We have been trying to keep a lid on some big news for the beloved Pumpkin Spice Latte, but with recipes and ingredients starting to ship to our stores, the buzz is building. 
 
 What’s the big deal? 
 
 After hearing from customers and partners about ingredients, we took another look at this beverage and why we created it so many years ago. It was simple - espresso, perfectly steamed milk, warm fall spices with delicious flavor of pumpkin pie that reminds you of the cool, crisp days of autumn. So, with that great taste you know and love, the PSL returns this fall, and this time it will be made with real pumpkin and without caramel coloring. 
 
 But for now, enjoy the rest of summer and when PSL is back in stores, I look forward to celebrating the season with all of you. 
 
 Warm Regards, 
 
 Peter Dukes 
 
 PSL Ingredient List: ||||| Vani Hari has taken some knocks in recent months for what critics say is her unscientific approach to writing about healthy eating. But at least one major restaurant chain seems to be paying attention to the self-proclaimed "Food Babe" blogger. 
 
 A year after Hari started a campaign to get Starbucks (SBUX) to rid its popular pumpkin spice latte of what she calls "toxins," the coffee giant says it is changing the ingredients of its popular espresso drink. 
 
 The seasonal beverage will be made without artificial caramel coloring this year, Starbucks said Monday on its website. The pumpkin spice latte will also include actual pumpkin this go round. 
 
 "After hearing from customers and partners about ingredients, we took another look at this beverage and why we created it so many years ago," Peter Dukes, Starbucks' director of espressos America, wrote in a blog post. So, with that great taste you know and love, the PSL returns this fall, and this time it will be made with real pumpkin and without caramel coloring." 
 
 Starbucks has sold the drink for roughly a decade, with its popularity spurring a slew of knockoffs from other food and beverage companies. 
 
 Hari's campaign against the pumpkin spice latte's sparked a counter blog by Yvette d'Entremont, or the SciBabe (formerly Science Babe). As she put it: "When Vani Hari, a.k.a. the Food Babe, took a swipe at her pumpkin spice lattes? It was a call to arms. You just don't mess with a native Bostonian's PSL." ||||| Skip Ad Ad Loading... x Embed x Share Starbucks is adding actual pumpkin to the seasonal favorite Pumpkin Spice Latte. Morgan Manousos (@MorganManousos) has the story. Buzz60 
 
 Starbucks' iconic pumpkin spice latte will be flavored with actual pumpkin for the first time in 12 years when it rolls out this fall. (Photo: Gene J. Puskar, AP) 
 
 One of Starbucks' most iconic drinks will finally be flavored with the ingredient that it's only been mimicking for years. 
 
 The pumpkin spice latte will have real pumpkin on the ingredient list when it returns to stores this fall, Starbucks said in a blog post Monday. The drink will also no longer have caramel coloring added. 
 
 "After hearing from customers and partners about ingredients, we took another look at this beverage and why we created it so many years ago," said Peter Dukes, Starbucks' director of espresso Americas and the product manager who led development of the pumpkin spice latte 12 years ago. 
 
 USA TODAY wrote last year about the fact that the pumpkin spice latte didn't contain pumpkin, just pumpkin pie spices, which had been called out by an influential food blogger named Vani Hari. At the time, a Starbucks representative said the company was looking into phasing out caramel coloring. 
 
 A spate of major food companies have made announcements this year about using more natural ingredients in product lines and getting rid of artificial colors and flavors, including General Mills, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Subway and Kellogg. 
 
 The new pumpkin spice latte will include espresso, milk, pumpkin spice-flavored sauce made from ingredients including pumpkin puree, whipped cream, vanilla syrup and a spice topping of cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and ginger. 
 
 Follow Hadley Malcolm on Twitter @hadleypdxdc. 
 
 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1TPUgXW ||||| For Starbucks lovers, few truths hurt more than the one they learned last year: There’s no pumpkin in pumpkin spice lattes. 
 
 Last August, food blogger Vani Hari wrote a critique of what’s inside the coffee company’s most popular seasonal drink, which wasn’t publicly available. After back-and-forth emails with Starbucks representatives, Hari got the list of ingredients: milk, caramel coloring, “natural and artificial flavors,” lots of sugar, and no real pumpkin. 
 
 Hari’s blog post went viral, garnering millions of shares on social media. Many people—who, in 2015, care about where their food comes from more than ever before—were outraged. John Oliver captured that outrage well in this hilarious “Last Week Tonight” segment last fall, expressing surprise over the obsession with “the coffee that tastes like a candle.” 
 
 Now, just a few weeks before the PSL returns, Starbucks has acknowledged the lack of pumpkin. Peter Dukes, who helped develop the beverage, wrote in a blog post Monday afternoon: 
 
 After hearing from customers and partners about ingredients, we took another look at this beverage and why we created it so many years ago. It was simple —espresso, perfectly steamed milk, warm fall spices with delicious flavor of pumpkin pie that reminds you of the cool, crisp days of autumn. So, with that great taste you know and love, the PSL returns this fall, and this time it will be made with real pumpkin and without caramel coloring. 
 
 Real pumpkin! Is it fall yet?
– Starbucks lovers, rejoice: The pumpkin spice latte controversy is over! The company announced today that its popular fall drink will finally be made with real pumpkin, USA Today reports. To recap, (the controversial) food blogger Vani Hari wrote a viral piece about the latte drink last year and pressed Starbucks for the ingredient list, notes the Atlantic. Turned out the drinks contained no pumpkin but did have caramel coloring, and it's been made that way for about 10 years, CBS News reports. John Oliver even joked about "the coffee that tastes like a candle" in a segment on Last Week Tonight. Now Starbucks has revealed an updated recipe that includes espresso, milk, pumpkin spice-flavored sauce (with real pumpkin puree), whipped cream, vanilla syrup, pumpkin spice topping—and no caramel coloring. "After hearing from customers and partners about ingredients, we took another look at this beverage and why we created it so many years ago," reads a blog on the Starbucks website.