Pumpkin spice lattes, cold brews, even cake? Coffee shops gear up for fall's spicy season
Do you like pumpkin spice? Maybe you can get a pumpkin spice engagement ring for $11,000 or head to your local coffee shop for a pumpkin spice latte, a doughnut, muffin or any other treat infused with this quintessential autumn flavor.
The cult for pumpkin beverages has become so untamed that coffee shop chains have been selling their cozy pumpkin-flavored items progressively earlier every year.
When does pumpkin spice season start 2023?
On Aug. 16, with expected temperatures as high as 83 degrees in New Jersey, Dunkin’ Donuts will start the sale of a whole gamut of pumpkin-flavored items.
Besides Dunkin’s signature pumpkin spice latte and its pumpkin cream cold brew, the chain is bringing back its nutty pumpkin coffee, a pumpkin cold brew spiked with a shot of hazelnut flavor that debuted last year.
Other chains started as early as Aug. 1, such as 7-Eleven, which released a line of pumpkin-spiced beverages. While Krispy Kreme announced the release of its pumpkin spice doughnut menu on Aug. 7.
For their part, Starbucks hasn’t officially announced its fall menu. But employees at local Starbucks shops in New Jersey confirmed that their pumpkin spice menu will be selling by the end of August.
Let's not forget about Wawa, which is coming out with a new pumpkin spice iced macchiato WITH cold foam. There's also the convenience store's hot pumpkin spice latte because the weather will eventually turn cold, or the cold can just be purchased with a frozen pumpkin spice cheesecake smoothie.
Breaking news: QuickChek has hit the ground running, as of Aug. 15, with - you guessed it - pumpkin spiced coffee brewed hot or iced, "enhanced with an aromatic blend of nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, and ginger spice," according to QuickChek's news release.
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What is pumpkin spice?
The highly acclaimed spice blend is typically a mix of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves and sometimes allspice. It’s an old blend with references to it in "The Original Boston Cooking-School Cookbook," which was published in 1896.
But the roar for it has been in vogue for the past few years.
“Once it comes out, people go crazy,” said Emily Hughes, owner of The Local Market and Kitchen in Long Beach Island. “The pumpkin spice crowd is a different type of breed.”
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Pumpkin spice lattes: Grab one locally
Starting on Sept. 6, The Local Market and Kitchen will sell its pumpkin spice latte, iced or hot. The beverage, as Hughes claimed, “is not your average pumpkin spice latte” but rather an “extravagant latte” with caramel sauce, whipped cream and garnished with a pumpkin, pecan biscotti.
The drink will be officially available until around Thanksgiving, but every year Hughes keeps the ingredients available through December, as her customers get upset when the seasonal drink is gone for the year, she said.
“I don’t keep it available all year round because it's more popular if we keep people craving it,” she said.
For an organic pumpkin beverage, stop by Port Coffee Roasters in Bayhead, where the shop will be serving its pumpkin spice latte starting the week of Labor Day, and the shop is also introducing a pumpkin cold brew.
Unlike the latte, this new fall beverage is not made with pumpkin syrup or swirl, but rather with an organic extract that imparts flavor with no comparison, said owner Greg Mazzatta.
The pumpkin menu at Port Coffee Roaster will be available until the beginning of November, when winter ingredients take the baton.
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Pumpkin spice cake recipe
Total Time: Prep: 15 minutes
Bake: 45 minutes, plus cooling
Makes 16 servings
INGREDIENTS
1 package spice cake mix (regular size)
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup canola oil
1 package (3.4 ounces) instant vanilla pudding mix
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Cream cheese frosting or whipped cream
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour a 10-in. fluted tube pan. In a large bowl, combine the dry cake mix, eggs, pumpkin, water, oil, pudding mix and cinnamon. Beat at medium speed for 5 minutes. Stir in pecans.
Pour into prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 45-55 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Frost cake or serve with whipped cream.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Pumpkin spice season is here. Celebrate at Starbucks, Wawa, Quickchek
