The Adventures of That Girl: Autumn weather and Autumn drinks

It's feeling like Autumn again, and this is the season for hot, steamy drinks and cuddling on the couch with kitties. Unfortunately, there's only so much tea I can drink before I start really craving my Starbucks. Specifically, the pumpkin latte and the caramel macciato. Now, I've yet to figure out the later drink, but I did come up with a feasible pumpkin latte! The main difficulty is that all recipes I looked at online or through friends used pumpkin flavored syrup-and that involoves corn syrups and sugars. And to further complicate it, it's a drink that is at its best creamy peak with heavy cream. *le sigh*

For the moment, I am content with my pumpkin spice latte recipe. But I figure that will change soon enough, once I've had enough time to think about it. In the meantime, I'll post the recipe and get input on it. If anyone has any suggestions or personal recipe improvements, let me know!

(Serves 2)

‎1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2 cups almond milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp clove
dash of mace

Toss all the above into the food processor and blend well. Then pour it into a small saucepan on the stovetop, and heat for about 10 minutes on low. (do NOT boil! That will destroy flavor!) After it's fully hot and yummy smelling, pour into 2 mugs and serve. If you're allowed dairy and sugar, dollop some whip cream on it, and then sprinkle lightly with cinnamon. If you have texture problems, you will want to strain the drink before serving, just fyi..

The calorie and carb count will vary, depending on the milk you use.. just know that it is in the 420-580 range for calories, and 15-18 carb range.. But it's worth it! (at least, it is when you can't go to Starbucks..)