Pumpkin Spice Latte
September 16, 2011 | Print | E-mail | Filed under coffee, espresso, pumpkin
Note: This post was originally published on September 1st, 2009. I have since revised the recipe and instructions for a much easier-to-make syrup that is even better than the original version. I hope you enjoy the syrup, and I hope you enjoy saving money on pumpkin spice lattes!
As far as I’m concerned, as soon as September 1st hits, it’s fall. I absolutely love fall. The leaves changing, the cool, crisp air, jeans & hoodies, and of course, the wonderful flavors of fall, including pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks. However, while I love the coffee, I do NOT love shelling out almost $5 per latte. So, I set out to make my own pumpkin spice syrup. I tried it in a latte I made using my espresso machine at home, and I really couldn’t tell the difference between mine and the “real” ones from Starbucks. It was like tasting pure autumn comfort – try it and see!
- 1 cup water
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 Tbsp pumpkin purée
- 1-2 tsp ground cinnamon (or 3 cinnamon sticks)
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp cloves
For the latte:
- 2 cups milk
- 1-2 shots espresso
- 1 1/2 Tbsp pumpkin spice syrup
- Whipped cream (optional)
In a small sauce pan, combine all of the ingredients. Simmer over low-medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes. Do not allow to boil.
Let the syrup cool to lukewarm, and then strain it through a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth to remove some of the grittiness from the spices. Pour the syrup into a bottle or jar. Store the jar in the refrigerator, and use within a month. If the remaining spices settle to the bottom, just give the syrup a quick stir before you use it.
To make a latte, make one or two shots of espresso using an espresso machine.
Use the steam nozzle to froth the milk. When the milk is hot and frothy, pour in the espresso and pumpkin spice syrup and stir. If desired, top with whipped cream and drizzle a little more syrup over the top.
September 1st, 2009 at 8:59 am
What a perfect idea- my husband is obsessed with Pumpkin Spice Lattes. We go broke in the faLL!
Now, if only I had an espresso machine!
September 1st, 2009 at 11:03 am
Now I think I need an espresso machine!
To me, fall has officially arrived with the arrival of Starbucks’ pumpkin cream cheese muffins!
September 1st, 2009 at 5:17 pm
I can hear the hallelujah chorus! Mmmmmmm too bad we dont have an espresso machine though
i really feel fall-ish today. Mmmm Pumpkin pie, Candy Corn, Pumpkin flavored stuff, Orange, Brown, Yellow!! Fall is my favorite season. (Oh and apples) 
September 1st, 2009 at 6:13 pm
I never thought about making this myself before. This makes perfect sense. Thank-you!
September 1st, 2009 at 8:04 pm
Hello FALL!! My favorite season of the year! I also had my first cup of coffee in four months today (I gave myself a challenge and said I wouldn’t drink coffee from May until the fall – which I also consider September 1st), and now I’m wishing that this was it!
September 1st, 2009 at 10:31 pm
Just WOW. I loveeeeeeeeeeeeee pumpkin spice lattes!!!! I cant wait to make this!!
September 2nd, 2009 at 1:36 pm
yay! thanks so much….can’t wait to try it! we don’t have an espresso machine but we do have a french press so i think i’ll just make really strong coffee in that and give it at try.
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:21 pm
OMG.
Am I dreaming this right now?!
You are my hero. I am making this TONIGHT!
September 3rd, 2009 at 3:21 pm
I just received an email from Starbucks stating their Pumpkin Spice Latte was back and I thought how good that sounded. Now I can make my own at home for a lot less $$$ – thanks!!
September 9th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
i adore fall and alway count down the days to the PSL from Starbucks. My wallet and I thank you!
September 9th, 2009 at 6:32 pm
Oh you are God sent!
September 12th, 2009 at 12:36 pm
I am doing this today! Just perfect. I love the gingerbread latte too, but not with the little floaty ginger pieces like they did last year. Do you have a recipe for that syrup?
September 14th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
This just made my day!
September 25th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
Perfect recipe. Just made one for me and my wife. She likes the flavor better than Starbucks. Thank you.
September 29th, 2009 at 8:42 pm
Lori – I don’t have a recipe for the gingerbread latte (yet, anyway!).
October 3rd, 2009 at 4:12 pm
I could hug you! I live in Brazil where there are NO Starbucks for many, many miles and no place to buy ready-made syrup. I had a huge craving today for pumpkin spice latte and now I am going to try your syrup recipe! Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!
October 8th, 2009 at 11:57 am
Hi Tracy,
Thank you for this recipe. In Holland we do not have a Starbucks (exept for one in the airport), but I tasted this coffee in Amerika and love it!
Now I can finally convince my friends that it is so good.
Isabelle
October 10th, 2009 at 1:25 am
I make a pseudo pumpkin spice latte for my wife just using a strong cup of coffee in the morning that I make for myself anyways (well it is strong to her). For those that don’t have any espresso machine just go to any Italian food import store in your city and get a little Bialetti stove top espresso make ~$20. It’s cheap and the way the Italians make it in their home in Italy. (http://www.bialetti.com/)
October 10th, 2009 at 3:40 pm
I made one of these, and it was really good!
October 15th, 2009 at 7:13 pm
I made some pumpkin spice syrup last night and I am really concerned, it tastes fine but its slimy, did I cook it too long or is it bad?
October 16th, 2009 at 11:32 am
oceanmist – hmm, it should be a little sticky, but I’m not sure about slimy. Perhaps you did cook it down a little too much? How long did you have it on the stove for?
October 19th, 2009 at 6:14 pm
Ugh!! thank you SOO much for this recipe! I’m making it this afternoon and cannot WAIT to make a latte’. It sounds delish! I tried (unsuccessfully) talking Starbucks into selling me a bottle of the Pumpkin Spice syrup they use. No more spending $5 plus!! hurray!!
November 5th, 2009 at 6:32 pm
I guess I will try making the espresso with my French press, but is just heating up milk in the microwave the only option if you don’t have an espresso machine?
November 6th, 2009 at 11:37 am
Jen – I heat mine up in the microwave all the time when I forget about it and let it sit out too long, and it works out great!
November 7th, 2009 at 6:38 pm
I am going to try this today, but adding some sweetened condensed milk…that is in the original starbuck’s syrup……it will have to stay refridgerated…but that is ok….or I can try freezing in ice cube tray…..that way 1 cube per latte!
December 3rd, 2009 at 4:10 pm
Awesome. I work at Starbucks and a customer was just complaining to me about the price of a latte. Now I can point them to your site.
Maybe I can also sell him an espresso machine…
heh heh heh…
February 22nd, 2010 at 8:32 pm
A few Starbucks have leftover syrup after the “drop” date for PS Lattes, the last store I’ve been frequenting told me they were out this morning. I can’t BELIEVE this recipe, I did a little dance when I found it. THANK YOUUUUUUUUUU!!
March 16th, 2010 at 10:51 am
What a great idea! I actually purchased a bottle of Pumpkin Spice Syrup from my Starbucks in San Diego. They had ordered way too much and knew the bottles would expire before they could sell. They charged me $8 each. I was so excited and actually bought my sister one as a gift! Funny thing though is that now that I have it I rarely drink it. I think the anticipation of getting one of my pumpkin spice drinks just every now and then was part of the enjoyment!
August 30th, 2010 at 5:55 am
This is so great! I was feeling left out by everyone’s excitement about Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Lattes because I just moved to Germany and even though Starbucks do exist here, I’m not sure they always have the same products. But even if they do, I definitely can’t afford to spend 5€ or more on it! Other at-home recipes I found included canned pumpkin, which is also impossible to find here.
Thanks so much for posting this! (I know I’m a year late in reading this, but wanted to share some love anyway!!)
September 1st, 2010 at 8:13 pm
THANK YOU!!!!
I’m soo excited to try this!! I don’t drink coffee, but LOVE milk steamers! I actually got an Aeromatic (I think that’s what it’s called) to froth my milk and make my own steamers, saves a TON, now I can make pumpkin steamers too! THANKS!!!!
September 7th, 2010 at 4:30 pm
Oh thank you thank you thank you!!
I make my own Mocha Syrup and I was just dreaming about recreating the base Starbucks uses for Pumpkin Spice Lattes. I typed it into google and there you were. LIFE SAVER!!!!!!
September 20th, 2010 at 10:12 am
Fabulous idea. My husband spends all of our money on Pumpkin Spice Lattes from Sept thru December!! Gotta try this out
September 28th, 2010 at 3:36 pm
I’ve already made this twice and finally got around to blogging about it today. Thanks so much for the wonderful recipe!
October 4th, 2010 at 2:28 pm
I have been searching for a good Pumpkin spice latte recipe for weeks now. This is by far the closest anyone has gotten. Thank you for posting this for everyone else to enjoy!
October 5th, 2010 at 11:54 am
THANK YOU.
I, too, do not have 5 bucks for every coffee craving I experience on a daily basis.
And making it yourself is so much more special!
October 12th, 2010 at 8:31 pm
Made this last night and it smelled so good. I had it in a regular cup of coffee this morning. Yum.
October 18th, 2010 at 1:58 pm
This is a great recipe… I doubled it and added a little extra pumpkin. Lasts in the fridge for months. I make a PS latte daily in the fall/winter months…. Starbucks isn’t getting anymore of my $!!! This would be a great little gift….just need to find some pretty bottles. YUM! Thanks for sharing.
November 2nd, 2010 at 7:46 am
Thank you, thank you, thank you! Can’t wait to try out your recipe!
September 14th, 2011 at 1:53 pm
It was nomz. I used a metal strainer/cheesecloth combo. While it worked okay, it still took a while to go through, and I’m not sure it accomplished much. Also, while most of it mixed in with my milk, there was sort of a goey phase that did not.
Has your recipe/protocol changed over the years?
September 14th, 2011 at 2:00 pm
Chadwick – Glad you enjoyed it. I did update the recipe and instructions this year because I used to strain using a clean dish cloth, but I found that a sieve/cheesecloth is much more effective.
September 16th, 2011 at 1:33 pm
Oh yum!!! I need to try this! My favorite!
September 16th, 2011 at 6:07 pm
You’re going to put Starbucks out of business! Lol! I used to work there a few years back and the pumpkin spice latte is their best seller! What a money saver!
September 16th, 2011 at 10:38 pm
I just love this! Yum!
September 16th, 2011 at 11:41 pm
I thought I needed an espresso machine before reading this post. Now I KNOW I need one. This sounds so darn good, Tracy.
September 17th, 2011 at 10:48 am
look amazing! Can’t wait to try this
September 17th, 2011 at 11:51 am
You can always brew espresso in your coffee make
I make a version of this every a.m……..deeeeelish!!
September 17th, 2011 at 1:22 pm
I adore fall too!!! And your header is just perfect with the cute fall details!!
September 18th, 2011 at 7:48 pm
You have just saved me no less than $400 this season! Great recipe!
September 18th, 2011 at 8:42 pm
I just had my first pumpkin latte two days ago and really loved it! I LOVE Autumn and all that it brings. As a former teacher, it reminds me of new beginnings. Thanks for sharing this recipe. I plan to make it several times a week from now until Winter….
September 18th, 2011 at 10:14 pm
YUMMMMM !!! Thanks so much. I’ll be putting this in strong coffee. Should be fine without an espresso machine (although I do have one on the garage shelf….hmmm)
September 19th, 2011 at 12:17 pm
I’m so glad you reposted this (and perfected it)! I have a friend who’s a coffee addict, and I think I need to make her a jar as a gift.
September 19th, 2011 at 7:49 pm
Made this just now – perfect, it was easy and delicious, thank you
September 19th, 2011 at 11:59 pm
What a wonderful creation!! It looks delicious and it’s always nice to be able to make your own lattes and save some money
September 20th, 2011 at 6:18 pm
Tried this and loved it, but have 2 questions. I’m wondering why not let the syrup boil? Does it thicken up too much? The other is the Cinnamon… Does using sticks tone down the cinnamon taste? I used 1 heaping tsp and I found the taste slightly overpowering.
Thanks for posting!
Marlese
September 20th, 2011 at 6:24 pm
Marlese – Yes, if the syrup boils and gets too thick, it will become gooey and gummy from the pumpkin. The use of cinnamon sticks rather than ground cinnamon simply helps when you are straining the syrup to remove some of the grittiness from the spices. Hope that helps!
September 22nd, 2011 at 9:59 pm
This is genius! I can’t wait to try one of these babies!
September 26th, 2011 at 11:37 pm
This is great! I might make this syrup as a Christmas gift for the pumpkin spice lovers in my family!
September 28th, 2011 at 3:04 pm
Just made this today, so easy and tasty!
I’m a huge lover of pumpkin and work at Starbucks, but sadly PSL is not part of our menu, so now I finally get to enjoy the drink our foreign customers rave about!
October 12th, 2011 at 6:33 am
Had to put in my two cents (or 5 euros). Thanks a billion for this recipe! I moved from the States to Holland almost 4 years ago, and this has been one of the things I missed so badly! We do have Starbucks at the airport (which I live very close to) and at more and more train stations now, but they do not offer PSLs anywhere in the country. I’m thrilled to be able to make them at home now! I went through my first bottle in less than a week… better curb the enthusiasm a bit with this batch =)
October 12th, 2011 at 6:35 am
Oh, and one more note to people without espresso machines – a stovetop espresso pot works great (got mine at Ikea), and I heat the milk in the microwave and then froth it with a whisk. Works great =)
October 16th, 2011 at 12:04 am
MMMMMMMade this syrup today and made the latte in my Nespresso machine! Wonderful…..thank-you so much!
October 20th, 2011 at 3:00 pm
How much syrup do you add to each cup?
October 27th, 2011 at 10:07 pm
Excellent recipe! I can’t wait to try making it tonight! Can you freeze this if you make extra syrup to save for later?
December 28th, 2011 at 10:50 am
Great! Thanks a lot I just finished making it and it turned out very good! I will make this again
August 10th, 2012 at 5:16 pm
OMG this is looking so yummy and delicious
October 15th, 2012 at 1:28 pm
Making this right now and it smells so great just like the one from Starbucks. Can’t wait to try and share.