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Pumpkin Spice Coffee
About pumpkin spice coffee and recipe ideas.
Published March 18, 2022
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Erik Hedlund
Coffee experts@The Coffee Lab
When it comes to coffee, nothing beats the classics. No matter how many new drinks become available for each season, timeless coffee recipes like pumpkin spice coffee are always going to be popular. And the best part is that the classic coffee recipes are usually quite easy to make, including the classic pumpkin spice coffee. Pumpkin spice coffee can be enjoyed at any time of the year but it’s definitely a firm favorite during the fall season when the leaves start falling and the weather starts to get colder.
What is Pumpkin Spice?
Pumpkin spice is a combination of flavors that first became popular as a seasonal, limited time coffee drink option. However, this sweet combination has been around for a long time and is used in dishes like pumpkin bread and pumpkin pie. Most of the time, it combines pumpkin puree with spices like cinnamon, ginger, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg. The spices used may vary depending on the recipe and some sugar is often added to sweeten.
What You Need to Make Pumpkin Spice Coffee
No pumpkin spice drink is complete without the coffee itself. You’ll need a shot of espresso to get started. You can prepare this in several different ways whether you use a home espresso machine, a pod machine that pulls espresso shots, or make it with a stovetop coffee maker like a Moka pot. You can use any coffee that you like, although medium roast blends tend to be the best option for combining with the pumpkin spice flavors. For a quick and easy option, you can get pumpkin spice coffee K cups.
Then, you’re going to need some milk. These days there are more options than ever before when it comes to choosing a milk for your coffee. You can go with regular dairy milk whether you decide on whole milk, or 1% fat milk. Bear in mind that if you want perfect latte milk for your pumpkin spice coffee, whole fat milk does tend to get better results. On the other hand, if you’re dairy-free, vegan, or just want to try something different, you can try a whole range of different plant-based milk options including almond milk, oat milk, coconut milk or soya milk which are among some of the most popular. If you prefer, you can use pumpkin spice coffee mate flavors instead.
Finally, consider what you are going to use to add the pumpkin spice flavoring. You can buy syrups designed to easily turn any coffee into a pumpkin spice coffee or you can use pumpkin puree. You can also use ground spices – one teaspoon of pumpkin spice including nutmeg, ginger, ground cinnamon and cloves work exceptionally well. To finish, you’ll need some whipped cream for the topping and a dusting of the pumpkin spice.
What to Serve with Pumpkin Spice Coffee
When it comes to what you enjoy to accompany your pumpkin spice coffee, there are just so many options to choose from. Carrot cake goes very well, or you might enjoy it with a bowl of apple pudding or a slice of freshly baked apple pie. Pecan pie or oatmeal cookies are also some great pairings for pumpkin spice coffee. Whatever you enjoy the most when you get together with family and friends during the fall will always go perfectly with pumpkin spice coffee.
Types of Coffee to Use
When it comes to choosing which coffee to use, you have several options. Regular coffee beans can be added to milk and pumpkin spice mix to make the best pumpkin spice coffee. You can also infuse pumpkin spice coffee beans by letting the coffee beans sit for some time with the various spices or grinding them together. For a quick and easy option, you can get pumpkin ground coffee or instant coffee flavors that are quick and easy to make. For organic pumpkin coffee, get fair trade pumpkin spice coffee that is certified organic.
Pumpkin Spice Coffee Recipe
Pumpkin spice coffee has a prep time of five minutes, and a cook time of fifteen minutes to make one serving. To make this drink, you’re going to need:
- 1oz espresso shot
- ¾ cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice with a little extra for garnish
- 2 tablespoons whipped cream
To make the pumpkin spice coffee:
- Take a small pot and heat the milk until steamy. Add your pumpkin spice and stir well. You can also froth the milk using a hand whip.
- Brew the espresso and pour it into a mug. Pour the pumpkin spice milk over the top.
- Finish with a topping of whipped cream and a dusting of pumpkin spice.
Ultimate Pumpkin Spice Coffee Recipe
For a sweeter and more indulgent drink, you might want to try this ultimate pumpkin spice coffee recipe. It has a prep time of ten minutes and a cook time of five minutes for one serving. You will need:
- ½ cup of dairy or non-dairy milk
- ½ cup coffee
- 2 tablespoons pumpkin sauce
- ½ tablespoon spices
- 1 tablespoon of honey
To make it:
- Heat the milk and add your spices and pumpkin sauce. You can use any spices you like. Nutmeg and cinnamon tend to go well with pumpkin spice coffee, or you can opt for milder spices like cardamom or ginger.
- Stir well. Let it stand to cool if you want to make iced coffee.
- Add the honey and coffee to the milk and blend all the ingredients.
- Pour into a cup to drink, or into a glass over ice if you want iced coffee.
Health Benefits of Pumpkin Spice
While drinking pumpkin spice in your coffee with lots of sugar and cream might not be the healthiest option, adding it to your coffee can have some health benefits. Pumpkin spice is very rich in lots of benefits that can improve your entire body health. Some of the main benefits of pumpkin spice include:
1. Soothe Toothache
If you have ever suffered with a toothache, you might have heard that applying clove oil to the affected area can help. There’s a scientific reason behind this: cloves are high in eugenol, which is a natural anesthetic. Eugenol has a lot of health benefits including killing bacteria, reducing pain, and even reducing inflammation and swelling from a sore tooth.
2. Reduce Muscle Soreness
When you enjoy pumpkin spice, you’re getting more cinnamon in your diet, which is a good thing as it’s packed with benefits. One of the main ones is that cinnamon is an excellent anti-inflammatory, so it’s great for reducing muscle soreness and stiffness throughout your body.
3. Improve Your Eyesight
When you were a child, your mom might have told you that eating carrots is good for your eyesight – but did you know that pumpkins are also good for your eye health too? As long as you are eating something that has real pumpkin in it, you will enjoy optical health benefits form the beta-carotene, which gives pumpkins their orange color and is famous for enhancing eyesight.
4. Anti-Bacterial Properties
One of the main ingredients in pumpkin spice mixes is nutmeg. Nutmeg extract is a very powerful anti-bacterial, with lots of uses for oral health in particular including preventing cavities and tooth decay.
5. Improve Circulation
Good circulation is essential for maintaining good body health, as it ensures that your body receives all the oxygen that it needs. Ginger is a key part of the pumpkin spice blend and getting plenty of ginger in your diet can really help your circulatory system. Ginger is well known for being great for blood flow as it’s a stimulant and an anti-inflammatory. Along with this, it can also be really good for helping with stomach upset and nausea.
6. Relieve a Cold
While fall is a beautiful season where pumpkin spice lattes are likely to be on the menu, it’s also the season for getting colds and flus. If you are suffering with a stuffy nose or the common cold, sipping on a hot, pumpkin spiced drink might be just what you need. Not only will the heat of the drink help to soothe your body, but the spices in the drink will help to clear out your sinuses and help you breathe easier with their strong flavors and anti-bacterial properties.
7. Boost Your Energy
You don’t have to put pumpkin spice in your coffee to get more energy - the caffeine will help with that. However, if you want to try and reduce the amount of caffeine that you are having, then you might want to think about switching to a low-caffeine or a decaffeinated drink with pumpkin spice flavoring instead. Spices like ginger and cloves have powerful stimulating properties that will help you feel energized and more alert, even without having caffeine.
More Pumpkin Spice Drinks to Try
No matter the season, pumpkin spice can be added to a huge range of drinks, and it doesn’t always have to be added to coffee either. If you want to try adding pumpkin spice to more drinks either for the health benefits of simply because you like the taste, there are plenty of great options to consider including pumpkin spice cocktails and milkshakes.
While it’s a popular drink for fall, you can enjoy pumpkin spice in your coffee at any time of year.
About the author
Erik Hedlund
With Era of We and The Coffee Lab, I hope to share knowledge, increase the value of coffee – and secure the future of coffee.
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