half has been mixed in, continue to whip the topping until soft peaks form and the cheese foam is glossy.

4. Fill glasses with cold brew coffee and stir in chocolate liqueur if using. Top with ice, leaving enough space at the top of the glass for the foam and cereal.

5. Spoon the sweet cheese foam over the coffee, and top with a handful or two of chocolate puffs cereal. Any leftover cheese foam can be wrapped and stored for a day or two in the refrigerator but might need to be re-whipped to bring it back to full volume.

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