I’ve been eating pumpkin before pumpkin was cool. Every single morning for breakfast my senior year of college I ate a bowl of oatmeal with a swirl of pumpkin and plain yogurt. I called it “pumpkin slop” because that’s what it looked like. Pumpkin slop + a coffee with a splash of Bailey’s to take the edge off. That’s what I’m talkin about. (that’s only semi-true)

Now that I’m a real grown up, I use regular coffee to take the edge off. I’m always mixing up my morning joe routine because I get really coffee ADD – like, for a while I was REALLY into Bulletproof coffee and was putting grass-fed butter and MCT oil in my coffee everyday. Then I suddenly decided I just couldn’t couldn’t go another day drinking Bulletproof coffee. Same thing happened with coconut lattes and recently, simple coffee and cream.  Pumpkin season couldn’t come soon enough.

I’ve actually never been a huge fan of the Starbuck’s PSL because it has a little too much spice for me and I really can’t justify drinking that much pure sugar in the morning. Sure, let me set my metabolic tone for day with a bucket of pumpkin syrup.

Consuming that much sugar at any point in the day will put your blood sugar on a roller coaster. Combined with caffeine, you’ll experience a massive crash a couple hours after drinking one of those things. I have absolutely no time for a massive crash. 

So yesterday morning I was really feeling the holiday spirit and I decided to whip up my own pumpkin latte. Lattes are espresso + milk, so I started there. I don’t have an espresso machine, so I just made a little triple strength coffee and called it a day. And I went for coconut because #HealthyFat.

Add a little pumpkin, pumpkin spice, and vanilla….voila! Easy peasy. This drink is creamy, smooth and has just the right balance of spice. It gives you that warm and fuzzy feeling that makes you want to pull out your favorite Anthropologie sweater and shout, “I LOVE FALL!”

This can actually be made sans coffee/espresso for a bedtime snack.

Final note: I’ve seen several pumpkin latte recipes that suggest mixing up a big batch and drinking it all week. This appeals to me. I made a batch yesterday and poured myself a cup today. It worked, but the jug of latte needed to be shook up as all of the spices had settled on the bottom. It also helped to run my portion through a blender again to really mix up the spices [and to get that froth action]. 

Pumpkin Spice Latte

Author: Megan Kober, RDN, LD

Serves: 1

A simple pumpkin latte that’s dairy- and gluten-free and will be sure to get you in the mood for fall, sweaters and lazy mornings.

Ingredients

• 1/4 c triple strength coffee

• 3/4 c unsweetened coconut or almond milk

• 1/4 c coconut cream [see recipe]

• 1 Tbsp acacia fiber [optional – but blends right in]

• 2 Tbsp pumpkin puree

• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

• 1/2 tsp vanilla

• 2 packets stevia

Instructions

1. For coconut cream, open a can of full fat coconut milk and pour cream off the top. Do not shake can before opening. Store the remainder of the coconut cream in tupperware in the refridgerator. The cream will solidify, but may still be used for future latte or cream for your coffee.

2. Brew coffee.

3. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend for 10 seconds.

4. Heat in the microwave for 1 minute. Blend again, if more froth is desired.

Notes: Skip the caffeine at night for a warm, coconutty, pumpkiny bedtime snack. Use in the morning at breakfast as a fat, and balance it with a side of eggs and veggies.