Pumpkin Spice Season: Pumpkin Spice Creamer & Pumpkin Spice Frappes

Pumpkin Spice Season can also means summer is er….still here. Alive and well. And that sweater season is instead frappe weather. This was a post from last fall, when we could still have tree nuts in our house, before we found out Alistaire was so allergic. It was a great set of recipes. The creamer is amazing, not just in frappes, but in coffee, drizzled on pancakes, waffles, on fruit. If you can have raw cashews, try it out. You will love it.

Pumpkin Spice Creamer

Ingredients:

• ½ cup raw almonds
• ½ cup raw cashews
• 1¼ cups filtered water
• ½ cup Pumpkin Puree
• 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
• ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice blend (see below for recipe)

Directions:

Soak the nuts in a bowl overnight, covered with filtered water.

Drain and rinse in a fine mesh strainer. Add the nuts to a high-speed blender, such as a Vitamix, along with the 1¼ cups water. Process on high until smooth, tamping as needed (it will take less than a minute). Pour the mixture into a fine mesh strainer, over a bowl. Push the mixture through, scraping the bottom as needed, until done. You will have a couple of Tablespoons of nut pulp left. Discard or dehydrate and use as nut meal later (dehydrating is easy, smear on parchment paper, dry at 135° till dry). If desired, push through a second time, after rinsing the strainer.

Rinse the blender out, add the nut mixture and remaining ingredients. Process on high until mixed.

Store tightly covered in the refrigerator.

Makes about 8 ounces if strained twice, 12 ounces if strained once. It will thicken in the refrigerator, becoming almost spreadable.

Unlike at Starbucks, this Pumpkin Spice Frappe won’t leave you feeling so sugared up that you are searching for a steak to counteract it. I made the mistake of using a free drink recently at SB’s and having one. I drank maybe a third of it before I had to toss it. Hol- moley, it was sweet. Sweeter than a milkshake! Mine though? Is smooth and so creamy – and delicious.

Pumpkin Spice Frappes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• ½ cup pumpkin spice creamer (see above)
• ½ cup cold-brewed espresso (see here for recipe)
• 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 bananas, sliced and frozen
• 8 ice cubes

Directions:

Add everything to a high-speed blender (such as a Vitamix). Process on high, tamping as needed, until smooth (about a minute). Serve immediately with wide straws.

Makes 2 servings, fills 2 16-ounce cold cups.

Tool Note –

Of kitchen tools, my fine mesh strainer is my go-to tool. I use it for lots of things – from draining beans, rinsing quinoa to straining sauces. I have an OXO 8-Inch Strainer, it isn’t cheap but it is worth the cost. And it has held up well, considering how much abuse I throw at it (I use it 2-3 times a day usually).

PS: I am now self-hosted. Please bear with any missing photos and anything odd. It’ll be back to normal soon! We took the new site live tonight!