Pumpkin Spice Latte – The Bittersweet Winter Drink

It’s interesting how we got preoccupied with the idea of seasonal coffee flavours. It is as if a rule is engraved on the backside of our reusable coffee cups. We want them to be filled with pumpkin spice latte when the winter hits.

So we rush to our local coffee shop, and we queue up for the drink. Then we share the photos on the internet so that everybody knows it’s high time for spice lattes! And it’s perfectly fine to do so. But we also need to make sure that we know how to treat ourselves with a bittersweet coffee-pumpkin flavour. This just in case coffee shops run out of squash by the end of the week.

The main ingredients for your Pumpkin Spice Latte

We have to learn how to make it at home. It is not a quick recipe but definitely worth a go. Firstly, you will need some important ingredients:

• Milk – use classic “cow juice”, store-bought coconut, almond, soy milk, or homemade oat milk, for instance.
• Sugar – use regular table sugar, brown sugar, or any sort of syrup.
• Coffee – this talk can get very long, so just make the drink the way you like it. Aim for the strong espresso, as it will be diluted with quite a lot of milk.
• Spice blend – the most reasonable way is to buy the pumpkin pie mix. However, you might as well try to find one on the web or – maybe even easier – use the recipe below. You can play around if you will.
• Pumpkin puree – we see no sin in using a canned pumpkin pie mix. It is so straightforward and has a spice blend. But you need to try making your own golden autumn puree.

Get your delicate golden puree

1. Actually, all you’ll have to do is to bake the pieces of squash until tender.
2. Then process them with salt until smooth in a blender. No matter which way you go, have in mind that you can elevate the pumpkin flavour to a higher level.
3. Sauté the puree in a pan until extra liquid. This way it evaporates, and the flavour gets concentrated. This intensification step is not required. But sometimes, it is needed if the pumpkin flavour is duller than you want.

Either you use the store-bought spice or you aim for the homemade stuff. It’s pretty simple, you just need:

• 4 tbsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• 1½ tsp ground allspice
• 1½ tsp ground clove
• 2 tsp ground ginger

Mix everything together and grind finely in a mortar – and you’re done!

Now, create your bittersweet drink

The recipe for the final drink itself (2 mugs) is quite easy:

• 450 ml milk
• 2 tbsp pumpkin puree
• 2-3 tbsp (vanilla) sugar
• 100 ml coffee, freshly brewed
• ½ tsp pumpkin spice

1. Start by heating 450 ml of milk.
2. Add 2 tbsp of pumpkin puree and 2-3 tbsp of sugar.
3. Heat but don’t boil, and then remove from the heat.
4. Add 100 ml of freshly brewed coffee and ½ tsp of pumpkin spice. This, if you got the extra way for your own golden puree.
5. Blend with some vanilla extract. This optional ingredient you might find very attractive.
6. Divide the mixture between two mugs. Then garnish with some whipped cream on top and some pumpkin seeds with cinnamon. This is another optional but highly recommended ingredient. It will make your drinks tastier and more caloric at the same time.