Don’t you just love the vibes of hanging out in a Starbucks cafe? I certainly do and I am not even a huge coffee fan. Obviously with Christmas just around the corner, things get more interesting at Starbucks. There’s Santa’s Belt-vet Cake & Rudolph’s Honey Cake and not to forget, the Christmas tree shaped brownies too. Truthfully, the cakes taste only average, but somehow the great atmosphere makes up for it. My nieces seem to have a great time as well at our hang out sessions there.
Talking about Starbucks reminded me of Pumpkin Spice Latte (PSL), aka the popular drink during Christmas season. I was curious as to whether there are real pumpkin puree in PSL or it’s just the Pumpkin spice? I can’t really taste the pumpkin to be honest, so I did my own research and found out that initially there were NO pumpkin in Starbucks’s PSL till 2015, after which they eventually started to incorporate some pumpkin puree in their PSL. Never too late Starbucks however you might want to add more.
I still feel that you barely get to taste the pumpkin in their PSL. It is mostly the Pumpkin spice that gives it the PSL vibes. This is why the homemade version is actually a better option. Not only it is cheaper, but you can also decide as to how much pumpkin you want in your PSL. I am definitely a Pumpy-umpy-umpkin kinda person. I hope you read that line with the cupcake rhythmic tune. Read: Cupcake song. If you do not know what I am talking about, move on please.
PSL can be served cold too, over some ice. Hot or cold, this Pumpkin Spice Latte is creamy, with the right amount of sweet and spice. I was drinking a mug of this with all the frills (Read: in a Christmas mug, topped with whipped cream) and it felt really festive. It never snows in Singapore but with every sip of this PSL, I somehow felt the winter vibes. Might sound weird for some of you but hey, that is how I roll.
Although we will never freeze to death in Singapore (Unless you accidentally locked yourself in an ice room/freezer), the weather is getting a bit colder as it is starting to rain quite frequently. This makes the perfect drink for cold nights even for a non coffee drinker like me.
- 2 cups milk (dairy or non-dairy)
- 2 tablespoons pumpkin puree
- 2 tbsp condensed milk (optional)
- 1-3 tbsp sugar (I used 1 level tbsp of brown sugar and 1 level tbsp of white sugar. Use less if you are using the condensed milk)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, plus more for serving
- ½ cup strong hot coffee
- Whipped cream, for serving
- Add milk, pumpkin puree, and sugar to a saucepan over medium heat.
- Heat until hot, but do not boil.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in the condensed milk, pumpkin pie spice, and the coffee.
- Divide the mixture between two mugs and top with whipped cream and a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice.
I love pumpking spice latte…. thanks maya