Fall in Love with this Pumpkin Pie Kefir Recipe

As autumn rolls in do you feel the pumpkin spice nostalgia wash over you? Do you want to enjoy these warm, spicy flavors without paying 8 bucks for a huge cup of poison sugar? Me too! That’s why I make this delicious pumpkin pie kefir at home!

What is kefir?

Milk kefir or dairy kefir is a fermented dairy drink made by inoculating milk with kefir grains. Kefir grains are the symbiotic culture that’s used to make kefir. You can make kefir with cow, goat or sheep’s milk. There are also a few other uses for the kefir grain starter cultures beyond that. In this article I will focus on fermenting cow’s milk with kefir grains.

If you want to know more, read my in depth article on kefir here.

How to flavor homemade kefir?

• Make kefir
• Remove the kefir grains
• Add desired flavoring (fruit, spices etc)
• Leave kefir room tempurature for a few hours to meld the flavors well
• Move to the fridge
• Enjoy!

Pumpkin pie? Pumpkin spice? Really?

Yes really. These spices were good long before it was a trendy fad that every processed food had producer had to exploit. Pumpkin Spice Oreos anyone? Or how about some pumpkin spice toothpaste? I’m good.

I’m writing this post because it’s autumn and these spices are warming and delicious. Kefir is a blank, probiotic rich nutrient dense, slate.

Forever I just used kefir as is, or make kefir cheese. It wasn’t until after several years of making kefir that I started to play with flavoring it. For the last few years I’ve been enjoying exploring the streets of flavor town while consuming this life giving food.

Homemade Pumpkin Pie Kefir

I love warm spices like cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, ginger and allspice. Pumpkin spice is a glorious marriage of these spices and it’s perfect for fall. I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me sooner to try adding these spices to kefir.

Pumpkin also has a great flavor in an of itself. When you add those warm spices to pumpkin purée something magical happens.

Adding pumpkin spice and pumpkin purée to just about anything is delicious. Pumpkin pie ice cream, pumpkin pie yogurt, pumpkin pie lattes (duh) and even pumpkin pie! Literally just pumpkin pie, that’s where it all started I suppose.

Store bought pumpkin spice kefir

Yes, I just learned you can buy a store bought pumpkin spice kefir from Lifeway. I don’t know much about this company but the ingredients on this product include things I try not to bring into my home. “Natural” flavoring for one, and it’s fortified with synthetic vitamins. Read the full list of ingredients here.

The store bought big brand kefirs just seem like they’re low fat milk with thickeners, colors, sugar and isolated cultures added. It’s cheaper and better to make it at home!

Remember, when you invest in your kefir culture (kefir grains) they will make infinite batches of kefir as long as you take good care of your grains. Finish your kefir, move your grains in to fresh milk and start making your next batch. Rinse and repeat. That was a joke, you don’t really need to rinse the grains.

What’s the difference between Pumpkin Pie Spice and Pumpkin Spice?

For this recipe I consider pumpkin pie to include some real pumpkin purée, while with pumpkin spice I leave out the pumpkin purée and just add the spices.

Sweetening homemade pumpkin pie kefir

I prefer using a natural sweetener, and I use it sparingly. Some good choices are honey, maple syrup or coconut sugar. I usually use maple syrup, my second choice would be honey. Honey tastes great, but is harder to mix into a cold liquid.

Add the maple syrup or honey to taste. You don’t need to go overboard, a little goes a long way. If you like things sweeter, make sure your kefir is not over fermented. The longer you ferment kefir the more sour it becomes. Shorter fermented kefir will have a sweeter taste as the natural milk sugars are still intact.

Equipment for making kefir

• Quart canning jar
• Nylon mesh strainer
• Canning funnel
• Cultures for Health Kefir Grains
• Small silicone spatula
• Plastic reusable lids for canning jars

Ingredients for making pumpkin pie kefir

• 1 quart finished milk kefir, grains removed
• Maple syrup or honey
• Vanilla extract
• Pumpkin spice
• Pumpkin Puree (optional)

How to make pumpkin pie kefir

• Make kefir as you usually would (learn more here).
• Remove the kefir grains and start a new batch or store for later.
• Add maple syrup, vanilla extract and pumpkin spice to kefir and stir well.
• Leave room tempurature for a couple hours for the flavors to meld.
• Move pumpkin pie kefir to the fridge and enjoy when cold.

What to buy?

This recipe is so simple, you don’t need much if you’re already making your own kefir. Odds are you probably have some pumpkin spice mix on hand, along with vanilla extract and some honey or some really good maple syrup.

If you don’t have your kefir making gear yet, here is a list of what I use:

• Quart canning jar
• Nylon mesh strainer
• Canning funnel
• Cultures for Health Kefir Grains
• Small silicone spatula
• Plastic reusable lids for canning jars

Pumpkin purée is easily available in cans from most grocers. It’s a bummer to open a whole can just for a spoonful. That’s why I usually plan to make pumpkin pie kefir when I’m already using canned pumpkin for another recipe. When I made this kefir recipe, I was also making these awesome pumpkin sourdough muffins and had just a little pumpkin purée left.

I usually buy my bulk honey from Azure Standard here.

A word about maple syrup

I like dark maple syrup. It has a more robust, mineral rich version of what you might be buying at Costco when you get the ‘real’ maple syrup. It’s interesting, because the grading system for maple syrup has somewhat recently changed.

I used to look for Grade A maple syrup thinking that was the top of the line stuff. Turns out it was actually just a lighter version. What I actually wanted was Grade B maple syrup. By time I figured this out the decided to change the grading system anyway.

If you want to geek out on maple syrup grading check out this article, or skip it and just take my word for it. I recommend buying Grade A Very Dark Color Strong Taste maple syrup. If I’m using the maple for cooking or baking I go with the cheaper and lighter variety and it’s just fine.

Now make it! And tell me what you think in the comments below!

Read more about How to Make Kefir here

Read more about How to Make Kefir Cheese here

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Homemade Pumpkin Pie Kefir – Real Food Pumpkin Spice Treat

Lanni @preservingtoday

Spice up your homemade, probiotic rich milk kefir with the flavors of fall.

4 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Fermentation Time 14 hours hrs

Servings 4 Cups

Equipment

• Quart canning jar
• Nylon mesh strainer
• Canning funnel
• Cultures for Health Kefir Grains
• Small silicone spatula
• Plastic reusable lids for canning jars
• measuring spoons

Ingredients

  

• 1 quart finished milk kefir grains removed
• 1 – 2 TBSP Maple syrup or honey
• 1 TSP Vanilla extract
• 1 – 2 TSP Pumpkin spice
• 1 TBSP Pumpkin puree Optional

Instructions

 

• Make kefir as you usually would (learn more here).
• Remove the kefir grains and start a new batch or store for later.
• Add maple syrup, vanilla extract, pumpkin spice and pumpkin purée (if using) to kefir and stir well.
• Leave covered at room temperature for a couple hours for the flavors to meld.
• Move pumpkin pie kefir to the fridge and enjoy when cold.

Keyword kefir