How to make pumpkin spice mix – and what to do with it

Rather than spending a fortune on ready-made spice blends, make your own for a fraction of the price and next to no effort. Not just for lattes, you can use this seasonal mix in everything from pies to cakes and hot chocolate.

By Fliss Freeborn

It was 20 years ago, in the autumn of 2003, that a well-known coffee shop chain first added pumpkin spice lattes (fondly known these days as PSLs) to the menu at some of its cafés. Safe to say they went down a storm, soon becoming an autumnal staple in coffee shops all over the world.

The cult drink has since spawned an entire pumpkin spice pop-culture movement, becoming a symbol of the changing seasons and of celebrating, rather than lamenting, the return of colder, cosier months.

Full disclosure: I’m not much of a coffee drinker. That said, my first PSL experience at the age of 16 sparked a newfound appreciation for pumpkin-spiced food and drink. As well as classic pumpkin pie, I’m talking spiced cookies, hot chocolate, cakes and all kinds of desserts.

Why make your own spice blend?

There’s nothing that can get me into the autumnal spirit quite like the warming aromas of a pumpkin spice blend. But barista-made PSLs and similarly flavoured shop-bought treats can come with hefty price tags, while the core spices you’ll need can be picked up cheaply from any supermarket.

That’s not the only reason I’m urging to you make your own spice mix, though. There’s also the fact that you can tailor it to your preferences, depending on your taste and what you’re using it for (more on that soon).

It also promises freshness, especially if you toast and grind whole spices. The compounds which give the spices their notable characteristics deteriorate over time, meaning a large batch of premade spice could well lose its oomph before you finish it.

Finding the right pumpkin spice flavours

While, these days, you will find real pumpkin among the ingredients in your PSL, a pumpkin spice blend doesn’t usually contain the squash it’s named for. Rather, it’s about those kinds of warming, aromatic spices that you’d usually find paired with it in a sweet winter pie.

Pumpkin spice is not a set entity and nor should it be – part of the joy is creating your own blend with your favourite elements. That said, there are two particular ingredients that usually form the backbone of the flavour profile: cinnamon and nutmeg.

My basic mix involves both, alongside cloves (which I think give a Christmassy edge) and cardamom, with its perfumed, citrussy brightness. However, I’ve seen pumpkin spice mixes containing everything from ginger and allspice to black pepper, coriander seed and mace.

I like to play about with the blend depending on what I’m making. For example, if I’m working with subtle flavours, like pumpkin itself or an otherwise plain cheesecake or ice cream, the star of the show becomes the spice mix, so I go to town on variety. I might add coriander seed for a subtle orangey note, ginger for an earthy kick, or black pepper for a fruity warmth not often found in sweeter dishes. I’m also prone to adding a little bit of star anise, for a slightly left-field whisper of liquorice.

On the other hand, to add pumpkin spice warmth to something which already has a lot of flavour – like a coffee-themed dessert or perhaps something with chocolate, vanilla or orange – then sticking with a simplified spice mix is definitely the way to go, as the more subtle flavours are easily lost when there’s a lot going on.

How to use your pumpkin spice blend

If you’re not into grinding and toasting spices yourself, you can get great flavours out of ready-ground spices. The trick is to blend them with some sort of fat or oil so that the flavour compounds are carried better. For example, when making a pumpkin spice cake or cookies, make sure either to melt or whip the butter with the spices first. A cheesecake base will be even more amazing if you melt the butter for the biscuits with your pumpkin spice mix, and if you’re making a classic pumpkin pie, rub some of the spices into the pastry as well as including them in the filling.

As always, adding a pinch of salt to whatever you use your spice mix for will make all those amazing flavours sing even louder.

Another trick is making cafetiere coffee with your pumpkin spice blend mixed into the ground beans. This way, you can enjoy a little bit of autumnal flavour even if you don’t have milk in your cup of Joe.

My go-to spiced drink, though, is hot chocolate made with real dark chocolate melted into cream and milk that’s been simmered with a basic pumpkin spice blend. (If you wanted to add a splash of spiced rum here, you’d be on the right track to autumnal utopia.)

My basic pumpkin spice mix

My recipe for pumpkin spice mix, using ready-ground spices, makes enough for one large pumpkin cheesecake. Combine 4 teaspoons cinnamon, 1 scant teaspoon nutmeg (use ½ if freshly grated), ⅓ teaspoon ground cloves and ½ teaspoon ground cardamom. Optional extras here are 1 teaspoon ground ginger (very Christmassy), ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper and ½ teaspoon ground coriander. Store in a jar.

My whole-spice blend

When making pumpkin spice I like to toast and grind everything myself. You don’t have to, but it does give a much more pronounced flavour.

A word of warning though: you’ll need to use slightly less if you’re toasting and grinding yourself, as the oils are much more prominent so flavours punchier. Be especially careful with already-powerful spices like clove and nutmeg.

I tend to make a small batch of freshly ground spice mix at a time for freshness. Here’s my recipe – it makes enough to half-fill a standard spice jar, but you only need a small amount for a latte and I’d recommend making this blend fresh each time for baking, rather than storing it.

Toast 4 short cinnamon sticks, ¼–⅓ tsp freshly grated nutmeg, 4 cloves and 8 cardamom pods in a dry frying pan until fragrant. (Be extremely careful not to burn any of them as this will make your spice mix bitter.) Leave to cool on a plate for 5 minutes then split the cardamom pods open to reveal the seeds (discard the casing or use in tea), and blend the spices in a spice grinder or high-powered blender, or crush them in a pestle and mortar.

Optional extras to include in that recipe, should the mood take you, are 8 black peppercorns, 1 star anise and ½ teaspoon coriander seed – all toasted and ground as above.

Stored in an airtight container, this will stay fresh for around two weeks.

Now make:

• Curried pumpkin soup
• Cinnamon buns
• Hot buttered apple juice
• Cinnamon apple overnight oats with date butter

Originally published October 2023