Pumpkin Spice White Russians

Every fall season, there are a few pumpkin/pumpkin spice liqueurs that crop up in stores, but this year the pumpkin craze seemed to reach a lot further into the liquor business. Several pumpkin vodkas appeared on shelves along with something else that immediately caught my eye: Pumpkin Spice Kahlua!

Being a Big Lebowski fan and just a general lover of classic cocktails, I've been a big fan of White Russians since the moment I started experimenting with mixing drinks. My absolute favorite bar in the city, Blue Dust, makes White Russians with their house infused chai tea vodka and oh. my. God. It is the most glorious incarnation of that divine cocktail that I've ever met. However, this past weekend, I came up with my own recipe for a pumpkin spice version that definitely comes a close second.

First, our cast of characters!

 

From left to right we have vanilla vodka (whatever brand you prefer will do just fine), heavy cream (rich yes, but dammit we don't shy away from flavor on this blog!), my handy dandy cocktail shaker, and the protagonist of this drink: pumpkin spice Kahlua. Note the pumpkins added for a nice fall backdrop. :)

If you're using a cocktail shaker, your first step should be to fill it about halfway full of ice. If you have the time and feel like minimizing the dilution factor, put your shaker in the freezer (lid off) a few hours beforehand. It's not necessary though; your drink will be tasty either way. Also, if you are currently sans cocktail shaker, feel free to combine all of the ingredients below in a tall glass with some ice and mix with a spoon or skewer. While a shaker is better and gives your drinks a nice thorough mixing, believe me, I enjoyed alcoholic beverages long before I had one and so can you. The proportions you want for this drink can of course be adjusted depending on how much of bite you do (or don't) want, but here is what I used:

• 2 oz vanilla vodka
• 1 oz pumpkin spice Kahlua
• 3 oz heavy cream

Now put the lid back on and shake! It doesn't take much. About ten back-and-forths should do it.

Take the top off the lid and strain into your glass. Note how I actually took pictures of several steps of the process this time. I might make a real food blogger out of myself just yet. 

After you have strained into the glass, you can either drop a couple cubes from your freezer into your cocktail or, if you don't plan on using your shaker to immediately make more White Russians for your friends and lovers, go ahead and dump the shaker ice in. Make sure and shield the glass with your shaker lid or some messy splashing will happen.

And now you have a beautiful and very drinkable cocktail! I recommend consuming on the comfort of your couch with Gilmore Girls reruns and dessert. Yes, simultaneously drinking and eating dessert is completely acceptable. It tastes like a White Russian with an extra spicy fall kick, and it's certainly a recipe I will be keeping in my arsenal for next year. Let's hope the folks at Kahlua keep making this new variation.