Upgrade your cold brew coffee with this Pumpkin Cream Cold Foam that you can make right at home! It's the best creamy Starbucks dupe for their Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew and super easy to make with only a few items. It's the perfect way to celebrate pumpkin season and use up leftover canned pumpkin puree.
Starbucks and Dunkin' both have their own version of a Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew! The Dunkin' Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew is a cold brew that is steeped for 12 hours and topped with a Pumpkin Cream Cold Foam, which has notes of pumpkin and warm spices like cinnamon, clove and nutmeg. It's then topped cinnamon sugar!
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Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cold Foam
If you are like me and mark the start of fall with all things Starbucks pumpkin spice, then you most likely love the limited time Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew where the cold foam is swirled in with your coffee with a little extra pumpkin spice topping! It adds a wonderful fall season spin to the original sweet cream cold foam. It's my favorite Starbucks pumpkin drink by far.
Thankfully, you can make a copycat Starbucks pumpkin cream cold foam recipe with ease right at home with nothing too fancy. The at-home version has no preservatives and is absolutely delicious when freshly whipped.
I love making a batch at the beginning of each week for my morning coffees! I think it would go super well with the Starbucks Iced Brown Sugar Shaken Espresso.
And now you can make this year round. You're welcome.
What is Cold Foam?
Starbucks serves a luscious cold foam - a chilled foamy dairy-based topping layered on top of it's cold brews. It's made with a non-fat milk and vanilla syrup which is then whipped in special high speed blenders. The bit of cold brew and cold foam makes for the perfect sip with their strawless lids.
If you have an aeroccino from Nespresso, you make a regular foam that is frequently seen in hot drinks like lattes and cappuccinos. For cold drinks, the hot foam simply dissipates which is where the cold foam comes in.
It was popularized by Starbucks in the United States in the recent years and has especially become popular for those who love to brew their own coffees at home.
The Ingredients - Notes and Substitutions
The ingredients in the Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cold Foam Cold Brew list off as: ice, coffee, pumpkin cream cold foam, vanilla syrup, and pumpkin spice for topping. The pumpkin cream cold foam itself is made of cream, milk, sugar, condensed skim milk, pumpkin puree, fruit or vegetable juice for color, annatto (also used for dye), preservative, salt, "natural flavors", and vanilla syrup.
For the at-home version, we're removing the food dye and preservatives. Instead of sugar and condensed skim milk, we're using sweetened condensed milk which is much easier to find at grocery stores.
- Milk - Starbucks uses a non-fat milk for their cold foam because it has a larger percentage of protein. The resulting foam is robust with larger bubbles, and holds up better than hot foam with micro-bubbles that we see with lattes. Just about any milk, including plant-based milks, will work but not as well as a non-fat dairy-based milk. We also use heavy cream so it has the structure to sit at the top of the drink
- Sweetened Condensed Milk - Instead of using condensed skim milk, something which I've never seen in a grocery store, we're using sweetened condensed milk. You can also use plain condensed milk and add more or less sugar based off of preference.
- Pumpkin Puree - Don't purchase pumpkin pie filling, you'll want plain canned pumpkin puree. You can also make your own pumpkin puree from fresh pumpkin. I personally think this is a great recipe if you have some leftover canned pumpkin puree from other recipes.
- Pumpkin spice - Use a store-bought pumpkin spice blend or make your own. Starbucks makes their pumpkin spice with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.
- Vanilla Extract - Starbucks uses their Vanilla Syrup for making cold foam but plain vanilla extract works just fine. If you have vanilla syrup, go ahead and use 2 pumps instead of vanilla extract.
How to make Pumpkin Sweet Cream Cold Foam
Break up making the cold foam into two steps - first whipping the milk, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla extract which makes a version of the Starbucks sweet cream cold foam without using a pre-bought vanilla syrup.
From this point, add in flavorings to make any type of cold foam.
How to make Cold Foam
Start by pouring the non-fat milk, or milk of choice, and heavy cream into a large mixing bowl along with the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract. This is the sweet cream cold foam base, which is used for Starbucks cold brews but can be added to any drink.
Use a frother, whisk, electric mixer, french press, blender bottle, blender, etc to make the cold foam. Keep whipping it until it forms large bubbles, and then continue whipping until it's smoother and thickens significantly.
Add in the Flavoring
To make the Pumpkin Cold Foam, add the pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice on to the side of the bowl with the cold foam so it doesn't deflate. Continue whisking until fully combined.
And it's done!
Serving and Storing
Pour ice into a cup, and your choice of brewed coffee (cold brew, espresso, fresh brewed coffee).
Serve about a ½ cup to a cup of the cold foam per cup of iced coffee. The recipe makes 2-3 servings. Transfer the cold foam to a pourer to pour it over iced coffee, or spoon it on to the top. Sprinkle a bit of additional pumpkin spice.
To store leftover cold foam, keep it in a mason jar with an airtight lid. When ready to use again, you can shake the mason vigorously, use a portable frother, a mini whisk, etc.
Which Coffee to use
Cold foam is best used on iced coffees - and is specifically really great with cold brews. Fresh brewed coffees or espresso shots over ice work just as well, but cold brew is really the preferred drink when it comes to cold foam.
More Caffeinated Recipes to try
If you love pumpkin, try these Pumpkin Pie Samosas and Pumpkin Butter!
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Recipe
Pumpkin Cream Cold Foam (Starbucks Dupe)
Ingredients
- ice, as needed
- 2 cup brewed coffee
- pumpkin spice, for sprinkling
Pumpkin Cream Cold Foam
- 2 oz non-fat milk, (see notes)
- 6 oz heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup sweetened condensed milk
- 2 tablespoon pumpkin puree
- ¼ teaspoon pumpkin spice
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, pour in the non-fat milk, heavy cream, vanilla extract, and sweetened condensed milk. Using a whisk or electric whisk, whip the milk until it has large bubbles, and then becomes thick and smooth.
- Add the pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice, and a pinch of salt. Optionally, add more sugar per taste and annatto (dye) if desired. Continue to whip until fully combined and the foam has thickened, just before it forms soft peaks.
- Fill a cup with ice, and pour in half of the brewed coffee over the ice. Optionally, add milk of choice to the coffee. Slowly pour in the pumpkin cream cold foam over the coffee.
- Sprinkle additional pumpkin spice over the cold foam and enjoy!
Notes
- Use coconut whipped cream and sweetened coconut condensed milk as a vegan option
- Use any dairy-free milk you'd like in lieu of non-fat milk. Just keep in mind that it won't foam as well and hold its structure compared to the dairy versions.
- The best coffee to use is cold brew, but espresso or fresh brewed coffee work as well
- Store additional pumpkin cream cold foam in the fridge for up to 4 days. Rewhip with a whisk when ready to use, if necessary.
- Use any household item to whip the milk, i.e. frother, aeroccino, food processor, whisk, coffee press, blender, electric mixer.
- If you're using a Nespresso Aeroccino, mix all of the ingredients in a mason jar or bowl first, then pour it into the Aeroccino, up to the max line or with the desired amount. Turn it on the cold foam setting (press down and hold).
- (9/16/2021) This recipe was updated from 8oz of non-fat milk to 2oz of non-fat milk and 6oz of heavy cream so that the foam sits at the top of the drink. Starbucks uses special blenders to froth the non-fat milk until it is foamy, which is difficult to achieve at home without a high speed blender.
Keta says
Took five minutes and was really yummy!!!
Shweta says
Glad you thought so!
Jenna says
10/10 recipe 😀
Shweta says
Love to hear that!
Deep Agarwal says
Best recipe I have tried in a long time
Shweta says
Glad you loved it!!
Renu says
Good recipe 👍 thank you for another wonderful one!
Shweta says
Glad you enjoyed it!
Krishna says
Came out very tasty
Shweta says
Perfect amount of pumpkin, right?
Anuj says
So good!
Shweta says
Isn't it incredible?!
Shreyas says
Super yummy!! Would love to see a pumpkin spice recipe too!
Punam says
This recipe came out so good!! I used heavy cream instead of non-fat milk, no issues. Good for leftover pumpkin puree
Shweta says
agreed, it's great if you have a random amount leftover from something else.
G says
Ayeee
Kanika says
Quick and easy!
Shweta says
Just as it should be for morning coffees 🙂
Shipra says
The video is so nice! Came out super delicious, thank you for a great recipe
Shweta says
Thank you!! Great to hear 🙂
Esther says
Highly recommend this recipe!
priya says
flavour is awesome, just enough to satiate my pumpkin spice cravings
Phil says
came out super great! i used oat milk with a frother and it foamed up nicely
Garima says
Wow- was delicious!! An easy recipe!!
Mary says
can't stop making this pumpkin cold foam! had starbucks when they released their pumpkin things for 2021 but glad i found this to make while i work from home
Shweta says
nice!! i, too, was guilty of trying the dunkin and starbucks pumpkin cold foam when they came out this year but i think i still prefer the homemade!
Kelly says
Love this recipe so much! So easy to make, I’ll never go back to Starbucks!
Shweta says
That makes me so happy! That's the goal 😂
Lindsay says
Mine never thickens. Any pointers?
Shweta says
It’s most likely the milk you’re using!! You can use some heavy cream to help it whip
Alissa says
Mine doesn’t thicken either and I made sure to use non-fat milk like the recipe calls for. Maybe I’m not whipping long enough?
Shweta says
It's entirely possible, but it's hard to say without knowing exactly how you're whipping!! Starbucks uses high speed blenders to make their cold foam using non-fat milk (source: https://stories.starbucks.com/press/2018/introducing-cold-foam-at-starbucks/). I suggest adding a bit of heavy cream to help whip it manually or try electric beaters.
Allison Clayton says
WHAT IS THIS MAGIC?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! 😍😍😍😍
Caps locks aside, absolutely delicious. Great consistency and I love the subtle (real!) pumpkin flavor. I topped my iced chai with this, works so well.
Shweta says
Loved seeing your iced chais!! Definitely inspired me for my mornings 🥰 so glad you loved it!
Sherry says
Looks delicious! If we have an aeroccino, do we just throw it all in there and mix? TIA
Shweta says
i haven't tested it with a cold froth yet but i would give it a whisk in a bowl and then toss it in there to froth. let me know if you decide to give it a try and how it works out!
Jazmin says
I tried this today and it’s perfect. I can’t believe I could make this at home all along. Starbucks can’t take my money anymore and I can have this all season long. I love the fact that I can use vanilla extract instead of vanilla syrup. I did add sugar because I like my coffee a little on the sweeter side.
Also, I did the blending of all the ingredients first then put it in my nespresso aeroccino on cold foam setting and it works perfectly!!!
Shweta says
Yes!! I love to hear that, Jazmin! I'm not one to buy vanilla syrup either, so I love just using vanilla extract. It was fun re-engineering the foam to make it much simpler in terms of ingredients.
Thank you so much for updating us on using the cold foam setting on the aeroccino as a frother!!
Alina says
I loved this recipe! It was super easy to follow and I used an immersion stick to blend it all up! I tried with a whisk at first, but it didn’t thicken up but the immersion stick was perfect! It was frothy and so flavorful! I used mine on top of an iced chai tea latte and it’s the perfect combination!
Shweta says
Thank you so much! The immersion blender is such a good idea - I never thought of that! Definitely will need to tried it with an iced chai myself.
Tonia says
This recipe is super super tasty and creates a cold foam with GREAT consistency. The one thing I would say is that this recipe created SO MUCH foam. Way too much for one drink in my opinion. Other than that, great recipe!
Shweta says
Thank you so much, Tonia! And thank you for the feedback - yes it definitely creates 2-3 servings of cold foam! I would definitely recommend scaling back using the recipe card's "serving" toggle as necessary 🙂
Sarah says
I used my nutribullet to quickly combine all of the ingredients, then a frother to thicken it up. It was very good and I love the real pumpkin flavor. However, this wasn't sweet enough for me. I might try adding a stevia packet to it next time? Thanks for the recipe. So glad to be able to make this at home.
Shweta says
Such a great idea! Lately, I've been throwing it all into my Vitamix and letting that run for 30 seconds. I would definitely add more sugar! I actually started off testing this with about a tablespoon of added granulated sugar (I have a HUGE sweet tooth!) but received feedback from my taste testers that the sweetened condensed milk was enough sugar. So glad you loved it!
Claire says
When I added the milk, it seemed to get chunky! It’s like the cream and milk separated
Shweta says
I'll need more information to troubleshoot with you. My first guess is that something was expired, my next guess is you maybe overwhipped?
Aditi says
Absolutely amazing!! My family devoured every bit of it. It blended in so well and needless to say made me fall cozy! ❤️
Shweta says
Love that it was a family ting! Glad you guys loved it!
Crystal says
This is going to save me SOOOOO much money! PLUS I can now make sure it matches my level of sweetness. I love it!