Pumpkin Pie Spice

A Home Cook'n reader asked us,

What is pumpkin pie spice? It isn't sold in the grocery store.

McCormick makes a pumpkin pie spice. Ask your grocer to order it in for you if you don't care to make it yourself.
Otherwise, you can make approximately 1-teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice by mixing the following:

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

The convenient way to flavor pumpkin desserts, use 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice to every 1-1/2 cups pumpkin called for in your recipes. And don't just use it to spice up pumpkin, try a holiday twist on cinnamon toast by mixing pumpkin pie spice into granulated sugar to sprinkle on warm, buttered bread. Stir it into hot cocoa or warm apple cider, too, for a special sip. Anyway you sprinkle it, you're sure to leave sentimental impressions.