When the first fall day hits your city, there’s no shame in craving something – anything – pumpkin spice flavored. As Americans, we have been classically trained to see leaves fall, then run to the closest Starbucks to order a grande pumpkin spice latte. But what if everything – think bagels, cinnamon rolls, ants on a log – could taste like our beloved PSL’s with just a spread of a knife?
Well fellow PSL lovers, it can. It’s called pumpkin spice flavored cream cheese, and it changed my life for the better.
1. Let’s start with the basic bagel and cream cheese – a fan favorite.
Though seemingly basic, nothing beats a freshly toasted bagel in the morning. It’s an easy and manageable on-the-go breakfast with the potential to take on whatever flavor your heart desires to spread across its crusted surface. Ever since I found the pumpkin spice cream cheese, my mornings (and my stomach) have been filled with bite after bite of pumpkin spice. My walks to class have never been so satisfying.
2. Another sweet way to add some PS into your diet is through cinnamon rolls.
The cinnamon rolls featured in the picture above are Pillsbury. Using the pumpkin spice cream cheese as a base, you can make the creamiest icing for all cinnamon rolls. Creating the pumpkin spice icing is easy and only requires a few ingredients: butter, cream cheese, salt, and powdered sugar.
#SpoonTip: I microwave my icing for about 35 seconds so it’s easy to drizzle on top of the cinnamon rolls.
3. Pumpkin spice “Ants on a Log” is a good way to taste fall but simultaneously keep the calorie count down.
“Ants on a Log” is my all-time favorite quick snack and has been since I was little. My fast-pace lifestyle revolves around balancing school, writing, and extracurriculars, so the quicker the snack prep, the more appealing it is to me. I really couldn’t resist the pumpkin spice “ants on a log”. It’s as easy as grabbing some celery, smearing the pumpkin cream cheese across it, and adding raisins – or my personal favorite – dark chocolate chips. All the fall flavors but none of the PSL calories.
4. A sweet way to pumpkin spice-up your afternoon sweet tooth is with cookie sandwiches.
This little hack is so easy it hurts! All you have to do is buy your favorite cookies (I like slice and bake), spread the pumpkin spice cream cheese on the bottom, and mush the two sides together. I promise this cookie sandwich will not disappoint – the cream cheese cuts the sweetness and adds to the pumpkin flavor.
#SpoonTip: I also like to make my own pumpkin spice Oreos. Take out the frosting and put it in a bowl, add two tablespoons of pumpkin cream cheese, heat in the microwave for 30 seconds, mix well, re-stuff the Oreo cookies, and freeze for 5 minutes – your life will be changed.
5. Finally, if you have some time on your hands and are looking to bake, these pumpkin cream cheese muffins are the real deal.
The prep time is only 10 minutes and the bake time about 26. These muffins are so moist and fluffy – I promise they are worth the bake time! I made my own cream cheese frosting with the pumpkin spice cream cheese instead of the plain cream cheese – and it tasted so much better.
If you’re like me (and every other human in America), it’s not called fall; it’s called pumpkin spice season. So don’t miss out – go get yo pumpkin spice on!