Don’t Ditch Your Holiday Drinks… Make Them Even Better

If you’re anything like me, the approaching holiday season has me ready for sweaters, blankets, good books, and warm holiday-drinks. After nearly a year of eating a mainly plant-based diet while limiting added sugars, I was afraid that the Pumpkin Spice Lattes and Peppermint Hot Cocoas would not be part of my celebration this year. This way of thinking simply made me want to give up eating plant-based for the holiday season, so I could enjoy my lattes and cold-weather, as one should! This is where the mindset change comes in. Eating clean does not mean having a restrictive diet, but instead choosing foods that are going to taste great while nourishing our bodies. 

Let’s talk about the drinks I used to buy:

A Starbucks Grande Pumpkin Spice Latte has:

  • 390 Calories
  • 14g of fat
  • 50g of sugar
  • 14g of protein

A Starbucks Grande Hot Chocolate has:

  • 370 Calories
  • 16g of fat
  • 37g of sugar
  • 14g of protein

I would change these drinks by switching the whole milk for soy, which would decrease the calories but may even increase the sugar content, because most coffee shops are not buying unsweetened plant milks. These drinks are high in calories, high in fat, and high in sugar (for reference, 50g of sugar is about 4 tablespoons worth!). 

After looking at these nutrition labels, I knew if I wanted to still enjoy my holiday drinks, while working toward my nutrition goals, we were going to have to be creative! So, with research and experimentation, I created coffee at home that I actually prefer to buying! See below for a homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte recipe, with these nutrition facts:

At-Home Pumpkin Spice Latte:

  • 100 calories
  • 4g of fat
  • 6g of sugar (0g artificial!)
  • 8g of protein

Enjoy creating your holiday drinks at home this year, you may even find you like them better (and save money too)!

At-Home Pumpkin Spice Latte

Prep Time 2 minutes
Cook Time 3 minutes
Servings 1
Calories 100 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 8 oz Unsweetened Soy Milk
  • 1 Tbsp Pure Pumpkin Puree
  • 2 oz Espresso
  • 1/2 tsp Honey
  • 1/2 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

Instructions
 

  • Add all ingredients to a small saucepan on medium heat.
  • Stir until pumpkin puree and honey are completely dissolved and milk begins to simmer.
  • Pour in a mug, and enjoy!
  • (If you have an electric milk frother, add all the ingredients to frother cup, and simply turn it on!!)

Here is a kid-friendly version for the whole family to enjoy!

At-Home Pumpkin Spice Hot Cocoa

  • 8 oz Unsweetened soy milk
  • 1 Tbsp Pure Pumpkin Puree 
  • 1 Tbsp Organic Cocoa Powder
  • 1 tsp Honey
  • 1/2 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

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