Today, though, is National Pumpkin Spice Day. While that may indeed sound random and silly to some, the nostalgic smell and taste of pumpkin spice is something that plenty of people love to savor. In fact, as the temperature dips, pumpkin spice feels like the natural way to begin October, the first full month of fall. It’s also a nice way to hold you over until October 26, National Pumpkin Day.
Everyone has heard of pumpkin spice, but what exactly is it? Well, you should know the name is a slight misnomer: Most pumpkin spice doesn’t contain any actual pumpkin. Instead, it’s a blend of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves and allspice that one typically uses when making pumpkin pie.
The spice is quite versatile and can be used to give a little autumnal kick to all manner of foods—dust it on waffles, over cinnamon rolls, on oatmeal. And don’t forget pumpkin pie: If you’re making a homemade pie, you can use it with the your pureed pumpkin filling mix. Or, if you’re going with a store-bought pie, add a little whipped cream on top and some dashes of spice.
You can buy pumpkin spice blend, sometimes sold as “pumpkin pie spice” at most groceries stores (Trader Joe’s version is popular), or you can make a batch yourself.
For your own pumpkin spice flavoring to sprinkle on your favorite holiday creations, simply mix the ingredients below and store in an air-tight container. (Remember this is a base recipe, so adjust away, as these are distinct and strong spices that will hit taste buds differently.)
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger1 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg1 teaspoon ground allspice1 teaspoon ground cloves
Of course, when many people hear “pumpkin spice,” they immediately associate the words with Starbucks. The ubiquitous chain introduced mainstream coffee drinkers to the concept of pumpkin-flavoring with spice lattes in 2003.
Like so many of the spice blends, the latte at first didn’t contain any pumpkin at all. According to AdWeek, it was pressure from food blogger Vani Hari, aka “Food Babe,” for the company to reveal its recipe, and the resulting fallout from it being pumpkin-less, that led to a recipe change. Now, the latte’s syrup includes pumpkin puree, which is part of what gets people lining up outside Starbucks on chilly mornings.
After Starbucks’ success with its pumpkin spice latte, endless coffee shops began offering their take on the drink. Erica Lea, a popular food writer and photographer who shares her original recipes on the health food blog Buttered Side Up, offers an organic version of the syrup that’s easy enough to make at home. She generously allowed us to share her recipes below for this story:
Organic Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup. Recipe by Erica Lea | 10 minutes | Serves 10-12
Ingredients: ½ cup water ½ cup organic rapadura 2 tablespoons organic canned pumpkin puree 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice 1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract
Directions: Place the water, rapadura, pumpkin puree, and pumpkin pie spice in a small pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Strain the syrup through a double layer of cheesecloth or butter muslin. Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.
Erica’s blog also walks you through how to make a perfect organic latte:
Pumpkin Spice Latte Recipe. Recipe by Erica Lea | 10 minutes | Serves 1
Ingredients: 3-4 teaspoons organic pumpkin spice syrup 1 shot organic espresso (or 1 ounce very strong coffee) ¼ cup grass-fed/organic whole milk ¼ cup grass-fed/organic heavy cream
Directions: Place the syrup and espresso in a single-sized coffee cup (8 oz.) Warm the milk and cream to between 140 and 160 degrees F (60-70 C). Froth the milk/cream. Pour the frothed milk into your cup with the syrup and espresso.
