Fall Drinks: Pumpkin Spice Latte & Pumpkin Milk

Fall is finally here and it’s my favorite season. Two of my favorite things about fall are pumpkin and pumpkin spice latte.

When fall rolls around the corner, I am on a hunt for a good tasting pumpkin spice latte. Most of the pumpkin spice lattes that I could find at coffee shops such as Starbucks are loaded with sugar and artificial taste of pumpkin. I didn’t like the thought that I drinking something unhealthy, so I was on a mission to make the perfect homemade cup of pumpkin spice latte.

I began my journey by finding the perfect pumpkin spice latte recipe online. Most of the recipes were similar, which included various ratios of milk, pumpkin spice, vanilla, sugar, pumpkin puree, and coffee. My goal was to create the perfect ratio to taste all the pumpkin, spice, and coffee flavors.

When I first experimented in the kitchen, the recipe told me to heat the milk and pumpkin over the stove while whisking them together, and then mix in the coffee. After following the recipe, the pumpkin spice latte tasted delicious except there was something wrong with the texture. First, I felt the unpleasant sandy texture of the pumpkin spice in my mouth. Later, as I drank till the last sips at the bottom of the cup, I gagged over the chunky pumpkin puree. It settled at the bottom of the cup over time. After that experience, my new goal was to create a smooth texture.

Through researching a little more and playing around in the kitchen, I solved my two problems. To eliminate the sandy texture, I put the pumpkin spices with my coffee grinds before I brewed my coffee. The main secret to a perfect cup of latte is a blender. This solved my problem of pumpkin puree chunks settling at the bottom of the cup.

Not only did I have a smooth cup of latte, it became foamy just like the coffee shops. Finally, I can call myself a barista because I can make a perfect and healthy cup of pumpkin spice latte, just the way I like it.

I believe that pumpkin can be enjoyed by all ages, adults and kids. I created pumpkin spice latte and pumpkin milk recipes, so the whole family can taste the fall flavors. I hope these recipes will warm your family and your hearts.

Pumpkin Spice Latte Recipe

Yields 2 cups of pumpkin spice lattes

Ingredients:

• 2-4 tablespoons of pumpkin puree from a can (I like more pumpkin flavor, so I used 4 tablespoons pumpkin)
• 1 cups of milk
• 1 cups of brewed coffee
• ½ teaspoon of pumpkin spice
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• Optional: honey or sugar for sweetness

Instructions:

1. Pour milk in a small pot over medium heat. Mix in pumpkin puree and vanilla in the pot with milk. Add sugar or honey if you’d like. Whisk it together, so it’s warm.
2. Put pumpkin spice with coffee grinds. Brew the coffee to the way you like it.
3. Pour the mixture from the pot and coffee into a blender.
4. Blend the mixture together. Be careful while blending. If you have a blender without ventilation at the top, leave a little crack at the top, so your blender will not shatter due to the heat of mixture.
5. Pour into a cup and enjoy.

Fall Drinks for the Whole Family: Pumpkin Spice Latte & Pumpkin Milk Recipes

Yields 2 cups of pumpkin spice latte and 2 cups of pumpkin milk for a family of 4

Ingredients:

• 4-8 tablespoons of pumpkin puree from a can (I like more pumpkin flavor, so I used 4 tablespoons pumpkin)
• 2 cups of milk
• 1 cups of brewed coffee
• ½ teaspoon of pumpkin spice
• 2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• Optional: honey or sugar for sweetness

Instructions for Pumpkin Milk:

1. Pour milk in a small pot over medium heat. Mix in pumpkin puree and vanilla in the pot with milk. Add sugar or honey if you’d like. Whisk it together, so it’s warm.
2. Pour mixture into blender.
3. Blend the mixture together. Be careful while blending. If you have a blender without ventilation at the top, leave a little crack at the top, so your blender will not shatter due to the heat of mixture.
4. Pour the pumpkin milk into 2 cups.

Instructions for Pumpkin Spice Latte:

1. Pour the pumpkin milk from the above recipe into 2 separate cups.
2. Put pumpkin spice with coffee grinds. Brew the coffee to the way you like it.
3. Pour the coffee in the cups with pumpkin milk.