Pumpkins are one of my favorite things about fall and obviously I want to use them when they’re right in the peak of their season. Most people would opt for pumpkin pie, soup, or cheesecake, but the first thing I start making is pumpkin soda. Why? Because it’s what tells me ‘Fall is here’ without a shadow of a doubt. Plus, since this recipe doesn’t work as well with the canned stuff I only get this delicious soda a few times a year. Ready to make some?
There are a few different variations on this but they are also the same technique, so we’ll cover the simplest base first.
Pumpkin Soda
Ingredients:
- 1 Cup Water
- 1 Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 2 Cups cubed fresh pumpkin
- 1 Vanilla bean or 2 drops vanilla extract
Directions:
Combine everything in a saucepan and simmer until it is reduce by half then strain. The resulting syrup has many uses but our main focus is going to for making soda. Luckily, it couldn’t be easier
Just take 1/4 cup of the syrup, pour into over ice, then fill with soda water. Stir a few times, and enjoy!
But if you want to be a little more creative…
We can go for a pumpkin pie soda. That’s right, I said it. How? Just by tweaking that same recipe! Here’s what you’ll need:
- 1 cup Maple syrup
- 1 cup of water
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 2 cloves
- 3 star anise pods
- .5 teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 cups dice pumpkin
Directions:
Simply combine everything as before and reduce by half, then strain. This soda will be like nothing else you’ve ever tasted, but you can do so much more with it than just make soda. Here are a few other things that you can do:
Use as syrup on pancakes or waffles
Serve over ice cream
Make a dessert sauce
Add to coffee or hot chocolate
Keep in mind that this basic recipe can apply to virtually any flavor. One part water, one part sugar, and 1-2 parts of the main ingredient. Then simply make it as complex as you want to with spices, extracts, or even herbs and flowers. Once it is strained, you can even combine different syrups to create even more layers off flavor in your soda.
Please keep in mind that this is not the only method to make soda, but it is by far the simplest. The other method is brewing the soda (for things like root beer or ginger beer), but it requires much more effort; we’ll go through that another time. Enjoy your pumpkin soda!
The Author:
sounds real good thanks ann
Hi! How much syrup does this make? How many soda’s does it make? I am very excited to try making a healthier soda.