Fall is in the air and anything with pumpkin spice is sounding super delicious!

This time of year always reminds me of elementary school and learning about Christopher Columbus and the Pilgrims and the delicious foods that come along with the harvest season.

Why was Columbus looking for a faster route to the East..Spices!  Spices were precious commodities and even used as currency in some civilizations.  Today we have easy access to almost any herb and spice ever discovered.  We can prepare food that tastes like it came from different cultures just by adding curtain spices and mixtures of spices.

Preparing your own spice mixes for dressings, dips, marinades and rubs is one of the easiest and most delicious ways to start saving money on your grocery bill.  But saving money is just the beginning, you will also avoid many harmful chemicals and additives found in most prepared foods.  If you're interested in learning more join me for my Spice it Up class.  Register at the right of the page under Foundation Classes.

This week I decided to make pumpkin pie...in the form of a smoothie, less time and work involved and you don't even have to chew either!

Here's the recipe for this delicious smoothie along with the Pumpkin Spice Blend recipe.

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

1/2 cup cooked pumpkin

1/2 avocado

2 cups milk (coconut, almond, any kind)

1 tsp. vanilla

2 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/4 cup raw honey

2 Tbsp. hemp hearts, optional

ice

Place all ingredients into a blender and mix until smooth and creamy!

Pumpkin Spice Blend

4 Tbsp. cinnamon

4 tsp. ground nutmeg

4 tsp. ground ginger

3 tsp. allspice

Mix spices together and store in an air tight jar.

Double, triple, etc. this recipe so that you have enough for the holiday season.