Stop Putting Pumpkin Spice in Your Latte
Or at least save a few tablespoons for dinner...
Renee Comet
Sure, warming fall spices are great in desserts — the combo is called pumpkin pie spice for a very good reason.
But the homey, nutty, aromatic combo of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves and allspice shouldn’t be relegated to the after-dinner finale. Those spices are ideal for building flavor in stews and enhancing earthy pumpkin in savory dishes, too. Once you’ve gotten the hang of the idea, work it into any dinner, including pumpkin pie spice tacos, pastas, soups and burgers.
Here are some favorite ways to add pumpkin spice to your dinner table ahead of dessert.
Sunny’s 5-star pork draws flavor from a blend of pumpkin pie spice, mustard powder, onion powder, garlic powder and salt and pepper. A final brown sugar glaze locks in the flavors.
Ready in 35 minutes, this all-in-one dish calls for Moroccan ras el hanout. For those without a jar on the spice rack, pumpkin pie spice provides the warming flavors to store-bought rotisserie chicken, couscous, golden raisins, honey and almonds.
Sunny’s hearty fall chili packs plenty of flavor into the chili pot. A teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice bolsters the beef chuck, along with red wine, butternut squash, bell pepper and plenty of seasoning.
Not in the mood to scrape a pumpkin for pepitas? Toss together this salty, spicy nut mix, using cooked bacon, 2 cups of peanuts, some salt and sugar, pumpkin pie spice and egg whites to bind it all. You’ll never miss the pumpkin innards.
And if it’s the flavor of pure pumpkin you’re looking for, stir pumpkin puree into these probably-even-better-than-pie savory recipes:
A personal favorite, this smoky dish uses an entire can of pumpkin, splitting it between the pork-based chili and an earthy pumpkin sour cream topping. Mexican lager, chipotles in adobo, and mustard greens are two of the components that further separate this from other recipes.
This easy main (pictured up top) works pumpkin into pasta dough, meaning the bulk of the flavor comes through in each individual noodle. Finish the noodles in a quick sage butter for a satisfying half-hour meal.
Bump up your hummus game with this easy dip, augmenting the usual ingredients with a generous scoop of pumpkin puree.
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