Fall Eats, Treats and Flavors

Cue the falling leaves, pumpkin patches and sweater weather; it’s fall, y’all! With the official start of the autumn season comes a new lineup of seasonal treats and flavors that ring true to the cozy and rich aesthetic of this fourth season of the year. In this article, I’ll be giving a comprehensive overview of what fall foods I’ll be frequenting for the next few months.

Easily, my favorite fall foods are the baked goods of the season. Pies, especially pumpkin and apple, are highly recommended during this time of year. The variety of apples (over 7,000!) allows pies to reflect the differences among the wide varieties. Pies using Granny Smiths are going to be slightly tart, whereas Honeycrisps are going to be a bit sweeter. Some apples will hold up better in the cooking process than others, but chances are that if you have a favorite variety, you can bake it into a pie. Pumpkin pies typically see a lot of love during fall as well, but I’ve noticed many people taking a dislike to them because of their texture and flavor. Pumpkin pies feature a pureed filling that can range from being chunky to silky smooth, so be aware of this when attempting to bake or taste them yourself.

In terms of sweets and confections, caramel is definitely a seasonal staple. With a sweet and somewhat buttery flavor profile, caramel can be thought of as an accessory that enriches what it’s paired with. Additionally, it’s a very versatile treat, as it can be applied to coffee, baked goods and fresh fruits. Pairing caramel with apple, such as apple slices with caramel sauce or caramel apples, is a popular to combine the two. Adjacent to caramel, molasses and butterscotch are also at their best in autumn. Molasses sugar cookies and butterscotch candies supply similar sugar highs, but molasses carries more of a spicy taste, while butterscotch leans farther into the buttery elements of caramel.

Call me a generic white woman, but pumpkin spice wouldn’t be a staple of the season if it wasn’t at least decent. Mostly used in coffee and pie flavoring, the spice — composed of nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves and ginger — traces back to at least 3,500 years ago, with nutmeg powder traces being seen on shards of Indonesian pottery. Nutmeg, which used to grow exclusively in the Oceania region, was highly sought after by European traders and was comparable in value to gold and other precious metals. History lesson aside, the contemporary pumpkin spice has garnered a chokehold on consumers in the autumn months, so much so that the novelty of pumpkin spice may outweigh the actual quality of it. A pumpkin spice latte, such as those that can be found at the Bison Beanery on campus (for the month of October only!), is something that I’ll be picking up once or twice, but not on a daily basis.

Other popular flavors that deserve shoutouts include cranberry, pear and pecan. Cranberry sauce is something that is often found on tables during Thanksgiving celebrations, adding something sweet and tart to meals. Pears, specifically cooked or baked pears, are juicy, sweet and pair nicely with ice cream. Pears do have a bit of a gritty texture, but this decreases when cooked. Finally, pecans have a buttery taste and can be incorporated into pies, but they can also be toasted and even mixed into salads for a bit of crunch.

So, there you have it: the only correct list of what flavors should be present in your fall. I jest, of course; a whole season can’t be generalized with a list of basic recommendations. Additionally, flavor preferences can be as unique as fingerprints; no one will have the same preferences, and that’s perfectly fine! Regardless of what you eat this fall, I wish you a cozy and crisp season!