In Search of...

I always loved that show when I was a kid, for some reason. Leonard Nimoy (hey! where are his pointy ears?!?) with his resonant voice, looking for elusive phemomena. I think the last time I watched this show I was maybe ten years old, and I distinctly remember loving the Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot episodes. Today, however, I am in search of the elusive homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte recipe that tastes JUST LIKE STARBUCKS. I put this in all caps because it's really imperative that it taste as close to the beloved Starbucks' version as possible. My friend Eilyne requires it.

 Eilyne has embarked on a most interesting journey. She has vowed to give up Starbucks for 100 days. That's right. 100 days. And she writes a fascinating, funny, heartfelt blog about her journey, which as it has turned out, really is only partly about giving up Starbucks. She had a very good reason for doing this, which you can read all about if you look at the very first post, some 75ish days ago (see  link to her blog to your right).  And Eilyne and I have a few things in common. She happens to be married to one of my really, really good friends from junior high and high school. We both have more-than-the-average number of children by today's standards, so we can commiserate about the three ring circus that is currently our lives. Finally, and most importantly, here, is that we both love the Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks.

So, when I started thinking (well, fantasizing) about the this year's impending release of the PSL a month or so ago, I got really concerned about Eilyne. How would she handle this?  She's so close, she can't give up her quest now! So I got cracking with the google search and came up with a few recipes for the PSL. I passed one along to Eilyne, and my testing of one of the other ones is below.

I thought this recipe was really, really good. Is it EXACTLY like Starbucks' recipe? Nope, not quite. But very good, yes. Perfect for my preschool co-op group; we mommies like to drink coffee while we're chasing, teaching, reading and playing. So I highly recommend you give it a shot.  You can find the complete recipe at thekitchn.com, here.

Now, I'm not much of a recipe cook. I get more of a feel for a recipe, and then I go for it. The same with this. I didn't bother putting it in the blender; I just whisked the mixture while it was on the stove heating up, and it was plenty frothy. I also made my own pumpkin pie spice blend of ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon, which was great.

So, try out the recipe on a cool Autumn morning (or afternoon!), and then hop on over to my friend Eilyne's blog, read her post and try out her recipe, here .

Cheers!