I am engaged in a long-standing love affair with Starbuck’s. To be specific, Starbuck’s pumpkin spice latte. Also their gingerbread latte, but the pumpkin spice one will be in the cards a bit sooner.

But let’s face it: their drinks ain’t cheap. I only indulge in the “real thing” every once in a while.

In my recent fall craving (it’s supposed to be 95 degrees here today; my craving is woefully premature) I wanted one of these decadent treats. But Starbuck’s isn’t even selling them yet. What to do?

Figure out how to make my own, of course. And seriously, this turned out to be one of the easiest and most rewarding kitchen experiments in quite a while.

Pumpkin Spice Syrup

Ingredients:

• 3/4 C. sugar
• 3/4 C. water
• 6 whole cloves
• 6 whole allspice
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 2 cinnamon stick (or 2 tsp. ground cinnamon)
• 2 Tbsp. pumpkin puree.

Step 1: put everything in a saucepan together.

Stir it all together and heat it until it’s boiling.

Step 2: Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Step 3: Let it cool to room temperature, then pour it through a fine-meshed sieve to remove the whole spices. Store in a 1/2 pint mason jar in the fridge for up to two months.

So if you, too, crave this tasty treat from Starbuck’s, whip up a batch of this syrup, and drizzle some into your next cup of coffee.

The Wife