Pumpkin Spice Latte {Made with Real Pumpkin!}

If you’re like me then you have probably had your fair share of Pumpkin Spice Lattes over the years at your favorite coffee shop. Starbucks gets the credit for introducing me to one and I’ve heard it’s their most popular seasonal drink.

This year though as I try to curb my sugar consumption, and save some money, my coffee shop visits are reserved for special date nights. Not one to go without some of my favorite coffee shop inspired drinks, I went in search of some easy recipes I could make at home.

In all honesty, most mornings my coffee consists of a little bit of half and half with a teeny little drip of pure vanilla.

To get in the festive mood, I wanted to learn to make my own pumpkin spiced creation that would be warm and comforting, as well as delicious.

[clickToTweet tweet=”Just in time for #fall, this DIY #pumpkin spice latte is warm, comforting & delicious! #PSL” quote=”Just in time for fall, this DIY pumpkin spice latte is warm, comforting & delicious!”]

Enter my Pumpkin Spiced Latte {Made with Real Pumpkin}.

Last year the internet exploded when a popular real food blogger “exposed” Starbucks for not using real pumpkin puree in their drinks (even though it was clearly called Pumpkin Spice). I actually love pumpkin puree, it’s delicious when incorporated in both savory and sweet dishes and it’s pretty healthy too (minus the sugar you add to sweeten it up!).

So the thought of adding real pumpkin puree to my own version of a Pumpkin Spiced Latte sounded like a no-brainer to me.

Here’s my disclaimer… this will NOT taste like the sugary sweet delicious Pumpkin Spiced Latte you know and love from Starbucks or other coffee shop. This isn’t a copycat recipe, instead it’s an alternative to those who really don’t love super sweet beverages.

I’m not one to add any sugar to my coffee at all, a little creamer is all I need, so I knew I wouldn’t really enjoy this if it was too sweet. I use a teeny bit of Stevia but some may prefer to add more to sweeten it up a bit. I personally would rather use a little whipped cream instead of pure sugar, but that’s just my two cents.

If you like your coffee and lattes to be sweeter then you will probably want to use more sugar than I am recommending.

DIY Pumpkin Spice Latte

Here’s What You Need:

freshly brewed coffee

unsweetened almond milk

pumpkin puree

sugar orStevia

pumpkin pie spice (or ground cinnamon and ginger)

pure vanilla extract

whipped cream**

(**I usually make my own by whipping together heavy whipping cream with a little bit of sugar in my stand mixer. It’s super easy to make and tastes delicious. Plus it doesn’t have a lot of extra ingredients that store bought varieties may have. I love this whip cream dispenser.)

Here’s What You Do:

Step One: In a sauce pan over medium-low heat, combine the coffee, pumpkin, almond milk, sugar, spices and vanilla. Use a spoon to stir well. The pumpkin will be thick, but will cook down in the heat.

Step Two: Heat until the mixture is very hot and thoroughly combined.

Step Three: Carefully pour the mixture into two large mugs. Top with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon and serve hot.

On warmer days, because let’s face it fall is notorious for the temperatures going up and down, you can serve over ice for an Iced Pumpkin Spice Latte, or even blend together with ice in a heavy duty blender (I love my Ninja) for a Pumpkin Spice Frappe.

To make your perfect fall morning complete, don’t forget to serve with a nice big slice of pumpkin bread or other favorite fall treat!

Enjoy!

Coffee mug from Tickled Deal Boutique that I scored as a daily deal on here.