'Tis Always The Season For Pumpkin Spice Coquito

The pumpkin spice life is one lived without limits. Want to start sipping PSLs in the dog dags of summer? You're free to do that. How about pumpkin-spicing the hell out of your instant ramen or Spam? Go right ahead. How about a cheese-stuffed pumpkin-stuffed pumpkin bao dunked in pumpkin soup with a soupçon of pumpkin foam? Don't let anything keep you from following your dreams.

Pumpkin spice is a flavor unbound by the seasons. And the very same could be said of another seasonal favorite: coquito.

Coquito is a drink that's traditionally enjoyed at Christmastime—think of it as eggnog by way of Puerto Rico—but why should you have to wait until December to sip it when you can combine its powers with the allure of pumpkin spice right now? Start drinking Pumpkin Spice Coquito now, continue on through New Year's Eve, and see if you can keep the season going through at least Valentine's Day. This stuff is so good, we really should try to make it a year-round thing.

Makes 9-10 cups

• 1 (12-oz.) can evaporated milk
• 1" piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• 3 cinnamon sticks
• 1 tsp. whole cloves
• 1 whole nutmeg, grated
• 1 (13.5-oz.) can coconut milk
• 1 (14-oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 (15-oz.) cream of coconut (like Coco Lopez)
• 1 (15-oz.) can pumpkin puree
• 1–1½ cups bourbon, dark rum, or non-alcoholic alternative (optional)
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

In a small saucepan, combine evaporated milk, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Bring to a quick boil and then simmer for 3 minutes. Let it cool to room temperature with the spices still steeping in it.

Advertisement

Pour the evaporated milk mixture through a fine sieve into a blender, discarding the spices. Add the rest of the ingredients to the blender. (Optional: If your blender can't fit all the liquid at once, combine the mixture in a large bowl and then blend it in batches.) Blend at medium speed until well blended. Pour into a glass bottle or large mason jar and refrigerate. Let the mixture chill, ideally overnight, for the flavors to come together. Serve cold with a sprinkle of cinnamon.

(For another fun twist on coquito, try these Coquito Bites Jell-O shots.)