Apple Pie Spice Substitutes, From Your Own Mix to Pumpkin Pie Spice

Pie filling half made and no apple pie spice? Use mostly cinnamon with a little of something warmer behind it, and you’re close. No regulator or standards body defines the blend, but the labels agree on the basics: McCormick lists cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice,¹ and The Spice House adds star anise, ginger and cloves.² Since US rules require ingredients in descending order by weight,³ cinnamon is the biggest part of both blends. Pumpkin pie spice is the nearest ready-made swap, though it’s not just apple pie spice plus cloves.

Quick answer

How the ratios on this page are labeled

• Computed: based on a measurable physical relationship.
• Attributed: a named source publishes this ratio. We quote it as theirs.
• Disputed: named sources give different answers to the same swap. You get each one, side by side.
• Method: our starting point, based on how the two compare. Taste and adjust.

If it is seasoning an apple pie or crisp

1. Make your own from single spices

How much in total (Attributed): McCormick says to use 1 1/2 teaspoons of its apple pie spice for a pie made with 6 medium apples.¹ King Arthur says to use 1 to 2 teaspoons of its blend in place of the spices called for in an apple pie filling.⁴ Those agree, so mix enough of your own to land in that range.

Proportions (Method): Cinnamon is listed first, so start with mostly cinnamon. For one pie, try about 1 teaspoon cinnamon with 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg and 1/4 teaspoon allspice. Add ground ginger or a small pinch of cloves if you like the sharper Spice House style. Taste a pinch in a little sugar before it goes in.

Got whole spices? McCormick’s conversions help: a 1 1/2-inch cinnamon stick grinds to about 1 teaspoon, half a nutmeg to about 1 teaspoon, and 5 allspice berries to about 1 teaspoon (Computed, volume only).⁵

No allspice? It got its name because it tastes like a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves, so a little extra nutmeg and a pinch of cloves will cover for it.

2. Cinnamon alone

Cinnamon is the backbone of every blend above, and it can carry apple desserts on its own. McCormick even suggests using its blend in place of cinnamon in baked goods,¹ which is the same swap in reverse.

Ratio (Method): Use the same total amount as the apple pie spice. If you have nutmeg or ginger, swap a quarter of the cinnamon for it.

3. Pumpkin pie spice

This is the nearest ready-made blend, but don’t think of it as apple pie spice plus cloves. McCormick’s pumpkin pie spice lists cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice, with no cloves,⁶ so next to McCormick’s apple pie spice, the difference is the ginger. Recipes vary. The Oregon State University Extension Food Hero pumpkin pie spice is mostly cinnamon, then ginger, with smaller amounts of nutmeg and cloves, and no allspice.⁷ Check your jar.

Ratio (Method): Start with the same amount. If the ginger or cloves stand out too much for apples, cut the blend back by a quarter and make up the difference with cinnamon.

If it is warm spice in muffins, oatmeal or French toast

Among other uses, McCormick suggests its apple pie spice for oatmeal, French toast and sweet potatoes.¹ King Arthur suggests its pumpkin pie spice for pies, scones, muffins and cakes.⁸ Here the blend is background warmth, and either blend works, or plain cinnamon with a pinch of nutmeg.

Ratio (Method): Use the same amount of pumpkin pie spice, or of cinnamon plus a pinch of nutmeg. We found no test of this.

If it is flavoring mulled cider

King Arthur suggests its apple pie spice for warmed apple cider.⁴ You can strain whole spices out of a drink, so they’re the practical choice here. See mulling spices for apple cider.

Ratio (Computed for the conversion): McCormick equates a 1 1/2-inch cinnamon stick with 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and 5 whole allspice berries with 1 teaspoon ground allspice.⁵ Those are volume conversions for grinding. They don’t tell you how much flavor each gives up in hot cider. Steep, taste, and pull the spices when it tastes right.

If it is on roasted sweet potatoes or squash

McCormick suggests pumpkin pie spice on roasted sweet potatoes, carrots and acorn squash.⁶ For a savory-sweet vegetable dish, it’s the closest swap.

Ratio (Method): Same amount, then taste.

Chinese five-spice powder, only here

Classic five-spice is fennel seeds, cassia, cloves, star anise and Szechuan pepper, with licorice base notes and the slightly numbing effect of the pepper. Some versions add ginger or nutmeg. Only the cassia and cloves overlap with apple pie spice, and anise and Szechuan pepper aren’t what most people expect in a fruit pie. On roasted squash or sweet potatoes, though, it can work.

Ratio (Method): Start with half the amount of apple pie spice and add cinnamon to round it out.

What isn’t known

• You’ll sometimes hear that cardamom is a usual addition to apple pie spice. None of the three blends we checked lists it.¹²⁴

Related

• Apple pie spice, pumpkin pie spice, pumpkin pie spice substitutes
• Cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, ginger, mace
• Cinnamon substitutes, allspice substitutes, nutmeg substitutes
• Chinese five-spice powder, mulling spices for apple cider, do spices go bad?