Pumpkin Season, Part I: Pumpkin spice tea latte!

Pumpkin season:  a time for pumpkin tea lattes (and glass pumpkins)

It's pumpkin season and we love all varieties of pumpkins:  Jack o' Lanterns, glass pumpkins and pumpkin spice everything. This year, we upped the ante on the latter and put together our very own pumpkin spice, ready for pies and lattes - and when we say lattes at BTS, we're talking tea lattes, of course.

And, when I say "we", as in most things that concern the kitchen domain, I mean my husband, Chris. He's the gourmet chef in our house, having his own special mix of patience and fearlessness, which I believe are keys to a good cook.

Pumpkin spice latte, starts with freshly brewed black (or chai) tea

Recently, we were the recipients of a collection of high quality spices and seasonings, which Chris bottled and labeled with care. He's been experimenting with them, including creating a mix of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg (hand grated), allspice and cloves for a fresh concoction of pumpkin pie spice. The aroma alone is worth the effort.

For my part, I searched for recipes to make my own pumpkin spice tea. It wasn't as easy as I thought it might be, but I found one that called for just a few ingredients and not a lot of time in the kitchen (playing to my strengths) at Dreamy Cup.  Here's the link:  Quick and easy Pumpkin Spice tea latte.

Pumpkin puree is added to the tea

The foundation of the pumpkin spice tea latte is black tea or chai. I used a straight up black tea and steeped it for three minutes. Once the tea is brewed, a tablespoon of pumpkin puree is added along with pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and sugar. (The recipe also suggests using vanilla-infused honey as an option).  After that, pour in milk of choice, frothing optional. (I didn't have a frother at the ready, so whisked a cup by hand.)

Mix in vanilla, sugar and pumpkin pie spice

Final step is to top it all off with whipped cream and a dash more of pumpkin pie spice.

Visually, it turned out rather well, but as for taste? It was pretty good for being "quick and easy". I'd say for a little more umph, I might use the other suggested options of chai tea and vanilla-infused honey and then, froth the milk. 

Add milk and top off with whipped cream and a bit more pumpkin pie spice

It may require a few extra minutes in the kitchen (which I'm working on).

In the meantime, a pumpkin spice tea toast to Pumpkin Season, Part 1.  Stay tune for our next blog, Pumpkin Season, Part II:  Glass pumpkins.