Made with ginger, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice is no longer a mere spice cabinet staple, it’s become the very essence of autumn treats. From lattes to ice cream to donuts, pumpkin pie spice is typically used to enhance the flavour of sugary drinks and rich desserts. Whether you’re in the mood for sweet or savoury, you’ll find that there are dozens of delicious low and 0 SmartPoints foods that will benefit from the addition of pumpkin pie spice.
A few pumpkin pie spice pointers before you get started
The most important rule of thumb when adding pumpkin pie spice? Use the potent spice blend judiciously, a light hand will prevent pumpkin pie spice from overwhelming anything it’s being added to. You can always add more if the pumpkin pie spice flavour comes up short, but it’s almost impossible to mask the taste once too much has been added. Use fresh pumpkin pie spice (toss anything that’s older than a year), the longer it sits in your cupboard the more flavour it loses (old pumpkin pie spice can also taste soapy due to the cloves and nutmeg.) To help lengthen its shelf life, store pumpkin pie spice in a cool cupboard away from heat and direct light.
Make your own pumpkin pie-spiced coffee
While a medium pumpkin pie spice latte made with nonfat milk and no whipped cream can set you back 12 SmartPoints, adding pumpkin pie spice to your coffee grounds at home gives you all the autumnal flavour you crave at no cost to your daily points budget. Not a fan of black coffee? Just add a splash of regular or non-dairy milk. To recreate the creaminess of a latte, heat the milk in the microwave and use a whisk or immersion blender to create a foamy texture (be extra careful not to splash yourself with hot milk if using an immersion blender!)
Use pumpkin pie spice to season roasted winter vegetables
If you think pumpkins are the only vegetables that can benefit from the addition of pumpkin pie spice, just wait until you try it with other types of seasonal autumn produce. Naturally sweet vegetables such as yams, carrots, turnips, parsnips, and all kinds of winter squash are immensely flavourful when they’ve been lightly seasoned with pumpkin pie spice. The next time you’re roasting winter vegetables try tossing them in a mixture of olive oil, salt, pepper, and a pinch of pumpkin spice (add a scant drizzle of honey or maple syrup for extra sweetness.)
Add a pinch of pumpkin spice to creamy soups and bisques
There’s nothing better than a bowl of homemade soup on a chilly autumn day, especially when the soup has been seasoned with a pinch of pumpkin pie spice. Creamy soups and bisques made from cauliflower, butternut squash, carrots and yams are especially good candidates for the pumpkin spice treatment. Begin with a tiny pinch and taste before adding more pumpkin pie spice if desired. Serve the soup with a dollop of creamy nonfat plain yogourt or skyr.
Sprinkle on baked apples and pears
The abundance of apples and pears available in the fall is enough to get anyone excited for pies, crumbles, sauces, and baked fruit. Pumpkin pie spice is a natural fit for baked apples and pears, adding plenty of fall-inspired flavour to an elegant low or 0 SmartPoints dessert. Depending on the type of apples or pears being used, you may find that a combination of natural sweetness and pumpkin pie spice means you don’t need to use as much, if any, additional sweetener.
Pumpkin spice up your breakfast
Waffles, pancakes, muffins, chia pudding, and oatmeal are just a small handful of breakfast foods that are made better with the addition of pumpkin pie spice. You may find that the pumpkin pie spice versions of these classic recipes need less in the way of maple syrup, brown sugar and other sweeteners. If you’d prefer pumpkin pie spice breakfast toppings, it can be judiciously combined with applesauce and low fat vanilla yogourt.