Cooking from Memory: A new froth in town | News

Anyone who knows me well, knows I love pumpkin spice lattes. So much so, that some have called it an addiction. OK, that was just me, I called myself an addict. It’s just that whenever I see the signs going up in coffee shops, cafes, donut shops, and gas stations, I get a little excited.

I get it, addiction is probably too strong a term. We’ll just call it a habit. A habit that kicks in around the second week of September and doesn’t give up until November. Or December. Or whenever the powers that be decide to stop advertising and selling the sweet and spicy creation.

As you might imagine, the pumpkin spice latte is not particularly healthy. According to Eat This, Not That, a 16-ounce Starbucks pumpkin spice latte contains 50 grams of sugar.

That’s three times as much sugar as that benchmark for unhealthy foodstuffs, the Twinkie. No one needs that much sugar on a regular basis. So how do I break myself of this unhealthy habit?

There used to be a common fallacy floating around among the self-help gurus that “it takes 21 days to break a habit.”

This was the natural extension of another fallacy, that it takes 21 days to form a new habit.

While there is a big difference between breaking a habit and forming a new one, and it most likely takes much longer than 21 days, the logic is correct.

If you want to quit smoking, replace the old, unhealthy habit with a new, less unhealthy habit like chewing gum or sucking on an anise lozenge. You know, the kind your Aunt May always had in the bottom of her purse.

I’m pretty sure that even though there is a vast difference in the physiological factors involved in quitting smoking and giving up pumpkin spice lattes for three months, the technique can be the same.

Simply replace one habit for another, less unhealthy habit.

If only there were another sweet and spicy, yet healthy, frothy beverage that I enjoy almost as much as the pumpkin spice latte.

It just so happens that there is, the Golden Milk Latte. Made with fresh spices, heavy on the turmeric, steamed plant-based milk, and a splash of coconut oil and honey, the golden milk latte oozes health. At 17 grams of sugar, it clocks in at less than a Twinkie’s worth.

How the Twinkie became the new standard for measuring sugar, I’ll never know.

A study by University College London, published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, found that the actual time to form a lasting habit is closer to 66 days, or about the length of pumpkin spice latte season.

Every time I get a craving for a pumpkin spice latte, my plan is to whip up a little golden milk to replace the craving.

By the end of fall, I hope to be off the pumpkin and onto the golden.

Of course, I have to hedge my bets. If that plan doesn’t work, I’ve devised a slightly more healthy pumpkin spice latte to get me through. I’ve included both recipes to try.

Just remember, no matter which one you end up loving more, they each have less sugar than three Twinkies.

Golden Milk Latte

2 C. almond, coconut, or oat milk

1 inch fresh turmeric root, thinly sliced

1 inch fresh ginger root, thinly sliced and gently smashed

1 cinnamon stick

2 cardamom pods, smashed

3 black peppercorns

2 t. virgin coconut oil

1 T. honey

Combine all ingredients in a heavy bottomed, small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Simmer for one minute and remove from heat. Let steep for 10 minutes and return to heat. Simmer for another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove and strain through a fine mesh strainer.

Whisk until frothy and serve with a little ground turmeric and cinnamon sprinkled on top.

Pumpkin Spice Latte

Pumpkin Spice Caramel

⅔ C. heavy cream

1 cinnamon stick

4 whole allspice berries

¼ t. fresh grated nutmeg

4 whole cloves

3 thin slices ginger root

1 stick butter

2 T. honey

½ C. granulated sugar

½ C. brown sugar

½ t. pumpkin spice powder (optional)

Bring the heavy cream and spices to a boil in a heavy bottomed saucepan. Remove from the heat and let spices steep for at least a half hour. The longer you steep, the more flavor you get. Add the butter, honey and sugars and return to a boil. Boil, stirring, for three minutes. Remove from the heat and strain out the spices. When it cools enough, taste and add pumpkin spice powder if you would like a spicier flavor.

Latte:

1-2 T. Pumpkin Spice Caramel (or to taste)

⅓ C. espresso or strong, dark coffee

⅔ C. milk

Pumpkin spice powder to taste

Combine the espresso and caramel in a coffee cup or mug. Steam the milk with the steaming wand of an espresso machine or froth the cold milk with an electric frother and heat in the microwave or heat over the stove in a thick bottomed pan, whisking vigorously to create froth. Pour steamed milk into cup and mix lightly. Sprinkle with pumpkin spice powder if desired.