I gave in to the pumpkin spice latte (or PSL as the cool kids say) hype early this year. A week and a half ago, I was about to order my typical boring cold brew at my local Dunkin drive thru, when suddenly I became mesmerized with the pumpkin spice latte advertisement beside the drive thru menu. At literally the last second, I decided I needed a pumpkin beverage right then and there. Their “Proud to Pumpkin” advertising is pretty gosh darn powerful it seems. So naturally, I blurted out that I wanted a pumpkin cold brew (with almond milk) instead of my usual bland cold brew drink.

It was a sweltering day with temperatures topping 90 degrees, so getting a cold pumpkin cold brew made so much more sense than the steaming PSL beverage. Once I took a sip, I was instantly blown away. The warm, Fall and spicy pumpkin flavors are so nostalgic and satisfying. However, the pumpkin cold brew ingredients are not so satisfying! A medium, black Dunkin pumpkin cold brew alone has 29 grams of added sugar! That’s an insane amount of sugar for one beverage without even adding any creamer or plant-based milk.

After reading the Dunkin pumpkin cold brew ingredients, I was motivated to devise an equally delicious at-home pumpkin cold brew recipe without the excess amount of sugar. And, after some experimenting, I came up with a rival pumpkin cold brew recipe with only 2 grams of added sugar … that is 27 grams less than the Dunkin black pumpkin cold brew. Plus, my recipe has zero cane sugar!

The History of Pumpkin Spice Beverages

Before, we get to the recipe, I thought it would be interesting to quickly explore how pumpkin spice coffee beverages became so popular. It’s funny how pumpkin pie can be so divisive, but almost everybody seems to love pumpkin spice coffees and cold brews.

I bet you won’t be surprised to learn that pumpkin spice lattes were the brainchild of product managers at Starbucks looking for the next best seasonal coffee drink in the early 2000’s. But, did you know that:

• Starbucks first rolled out the pumpkin spice latte on a limited basis in 2003 to select stores in Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada, and Washington, D.C. only.
• After the amazing success of the test roll-out, pumpkin spice lattes rolled out to the entire U.S. Starbucks stores in 2004.
• Starbucks also sells pumpkin cold brew beverages and pumpkin treats in its stores as well as a whole line of pumpkin spice products in grocery stores (including ground coffee, bottled coffee, creamer and K cups).
• According to Starbucks, pumpkin spice lattes remain their top-selling seasonal beverage of all time.

Source: Bustle

While Starbucks was definitely the trendsetter when it comes to pumpkin spice lattes and other pumpkin beverages, Dunkin and other coffee chains and local cafes were not far behind. In fact, Dunkin’s pumpkin spice lattes and pumpkin cold brews were available for purchase this year a whole 13 days before Starbucks released its Fall coffee menu.

A Healthier Pumpkin Cold Brew Recipe

While you might have found the pumpkin spice coffee history lesson interesting, the real treat is this delicious at-home pumpkin cold brew recipe. This extremely easy to make cold brew is not only low in sugar and calories, it will also save you so much money throughout the Fall season. (Those pumpkin cold brews or pumpkin spice lattes at Starbucks or Dunkin can really add up!)

Pumpkin Cold Brew Ingredients

The ingredient list is super simple:

• 12 ounces of unsweetened cold brew coffee
  • You can either make your own or buy pre-made unsweetened cold brew at the store. I usually buy a large container of what is on sale – and this week it was Stok Un-sweet Bold & Smooth Cold Brew.
• 2-3 tablespoons of Laird’s Cinnamon Superfood Creamer
  • Laird makes the cleanest non-dairy creamers around. This cinnamon creamer is delicious, low in sugar (only 2 grams of coconut sugar, low in calories (20 calories) and features functional mushroom extracts. It also pares perfectly with the pumpkin spices. (I am also a big fan of their hot chocolate, green powder and other products.)
• 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice
• Optional ingredients:
  • Ice
  • 2 teaspoons of vanilla collagen powder

Instructions

1. Add 12 ounces of cold brew to a large cup.
2. Add the tablespoons of Laird’s Cinnamon Superfood Creamer. You can always add a little more if you like it creamier. (Add the collagen powder if applicable.)
3. Add the teaspoon of the pumpkin spice.
4. Use a hand/immersion blender to blend the ingredients for 10-15 seconds. If you don’t have a handheld blender, you can add the cold brew and ingredients to a traditional blender for a few seconds.
5. Add some ice if preferred and enjoy your pumpkin cold brew!

The combination of a bold cold brew with the cinnamon superfood creamer and the pumpkin pie spice makes this recipe rival any coffee shop pumpkin cold brew, minus the excess sugar, chemicals and calories!

BetterAllTheThyme