What do you do when you want the autumnal flavors of a pumpkin spice latte but it's too warm for a hot drink? Pumpkin spice frappuccinos help fill the gap — these icy blended drinks bring you all those fall flavors without warming you up.
If you're sick of paying top dollar at coffee shops, it's easy enough to make your own pumpkin spice frappuccinos at home. You'll need a blender and some way of making espresso, plus the ingredients for the frappuccino itself. Once you have everything you need, the process of making your frappuccino is simple.
The first step to making your own pumpkin spice frappuccino is making a pumpkin spice syrup. To do so, mix 2 cups of granulated sugar and 2 cups of water in a saucepan, put them on a stove over medium heat and stir until dissolved. Next, add 5 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice and let the mixture simmer gently for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in 1/3 cup of pumpkin puree.
The next step is to brew some espresso — ideally with an espresso machine, but you can use a stovetop espresso maker in a pinch. Once you've got your espresso and syrup sorted and slightly cooled, you can move on to making your drinks.
In a blender, combine 1 cup of a milk of your choice, 1 1/2 cups of ice, 5 tablespoons of the pumpkin syrup you prepared earlier and 1 shot (approximately 1 fluid ounce) of espresso. Blend the mixture until the ice is crushed to a slushie-like texture. Pour into a glass and enjoy.
Ninja BL610 Professional Countertop Blender
When making frappuccinos at home, you don't need the world's most powerful blender, but you do need one with enough oomph to effectively crush ice. This blender from Ninja fits the bill — it's reasonably priced and simple to use with a 1,000-watt motor behind it. If you don't already own a blender to make pumpkin spice frappuccinos, this one is a great investment. Take a look at the full buying guide for countertop blenders at BestReviews if you want to learn more.
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Calphalon Temp iQ Espresso Machine
If you only want to make the occasional pumpkin spice frap, buying a quality espresso machine might not be a priority. However, if you want to make more specialty drinks at home and buy less coffee out of the house, it makes sense to buy yourself a decent espresso machine. This one makes quality espresso but is competitively priced compared to high-end options. You can buy it with or without a built-in coffee grinder.
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Bialetti Moka Express Stovetop Coffee Maker
This stovetop espresso maker doesn't produce enough pressure to make a true espresso, but it does make a concentrated coffee that you can use in its place — and for a fraction of the price of an espresso machine. We recommend using 1 1/2 fluid ounces of this coffee in place of 1 ounce of espresso, so the 3-cup model makes just enough for two frappuccinos.
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Kitch Easy Release Ice Cube Tray
You need a fair amount of ice to make frappuccinos, so if you don't have an ice maker built into your fridge’s freezer, it makes sense to buy ice cube trays instead of purchasing bags of ice. You get four ice cube trays in a pack, so you can easily keep yourself stocked up with enough ice for regular fraps. Ice comes out of these trays smoothly and they're dishwasher-safe for easy cleaning.
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Ethical Bean Fair Trade Organic Coffee
This rich medium-dark roast is a perfect coffee for brewing espresso. Its sweet notes blend well with a pumpkin spice frappuccino, but it has enough richness and complexity to hold its own in a sugary drink. Since they're whole beans, you can grind them to just the right degree of fineness for espresso. Not only are these beans fair trade certified, they're also certified USDA organic, making them an excellent choice for ethical consumers.
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You need sugar to make the pumpkin spice syrup that will flavor and sweeten your frappuccinos. We wouldn't recommend using any other sweeteners, whether natural or artificial, as this will affect the flavor of the finished drink. Although any white sugar will do the trick, this organic cane sugar is fair trade certified so you can feel good about your purchase.
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You can't make a pumpkin spice frappuccino without pumpkin pie spices. Although you can mix your own blend of spices if you choose, it makes sense to buy them ready blended. This classic spice blend from McCormick includes cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice in carefully balanced quantities for the perfect pumpkin spice kick. You might find you want to adjust the quantities in your pumpkin spice drinks over time according to your taste.
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Farmer's Market Foods Canned Organic Pumpkin Puree, 15 Ounce
Although the spices are the star of the show, if you're looking to recreate pumpkin spice frappuccinos made by a certain popular coffee chain, they use a small amount of real pumpkin puree in their drinks. This puree contains nothing but pumpkin, which is what you need for your pumpkin spice frappuccinos — avoid canned pumpkin that contains additional spices or sugar, as this could make your drinks too sweet or spicy.
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It's up to you what kind of milk you use in your pumpkin spice frappuccinos, but this beautifully creamy macadamia nut milk adds the perfect degree of richness to a frappuccino. Because it's shelf stable before opening, you can keep a few in your kitchen cabinets and always have some on hand for when you need it.
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Lauren Corona writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
