*Recipe* 1st Day of Autumn PSL

Where did the summer go?  Today is the first day of fall.  I must admit, normally I am not a fan of autumn because where I grew up, it could mean a foot of snow and -30c temperatures at any moment.  Now living a bit further south I am a bit excited to have a few weeks of crisper weather (and less humidity!) before we head south to Florida for a few months.  Monday was really our first day of what felt a little like Fall weather.  Actually Saturday was so hot I was in a little dress and was still sweating like it was mid July.  Its nice to go out and not have that instant overwhelming heat feeling after our very long hot summer!  

Oh by the way.... Since when is the first day of Autumn September 23rd?  I could swear that growing up it was always September 21st!  Oh well, maybe I'm crazy! 

With all that being said, what better recipe to try out today than a homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte?  We have all had them at Starbucks (I've had them at probably 50 different coffee shops) and while they are delicious, I thought that I could probably improve on the classic while making it healthier and knowing what is actually going into my recipe.  

I looked around online to get the basic idea on how to make one of these (I have never made a latte from scratch before!)  and got down to business.  It didn't take much longer than standing in a 10 person Starbucks and you don't have to get out of your pajamas to get it.  It turned out delicious and I can tell you for certain that my huge mug full of this treat still has half the fat and calories and a third the sugar of  a classic Starbucks PSL.    Enjoy and have a fantastic Autumn day!  

Ingredients

-1 cup whole or 2% milk, 1 cup Silk unsweetened coconut milk or 1 cup unsweetened soy milk.  (I used half Silk Coconut and half whole milk)

-1 cup hot brewed coffee (I used a Nespresso Intenso pod)

-2 tbsp canned pumpkin puree (or homemade but I didn't have any on hand)

-3 tbsp brown sugar

-2 tbsp vanilla extract

-2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (I used 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground cloves and 1/2 tsp ginger)

-1/4 tsp ground black pepper

-for the topping you have a couple options- I used 3 tbsp of half and half in my Aeroccino milk frother because I had it on hand but you could use frothed milk of your choice or any kind of whipped topping that you like.  

-cinnamon to taste for on top.

Directions

1. Make your flavor base. 

    -Add the pumpkin puree, brown sugar and spices to a small saucepan.  Cook over medium low heat, stirring frequently with a spatula until the sugar is dissolved, about 2 minutes.

2. Add the milk.  

  - slowly add the milk to the flavor base and whisk constantly. Heat until it reaches a simmer and remove from heat.  

3. Blend well. 

    -Pour the heated mixture into a blender, followed by the coffee and vanilla extract.  Blend until its thick and frothy.  Be careful, sometimes the stream can build up and burn you!  Pour into a nice big mug.

4. Add whatever topping you have chosen and sprinkle with cinnamon then enjoy!