I saw an orange leaf on a tree. I did, I swear! It was there. I promise. Not that I think I’m jumping the gun on this one or anything, because let’s face it September = Fall. I even got a fall pamphlet from Bath and Body Works in the mail which reminded me of all the wonderful fall smells, like freshly baked apple pie and pumpkin cream cheese quick bread. I can’t wait to begin baking fall goodies but before anything exceptional happens I need my coffee. And just in case you didn’t know, I take my coffee very seriously!
Fall just isn’t fall without Pumpkin Spice coffee and lattes aka happiness in a Cup-O-Joe! I love me some cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg but hate me some nasty ingredients used by many popular companies who produce Pumpkin Spice things…. like Coffee Mate, and that other really popular company that I’m never calling out because I kind of like them. You know who I’m talking about, right? Right. I knew you would!
That company, you know, the one I’m not calling out… they use high fructose corn syrup and caramel coloring in their Pumpkin Spice drinks and I’m not too fond of that. As much as it pains me, I won’t be partaking in their festive drinks because I have will power (ok sort of) so I’m making my own coffee syrup to enjoy in my delicious coffees (cold brewed preferred!) and guess what? There is no nastiness in my version, and it is made with just a few pantry staples. I feel like I just won the Pumpkin Spice lottery or something! I kind of did though, let’s be honest!
As for Coffee Mate and the like, I CAN’T EVEN. Those non-dairy creamer companies deserve to go out of business today for using the horrible ingredients they use, mainly partially hydrogenated soybean and cottonseed oil. Can someone say the WORST product on earth? I mean seriously, the only reason to make a product like that is just to kill people, but I’m no conspiracy theorist so I’ll leave it at that. Just please, do your health a favor and stay away from that crap!
When I realized just how easy it was to make my own Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup I kind of cried on the inside about all of the money I have spent at that place that I kind of like. At $3.87 a pop, you could almost go broke buying a few drinks, not to mention all the receipts you might have to hide from your spouse! There are also 52 grams of sugar in their grande Pumpkin Spice latte and that my friends is what I would call a boat load. I understand the desire to indulge once in a while but 52 grams of sugar in something you could easily down in less than 5 minutes is kind of silly. I’d rather just drink a plain coffee and then go have an ice cream cone. Obviously that would only happen on a day I ate a salad for dinner though! 😉
What is important to remember about Pumpkin Spice stuff is that it isn’t about the pumpkin, its about the spice. So no, there is NOT pumpkin in this recipe. Forgive me if I’m wrong but pumpkin puree in coffee just doesn’t sound appealing. The spice though… that is where it is at!
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Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup
By August 30, 2014
Published:I saw an orange leaf on a tree. I did, I swear! It was there. I promise. Not that I think I'm jumping the gun on this one or …
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup raw cane sugar or coconut palm sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- pinch nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Allow sugar to completely dissolve, transfer to a heat safe container, and enjoy in your favorite coffees and lattes.
Gina L
How long do you think this will keep in the fridge? A week? Just curious. Sounds yummy and I am making some this weekend. Thanks so much!
Gina
Dana
Great question Gina, I was meaning to put this information on the post and somehow it slipped my mind. The syrup doesn’t really need to be refrigerated, I’m sure it wouldn’t hurt if you did though. I’ve kept syrups for about 1-2 weeks. You could probably stretch it a little longer as well 🙂 Enjoy!
Thalia @ butter and brioche
I definitely need to make this syrup.. I always just usually use store bought syrup to sweeten my morning coffee or tea which is so unhealthy. Thanks for the great recipe and inspiration!
Marci Mayfield
Dana, this is a fantastic blog that I intend on visiting more often for your awesome recipes!! I enjoy *that place* probably too much as well, haha. Great job on your site! Ps…I hope you don’t use those bath&body works products. lol They are SO toxic and harmful for your body.
Dana
Thanks Marci! 🙂 Funny you should mention those products because my husband thinks I’m crazy for telling him every time he goes to the store “Don’t buy regular hand soap, it has toxic chemicals in it!!” I love the smells of those products, but no I don’t use them because they give me a headache. When I started breastfeeding I pretty much switched out all of my toxic beauty products (shampoo, deodorant, even toothpaste!) for more natural stuff. It’s been working out pretty good so far. Glad someone else feels the same about that crap, even though I do love the smells of the candles and walking by the store!