Pumpkin Spice Blend: The Only DIY that Matters

Pumpkin Spice everything is in full effect, y’all. I smelled Pumpkin Spice perfume on a millennial the other day. People are freaks about it and as soon as the calendar flips to September, they snatch up anything labeled “PSL”. Now, I have never been a fan of paying for things I know I can make myself. So, I started making my own Pumpkin Spice blend. During the holidays, especially, I’m making this Pumpkin Spice blend by the vat. Gift-giving is easy when you have this blend in these cutesie little jars and a cookbook to give.

Not only is this Pumpkin Spice blend the perfect gift to give, it goes so far in so many recipes. Make this Pumpkin Spice Chai Latte even quicker by substituting the whole spices with it. Pumpkin Snickerdoodle cookies?!? WHAT!?!? They’re definitely a thing. Now an amazing thing with the addition of your very own Pumpkin Spice blend.

This Pumpkin Spice blend is very forgiving in that if you absolutely loathe one of the spices, you can substitute it. With the only exception being the cinnamon, which is the foundation spice, all the others are optional. I do suggest using the ginger, nutmeg and cloves though; because, really, if you’re a legit PS lover, you like them anyway. The bulk of flavor will come from the ground cinnamon, so choose a quality one.

Cinnamon, as evident, comes from the bark of a tree. Once the wet bark has been loosened, it is planed into long rolls, or quills. Those quills are what we bring home from the local supermarket. Chinese or Ceylon cinnamons are the most common and easily used because they’re softer. The former is more readily accessible. If you have a gourmet market nearby, by all means, experiment with different varieties. Pour your beautiful cinnamon in a medium mixing bowl.

Follow that with your ground nutmeg. Now, nutmeg is a special spice because it actually is a twofer. Mace, the aril that surrounds the nutmeg seed is the milder of the two. The stronger, pungent nutmeg seed is what we’re using here, though. You can either buy yours pre-ground, or use a microplane to grate your nutmeg seed fresh. Pour that into your bowl with the cinnamon.

Ginger is a pretty spice. Well, it’s actually a root, but it’s spicy here. It smells so fragrant and exotic that any Pumpkin Spice blend without it is just not as vibrant. Using smoked ginger in my Pumpkin Spice blend changed my life, y’all. Not really, but it made me really happy on the insides. You don’t have to use the earthier, smoked ginger, use whatever is accessible, or what you prefer. 
Now for the cloves. Normally, I’m not a fan of the little spike-looking spice, but in Pumpkin Spice blends it works perfectly. Cloves, to me, have an overwhelming flavor that just bugs me. In my family ham with the pineapple, maraschino cherries and cloves pricked all through are popular. I hate it. With a passion, hate it. I add it here, but only because it is balanced perfectly with the other ingredients.

So, with these four spices, we have our plain Pumpkin Spice blend. Since we ain’t never been plain, we’re going to Marta-fy it with a lil’ sumthin-sumthin.

Allspice is actually a very popular spice in the Caribbean. That jerk chicken you love so much? Yep, that’s allspice you taste! Oddly enough, Cincinnati-style chili also has allspice. Ground allspice is great on chicken and turkey, as well as fish. For now, we’re using it to give our Pumpkin Spice blend a slight peppery kick (trust me on this).

Our last spice is cardamom. There’s no spice better that cardamom to give you the warmth you crave when indulging in Pumpkin Spice anything. Add that to all of the other spicy goodness and…
…whisk. Seriously. That’s all it takes to create your very own Pumpkin Spice blend. How can you not make a huge batch and keep it on hand throughout the year?

Create a little funnel with some stiff parchment paper or use a small plastic funnel to fill your jars.

Spoon it in and seal tightly. This Pumpkin Spice blend will last up to six months…depending on your daily PS intake. Truth be told, mine only lasts 2 months, top.

What is your favorite way to consume Pumpkin Spice? Tell me about then check out the recipe and pin it for later!

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