To me, pumpkin spice is a celebration of human achievement. I hope by the end of this chat you’ll feel the same. I’ve broken this article into two major sections: First, I’ll talk about the history (both recent and ancient) of pumpkin spice and show you why it is both a worldwide phenomenon and an American tradition. Second, I’ll do my best to help you make the best pumpkin spice imaginable. You’ll never buy pre-prepared pumpkin spice again.

Table of Contents:

The History of Pumpkin Spice
How to Make Pumpkin Spice
Skip to the Recipe

The History of Pumpkin Spice

Starbucks released their pumpkin spice latte in 2003, which makes this the twentieth anniversary of a nationwide food trend that shows no signs of slowing down. Since then, pumpkin spice has become a raved-over commodity in everything you can imagine—drinks, baked goods, perfumes. There was even a limited-time release of pumpkin spice flavored Spam!

Despite its hardcore resurgence in recent decades, pumpkin spice is actually a centuries-old spice mix that used to be more valuable than gold. Although in those days, it wasn’t used on pumpkin (or any squash).

Pumpkin spice is just a mix of spices that mostly originate in Asia—cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and clove. Enterprising American settlers eventually added allspice to the mix, which is a Mexican spice.

In some parts of the world, especially South Asia and the Middle East, these spices are used year-round. But we associate them with fall, winter, and the holidays. Why is that?

It all started back in the day when a pound of nutmeg was worth more than its weight in gold. I’m talking hundreds of years ago—before Columbus ever thought of sailing the ocean blue. In the 1600s to 1700s, Asiatic spices were a hot commodity only enjoyed by Europe’s elite.

Fast forward several decades, and Europe had colonized parts of Asia. Global trade accelerated, and exotic spices became more accessible to the lower classes. Thus, if a family scrimped and saved, they could splurge on special occasions (say, Christmas?) and buy a stick of cinnamon or a handful of cloves. Exotic spices quickly became associated with religious celebrations and therefore became a feature of the northern hemisphere’s coldest months.

Okay, that explains why these spices are so common in the winter, but why is it such a big deal in America? And why is it called pumpkin spice?

The first American cookbook was printed in 1796. This is when Amelia Simmons (remember her name; pay your respects) published American Cookery, and in it included a pumpkin pie recipe that used cinnamon and ginger. Pumpkin is indigenous to the Americas and was introduced to early pilgrims by the nation’s native people. It is almost certain that pumpkin (probably roasted) was served at the first Thanksgiving. This is why pumpkin pie is so uniquely American. And Amelia Simmons’ recipe with cinnamon and ginger planted the roots of pumpkin spice deep in the American psyche.

Despite all this, pumpkin spice didn’t get its official name until McCormick & Company launched its “Pumpkin Spice” product in 1934. By then, not only was pumpkin spice popular, but it was finally widely accessible.

The rest is history. Starbucks didn’t make pumpkin spice popular. They emblemized something we’d been celebrating for hundreds of years.

If you ask me, pumpkin spice has an unfair reputation of being too “basic,” as if being popular makes it bad. But maybe some things are popular specifically because they’re good? Or, maybe some things are popular because they’re part of our cultural identity and are rooted in nostalgia and tradition. There’s nothing wrong with either of these things. I like to curl up in front of a movie with my wife and daughter, sipping hot eggnog with whipped cream and a dash of homemade pumpkin spice, and I imagine my ancestors looking down at me, smiling, and whispering, “We did it!”

How (and Why) to Make Your Own Pumpkin Spice:

Warning: this is not a quick-read for an easy recipe. If you’re here for a fast meal idea, then I apologize for wasting your time. To me, good cooking is about enjoying the process just as much as the result. I don’t cook because I love to eat; I cook because I love good food and how it’s made. With that being said, nothing I write is difficult or even expensive; it just takes some planning and patience. Shall we dive in?

Pumpkin spice is a mix of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, clove, and allspice. However, I’ve seen a handful of other ingredients floating around—King Arthur Flour recommends a pinch of black pepper, and a handful of gourmet bakers incorporate star anise. The spice mix is predominantly cinnamon, secondarily ginger, and complemented by the other ingredients. A typical mix includes:

• 2 tablespoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon clove
• ½ teaspoon allspice

With that being said, don’t write that recipe down. I mean it; close the Cook’n app until we’ve talked. Wanna know how to make pumpkin spice better than anyone else? Try these tips:

Use Fresh Spices

You know that little bottle of ground allspice you bought four years ago, which you’ve been using a pinch of at a time? Throw it away. Seriously! It’s okay, I had to do the same thing earlier this week as I was writing this article.

Here’s the thing… The moment spices are ground up, they lose their special qualities. I’m not just talking about the wonderful aroma of fresh spices, but other magical things in their chemistry like piquancy (or spiciness) and pungency (that pleasant burning sensation in your nose), as well as the strength and vibrancy of their aroma.

In other words, as spices get old, they lose the aromatic and chemical properties that make them so unique, and they dwindle down to a mere suggestion of what they could have been.

If you’ve ever tasted the difference between fresh cracked pepper and a diner’s dusty pepper shaker, you know exactly what I’m talking about. It’s no longer a pungent, floral bite on your tongue; it’s more like a pile of slightly spicy dirt.

No wonder I hated pepper growing up.

Whole Spices are Better than Ground

There are several reasons to buy whole spices, and I’ll rattle through them quickly because this article is getting long:

• Some spices lose their unique qualities within minutes of grinding. This includes allspice and nutmeg. If you want the best pumpkin spice (or any spice), fresh ground will be best.
• Sometimes it’s better to steep spices in hot water and use the resulting infused water in your cooking. You can’t do this with pre-ground spices.
• Whole spices last longer than pre-ground spices, which saves you money long term.
• There’s something very meditative about standing over your mortar and pestle, grinding spices like an old-school apothecary. Or you can use your electric spice grinder; more power to you.

Toast Your Spices

This is super easy and super worth it. Toasting spices is fundamental to layering flavors and creating a complex dish that dances through your mouth and nose and makes you excited to wake up the next morning so you can cook again.

How to Toast Spices:

Put a dry pan on the stove at medium heat. Do not add oil to the pan. Before grinding your spices, throw them on the pan and constantly move them around over the heat. You’ll know they’re done by using your nose. When they smell awesome, they’re done. Do this with an entire spice mix and it’ll smell like the gods of home cooking had a party right in your kitchen.

Pro-tip: If you’re cooking with this many cloves at once, be prepared to taste hellfire. I wasn’t paying attention to my measurements, and ruined what was supposed to be the pumpkin spice BBQ sauce I wanted to share with this article.

If you’re cooking with pre-ground spices, toasting will no longer work, but you can “bloom” them instead by heating them in some oil before adding the rest of your food. Though this isn’t the best approach if you’re adding pumpkin spice to your homemade eggnog.

Some tips: Do not throw in different spices at the same time; some spices toast faster than others. And yes, if you’re going to cook the spices anyway, you still want to toast them.

Blossoming Spices:

Sometimes you have no choice and need to buy the sad, pre-ground stuff. In that case, you can’t toast the spices ahead of time. But instead, you can try “blossoming” the ground spices. This is where you cook them alone on medium heat mixed with some form of cooking fat. This will trigger an aromatic release that preps them for cooking. By the way, you can’t toast fresh ginger, but you can sure blossom it. If you want an extra awesome punch, try fermenting your own ginger and blossoming that as part of your recipe.

Let’s Wrap Up

If you’ve read this entire article, then thanks for sticking with me through a long journey. By now you’re aware of the long history of pumpkin spice and why we’ve made it so uniquely American. Not only that, you understand spices better than anyone in your family, and you’re prepared to wow their socks off next time you make pumpkin bread, spiced cider, or even that pumpkin spice cheesecake you snagged from Pinterest.

I love pumpkin spice because it tastes like childhood and tradition. I love it because it is a testament to how far we’ve come as a species—once a rare commodity that you could never afford if you spent your whole life trying, now one of several spice mixes you can pull off the shelf at the grocery store. Except, don’t pull it off the shelf. Be a pro. Go make your own.



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