Are you baking with pumpkin yet? Yesterday was the first day of the fall baking season in our house. And it was not 101 degrees outside (at least, that’s what I’m telling myself). There was a small pan of pumpkin cheesecake swirl brownies, Pumpkin Spice Lattes, and a custard that will turn into pumpkin spice latte ice cream today. We’re set on dessert for two weeks. Or we’ll be wrapping things for the freezer to make room for something new this weekend 
There are two big Starbucks milestones that I get really excited for: the Pumpkin Spice Latte and red cups. Last year, my friend Courtney made a pumpkin spice syrup that’s perfect for homemade lattes. It’s clovey. It’s gingery. It’s cinnamony. And it makes your homebrewed coffee taste a lot like Starbucks, for a lot less.
It’s easy to make at home and it will keep in the fridge for quite a while. Stir a tablespoon or two into your favorite cup of coffee and top that with a little whipped cream. And you might as well go ahead and grab the jar of salted caramel sauce while you’re at it.
You’ll probably have nearly everything in your pantry already for this recipe but if not, now is the perfect time to run out and buy a can of pumpkin. Or 4. Because if my grocery store is any representation, there might be a few pumpkin hoarders out there.
Oh, and make sure you try it in a mug of hot chocolate. That little extra warmth and spice is magical.
Note: I’ve gotten a lot of email questions about “shot of espresso” and “steamed milk” and how that translates to someone without an espresso machine. You do not need super fancy equipment to make this latte. When I make a latte, I essentially run my machine until I get ~3-4 Tbsp of coffee. It’s strong stuff. I then add 3/4 to 1 cup of very hot milk. If you like less of a coffee taste, aim for 2-3 Tbsp of coffee and closer to 1 cup of milk. If you’re a coffee lover, aim for 3-4 Tbsp coffee and closer to 3/4 cup of milk. Everyone can enjoy it, espresso machine or not!
Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte
A quick and affordable way to make the coffee shop favorite at home. No fancy equipment needed!
Ingredients
- For the pumpkin spice syrup:
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 4 cinnamon sticks or 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 3 Tbsp canned pumpkin
- For a single latte:
- 1 shot of espresso or 2-4 Tbsp very strongly brewed coffee
- 6-8 oz skim milk, heated or steamed until very hot
- 1-2 Tbsp pumpkin spice syrup (or to taste)
- Whipped cream, optional
- Salted caramel sauce, optional
Instructions
- To make the syrup: Cook sugar and water in a small pot over medium heat until the mixture is completely clear.
- Whisk in the remaining ingredients and continue to cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Do not allow mixture to come to a boil.
- Allow mixture to cool for 10-15 minutes.
- Strain syrup through cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer into a large jar or bottle of your choice.
- Keep syrup in the fridge, it will last a while.
- To make the latte, combine espresso with heated milk, and 1-2 Tbsp of pumpkin spice syrup (add to taste).
- Top with whipped cream and salted caramel sauce, if desired. (Go ahead. No one is looking.)
Notes
Yields: ~2 1/4 cups syrup
Estimated time: 25 minutes
{ 68 comments… read them below or add one }
This is brilliant! Love this idea!
I love your addition of salted caramel sauce and will definitely be adding that next time I make one.
Ahhh, red cups! Can’t wait. Ok, *maybe* I can, and this syrup will definitely be helping. Thanks, Shawnda!
Mmmm…my favorite part about fall! I am not a coffee drinker, but I make an exception for a pumpkin spice latte!
How long will the syrup stay good for in the fridge? I can’t wait make this!
Weeks and weeks!
Done and done! I have a few friends coming into town this weekend…they’ll love it! Me too, obviously
This looks and sounds delicious!!
I love pumpkin! They don’t sell canned pumpkin in Israel (I know!) so last year my mother-in-law brought me a suitcase full when they came to visit! I’ve been carefully hoarding the last two cans for a special occasion. It’s still really hot here too, but this is making me feel a little like fall
Amazon.com has canned pumpkin. Can you get it shipped internationally?
It is not too hard to make your own pumpkin puree as well. You basically cut a pumkin in half, remove the seeds, bake till tender, scoop out of the shell and blend the pumpkin flesh. Voila! Pumpkin puree ready for your latte recipe!
well, this looks delicious!! I just can’t get enough pumpkin spice during the fall!
I love you for this recipe!!!
CANNOT wait to make it!!!! Happy fall, girl! 
OMG! I was just talking to a friend yesterday about making my own pumpkin spice syrup since Starbuck’s pumpkin spice syrup contains dairy. Thank you!!!
Thanks for the recipe!! It’s one of my faves as well! ^_^
I have all the ingredients except the cinnamon sticks. How much ground cinnamon should I use for a sub? Thanks!
Mandy – 1 Tbsp should be good!
I don’t drink coffee, but I’ll take a big pile of the whipped cream and salted caramel sauce please!
Wow, I am going to make this as soon as I get home! As for pumpkin, someone on my Friend’s list mentioned last year there was a pumpkin shortage. I RAN to the Walmart and grabbed as many cans as I could. Pretty sure I have about 7 double cans left for the season. I have many loaves of chocolate chip pumpkin bread in my future.
I made this yesterday; to-die-for! Thanks.
Pumpkin spice lattes are one of my favorite things ever. The weather is finally starting to get a bit chilly here so pumpkin stuff is in full swing at my house. Thanks for sharing this! It looks great!
I have approximately twenty cans of pumpkin on my shelves. There are SO MANY lattes in my future.
There used to be a day when grocery stores would keep at least a can or two of pumpkin on the shelves during the off season. Not anymore! I might end up being one of those hoarders. This is a great idea!
Reading this post just made my day. My week. I cannot wait to make this!
Just made this… The kitchen smells divine!
OMG! Such a yummy and beautiful site!!!! Too bad we couldn’t smell it!!!!
Confession: I’ve already had 2 Pumpkin Spice Lattes from Starbucks! That’s the only way to kick off the fall season! I tried their new Salted Caramel Frappacino this week too. OMG! I could have just had a bowl of the whipped cream topped with salted caramel!!! It was SO delicious!!!!
Looking at that photo just made me smile!
I just got some of Godiva’s Pumpkin Spice coffe and I’m sure it would be amazing with a little extra of your syrup in it and whipped cream…I can’t wait! Thanks for sharing.
I’m definitely making this pumpkin spice syrup! What a wonderful and creative idea especially since I just spent over $5 this morning for my Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks!
I used the ground cinnamon and strained it twice. It smells and tastes wonderful! Thanks for sharing! Love your site.
So thankful I decided to stop by foodgawker tonight! My hubby just asked me to create homemade pumpkin spice lattes this week! (Not b/c HE loves them, b/c his blood pressure rises watching the increase in Starbucks debits this time of year!) Thank you so much for sharing!!!
This is one of the first pumpkin recipes I want to make this fall. But I’m refusing to to do any fall baking until October…
This looks fantastic! Pumpkin Spice Latte is my all time favourite, but they don’t serve it down here in Australia. I think your recipe is the next best thing, though
Thanks for posting!
In all seriousness, I saw this on foodgawker and SHOUTED (out loud)
YEEESSS!!! YES! YES! YES! HA!
::click::
-load-
I will try this tomorrow. It’s 10:20 pm and everything around me is closed.
I must make this ASAP. Pumpkin spice is my favorite!
Erica from Feasting on Life
I made this last night,it is so great! Tastes just like it!!!
i have to try this! i’m a crazy pumpkin hoarder and not afraid to admit it. ha! last year i bought like 12 cans and used half and saved the rest…so now when it’s not in many stores yet i can be baking pumpkin galore! yum!
There is a chill in the air today & I would love one of these lattes
I would also love if you added this and any other pumpkin themed links to my “Happy Post” today. http://su.pr/1rMDg2
These pictures are gorgeous! So “fall-y” and festive! I need a pumpkin spice latte now!
A homemade version of pumpkin spice lattes? Yes, please! The pictures are gorgeous!
As I posted in your facebook page… this latte is amazing!!! I made it for my husband yesterday as a surprise… now I wonder why he refuses to drink plain coffee!
By the way, do you think this syrup version would work as a base for the “ginger latte” (Christmas). Would you replace the pumpkin puree with fresh ginger?
You are awesome!
I bet it would be a good starting point since it’s “just” a flavored simple syrup. But I’ve never had their ginger latte so I’ll have to be on the look out for it later this year!
I made this syrup last night and prepared our lattes this morning. Tastes just like Starbucks and I didn’t even have to get out of my pajamas to enjoy it! Thank you so much for sharing!!!
I really do think that not having to put on ‘real’ pants and drive down the street is the best part
Just made it! Tastes better then the coffee shop down the street! Thank you for sharing!
Yum yum yuuuum. This is such a lovely idea…..mmm there is a can of pumpkin puree in my pantry that has just been assigned to this very recipe! Glad to see I’m not the only one getting into woolly scarves and cinnamon toast territory already
Can I just say THANK YOU! I live outside of the US and when I found out that the Starbucks out here don’t serve the PSL, I was so disappointed (not to mention it was all I could think of for about two weeks!). I’ve been scouring the Internet looking for a great recipe for a homemade version and this one is the best. You’ve saved my life (or maybe just my sanity, but both are great to have
.
this is awesome. it’s so good its better than starbucks!
I realize I’m almost TWO weeks behind, but I still wanted to stop by and let you know that you are WONDERFUL for sharing this recipe. The pumpkin spice latte is my absolute favorite drink at Starbucks, so to think it’s as easy as this at home is wonderful!
Delicious! Thank you!
I made pumpkin cinnamon rolls with a caramel drizzle for breakfast and was wondering how to use up the leftover pumpkin puree… problem solved and breakfast just became way more delicious. Thanks!
This recipe is DELICIOUS!!!!!! I love strong coffee so I added a few extra tablespoons of the extremely strong coffee (lol) and I put a little bit of extra cinnamon in the syrup and added some pumpkin pie spice. I’ve tried several recipes I’ve found online for pumpkin spice lattes similar to the Starbucks one and this one is BY FAR the best!!! Thank you!!!!
Excellent!
Thanks a bunch for posting this. I was looking for a recipe similar to Starbuck’s and this is it!
I made this last night! I don’t have a fine mesh strainer (or cheesecloth), so I tried a coffee filter but that didn’t work too well…I then tried a single sheet of paper towel (placed into a regular strainer) and that worked just fine. Perfection! I can’t wait to go home and make one for my boyfriend and me! I left it sitting on the counter, though…oops, guess I have to put that in the fridge when I get home!
I thank you..truly: It is Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada..I thank you!
Do you use a coffee maker if you are are not using the espresso machine? Just make it extremely strong? I cannot wait to try this. I am a Starbuck’s junkie only during this time of year too. (Of course I am pretty fond of Dairy Queen this month with pumpkin pie blizzard, too, haa). Thanks!
Yep!
A coworker tipped me to this recipe. It looks so simple and yummy that I hate for the rest of my pumpkin to go to waste in the can. I am going to make a batch times TEN and share with family and friends. I love cool mornings and hot yummy coffee. And gourmet taste on a homecooked budget is always the best way! Thank you for sharing!
I just tried this recipe and I am in heaven!! It is amazingly good. I used sucanat for sweetener and almond milk for the latte. I put enough coffee grounds in my machine to make a whole pot but only put in enough water to make 6 cups so I got a nice strong coffee. OH MY! Definitely easy and cheap! Thank you for putting this out there for all of us coffee lovers who hate paying $5 a cup!
Just made this… Yum! Can i say i think its better than Starbucks!? I didnt strain it though, will have to borrow my moms later but made a drink as is and its wonderful!! Thanks!!
This was wonderful. I used your recipe and changed it up just a little to make a frozen latte. It turned out great!
Thank you! It’s wonderful and a tenth of the cost of Starbys!
So its October and still in the lower to mix 90′s here in the Mojave desert….so I cranked the AC up to 65, made this from some homemade pie goop…and VOILA! I officially don’t care that there’s no Starbucks nearby….YAY! Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe.
I made this syrup today with roasted pumpkin, I had to use a little more pumpkin than your recipe called, but it turned out great! I can’t wait for tomorrow so I can make a latte
thanks for sharing, I will be posting this on my blog, with a link to yours, of course 
Fantastic recipe!! I made it this afternoon with fresh pumpkin puree made from the pumpkin we had roasted yesterday. For those people who like a little more of a pumpkin flavor, I would recommend adding more puree, but other than that, it was superb. Thank you for posting this! I will be making many more lattes in the future.
Made the syrup a week ago, and have been enjoying pumpkin spice latte everyday since! I like this recipe better than Starbucks, and I love that I can make it at home with my almond milk (instead of soy milk, which creeps me out)!
I used fresh pumpkin from my garden. Instead of white sugar, I used raw and brown sugar. Add a little espresso from my stove top espresso maker, and voila! Perfect!
Thank you!
Thanks for the easy recipe! I just featured this post on my blog!
Thanks for this amazing recipe–just now came upon it! I’m anticipating the withdrawals of Starbucks yanking Pumpkin Spice! Made it last night and wasn’t sure at first because it smelled so strong as a syrup so I added a little vanilla to the mix (about 2 tsp) and it turned out amazing! It really is pretty close to Starbucks. I also just used pumpkin pie spice to sprinkle on the top of the whipped cream instead of the salted caramel because my husband doesn’t like caramel (but I’m going to try it on mine for sure!). Thanks for devising this recipe–it will be a staple in our home for sure and will save us a bunch of money!