My roommate hates pumpkin so the other night I read her all the items containing America’s favorite gourd in the Trader Joe’s Fearless Flyer. Here are some of my favorites:
- Cold pressed pumpkin harvest juice (What would this even taste like? Like drinking a Yankee Candle?)
- Pumpkin cream cheese (Ew)
- Pumpkin pie mochi ice cream (Let’s take something trendy and make it trendier)
- Pumpkin flavored dog treats (No reason your dog should miss out on the fun)
- Pumpkin spiced pumpkin seeds (A bit like dredging chicken in egg yolk, this just feels cruel)
Safe to say, I think we’ve gone off the pumpkin deep end this year.
But in the interest of remaining “trendy” and “current” (two things I have never been), I’ve decided to put my little piece of pumpkin frenzy out into the universe.
I mean, I have a food blog, I’m basically obligated to.
News of note: While I don’t jump on the pumpkin spice latte train, I have a weakness for chai lattes. Not the real kind with like actual chai tea steeped in milk but the overly sweet kind with concentrate that comes from a bottle. I make no apologies.
Last year I made pumpkin pie overnight oats that were too pumpkin-y. This year I played with the recipe, decreasing the pumpkin and replacing some of the maple syrup with chai concentrate. The result was lightly sweet, rich and creamy.
If you don’t like pumpkin these won’t make a convert out of you. But if you do, then they’re a perfect filling, make-ahead, grab-and-go breakfast for crisp fall mornings.
Pumpkin chai overnight oats
(Adapted from Organize Yourself Skinny)
½ cup unsweetened soy, almond or coconut milk
½ cup rolled (or old fashioned) oats
2 tablespoons pumpkin purée
¼ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (recipe below)
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons Chai concentrate (I use Tazo)
1 teaspoon maple syrup
In a small bowl (or mason jar if you roll like that), combine milk, oats, pumpkin purée, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, Chai concentrate and maple syrup. Mix until completely combined.
Cover tightly with plastic wrap or lid and refrigerate overnight, or for at least 8 hours.
Before serving, add a little more milk if needed and mix.
Pumpkin pie spice blend
(From All Recipes)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
In a small bowl, mix all ingredients together. Store in an airtight container.
Pumpkin spice overnight oats: http://www.organizeyourselfskinny.com/2014/10/08/pumpkin-spice-overnight-oats/
Pumpkin spice recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/20476/pumpkin-spice/
