While discussing what drink to do this month, we ran into an issue. Fred strongly advocated for homemade pumpkin spice lattes, but then discovered that Pez had never tasted one. We did some research and can now proudly teach you how to make your own pumpkin spice latte (which is, in our opinion, better than Starbucks’).

Before we make pumpkin spice latte, we need some pumpkin pie spice. You can either buy the spice (which is pretty pricey and in general not worth it), or, like we did, you can make your own.

Recipe (inspired by The Sisters Café): Pumpkin Pie Spice Blend

Ingredients:

2 tbsp cinnamon

1 tbsp ginger

1 1/2 tsp nutmeg (yes, we know you should always use fresh nutmeg, but we had a lot of pre-ground nutmeg on hand.)

1 tsp cloves

Mix everything in a small bowl. Adjust to your palette if needed.

Let’s get started on the latte.

Recipe (inspired by Laura in the Kitchen): Pumpkin Spice Latte

Notes:

Difficulty: Very easy

Length: 5 minutes at most

Keep in mind: Don’t burn the milk. This drink is nearly addictive.

Why we made it: It was too expensive at Starbucks.

Why you should make it: It’s a far cheaper, arguably more delicious version.

Ingredients:

1 cup of Whole Milk

¼ tsp of Vanilla Extract (we just put “some”)

1 tbsp of Sugar, or more if desired

½ tsp of Pumpkin Pie Spice

¼ cup of Strong Brewed Coffee or Espresso, hot

Whipped Cream (heavily recommended)

Equipment:

Blender or Saucepan (or any sort of pan) & whisk

A satisfyingly large mug

Yes, that’s right. There’s no pumpkin in a pumpkin spice latte. Some people put pumpkin puree, but that adds little flavor and ruins the texture. “Pumpkin pie spice” refers to the blend of spices traditionally associated with pumpkin pie, so that’s everything besides the pumpkin.

Your life has been a lie. It’s okay—ours have been too.

We used a skillet (we didn’t have a saucepan on hand, oops). Add the milk, sugar, and pumpkin pie spice, and stir continuously for about 1 minute or until it is hot, but not boiling.

If you desire a frothy texture, whip out your blender and pour in the hot milk, sugar, and pumpkin pie spice, and blend for about a minute or until your desired texture is obtained. We’re not fans of the texture, so we just poured it into our mug and whisked it a bit with a half-moon whisk.

Pour the milk mixture into your satisfyingly large mug and add vanilla extract.

Add the coffee and stir.

Suffocate with whipped cream if you so desire.

Garnish with extra pumpkin pie spice blend just to make it fancier.

Have fun consuming!

“In heaven, after antipasti, the first course will be pasta.”

-Steve Albini, musician.