Welcome to Sunday Sobremesa, a twice-monthly thread to discuss food and culture while sipping on an oat milk latte (or licor de pera1 if that’s more your style!).
So you’ve probably seen this week’s topic and are thinking, Kiki, why on Earth are we talking about fall? It’s only August for crying out loud! In a way, I agree—we already have enough outside pressure from stores, magazines, etc telling us that fall is around the corner. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone from the US told me that Halloween decorations are out already.
While I admit that we should all be much more present and enjoy the here and now (hence me practically buying out all the greengage plums and figs in our fruit shop), fall is also my favorite season. Maybe that makes me basic (a term I sort of hate). Me da igual.2
I love everything about fall: the smell of the turning leaves, the chill of the air, oversized knit sweaters worn with shorts, steaming coffee on cold mornings, sticky marshmallows roasted over bonfires, curling up on the couch with a bowl of soup and a good movie. Autumn = nostalgia, forever and always in my mind. And with the summer heatwave, I’m looking forward to it more than ever.
This includes foods and dishes traditionally associated with fall. Specific dishes I’ve been dreaming of lately are roasted Brussels sprouts, butternut squash soup, sweet potatoes prepared anyway you can think of, lentils (lentejas here in Spain), and all of the delicious traditional Spanish soups and stews. And then there are the foods that are only associated with fall in my own mind: bowls of caramelized banana oatmeal, fluffy pancakes with maple syrup, (vegan) mac and cheese with roasted broccoli.
So now I turn it over to you guys: What fall food are you looking forward to? Maybe it’s a seasonal fruit or vegetable, or maybe it’s a nostalgic dish from your childhood. Perhaps it’s even a local cuisine associated with this time of year—pulled pork BBQ and apple cider doughnuts come to mind.
Let’s wax poetic about fall foods in the comments—see you there!
I wholeheartedly agree with your description of moving on to fall. In my little corner of the world, we've had some record heatwaves this week, followed by thunderstorms, only for there to be a lovely late summer breeze today that is giving me some serious *fall vibes.* Fall is absolutely my favorite season, so I'm pretty much looking forward to it as soon as it's gone.
I know this isn't *technically* a food but a beverage, but I'm really looking forward to drinking wassail in particular! My grandma has this beautiful recipe card from the '60s (I think?) that she's always used for her traditional wassail. She breaks it out as soon as the autumn winds kick up, so I'm planning to follow suit.
For those curious, wassail is hot, spiced apple cider. You pour an entire gallon of cider into pot on the stove, make a cheesecloth sachet of whole baking spices, and let it steep in the cider for hours. I have fond memories of sneaking up to the stove to grab an extra cup (or two) as a teenager 😂
Wassail!! Great choice. My high school anatomy teacher introduced us to it (now I can’t remember why, but she definitely brought some to class one day 😂) and I agree that it’s delicious. I think I’ve only had it once or twice over the (many) years after that, but it is definitely a fall beverage I can get behind. How special that you have your grandma’s recipe, too!
When I lived in the US for University, I loved pumpkin pie..I know it's not at all a common thing in the UK and I've never made it before, but I'm going to attempt to this year. I find that Americans enjoy autumn a lot more - perhaps its the transition and the nearing of Thankgiving which is just such a massive holiday?
Butternut squash soup! So good with a dose of cracked black pepper on top.
Apple Pie! I don't know why I'm obsessed with pie 😂 - I think it's because Autumn also reminds me of apple picking and apple cider donuts.
We Americans definitely lean heavily into fall! Fall is...not a thing here in Madrid haha. Maybe the US fall obsession is from Thanksgiving like you said? The cynic in me says it’s just been heavily marketed to us all these years and now there are certain limited edition products or foods we HAVE TO HAVE each year when autumn rolls around.
I actually don’t like pumpkin pie (or the famous pumpkin spice latte), but I do like pumpkin bread and pumpkin muffins!
I love apple pie, too, and really any apple dessert. Last year I was in the US for my birthday and my chosen activity to celebrate was actually apple picking 😂
I do love pumpkin muffins - really anything pumpkin related. Like you said, I think with it being seasonal there's almost this need to consume as much of it as I can while it's available!
I remember when I first went apple picking....I had to eat apples for a few weeks because I brought home so many!
Haha the same thing happened to me last year with the apples I picked. I was visiting my family and we made apple galette a few times so that was a delicious way to use up a lot of them!
I'm so glad September is upon us. Late summer and the transition to autumn are the best time of the year for me, especially this year after a blazing summer. In terms of food, I'd say... cakes! Any cake really. I don't bake as much during the warmer months but I do love a slice of cake twice a day: morning and night, so that's what I'm really looking forward to🥮
Oooh good answer! I also bake way more in the fall and winter. Coffee with cake is one of my favorite breakfasts (or mid afternoon snacks). Are there any traditional Venetian cakes that you like?
Not so much cakes, more like cookies (biscotti). They're S-shaped, buttery and yellow from the many egg yolks used. We call them "essi Buranei" (the Ss from Burano) where Burano is the famous Venetian island. If you happen to be in Venice one day you have to try them! They're sold in tin boxes which makes for a perfect gift, too 😋
I wholeheartedly agree with your description of moving on to fall. In my little corner of the world, we've had some record heatwaves this week, followed by thunderstorms, only for there to be a lovely late summer breeze today that is giving me some serious *fall vibes.* Fall is absolutely my favorite season, so I'm pretty much looking forward to it as soon as it's gone.
I know this isn't *technically* a food but a beverage, but I'm really looking forward to drinking wassail in particular! My grandma has this beautiful recipe card from the '60s (I think?) that she's always used for her traditional wassail. She breaks it out as soon as the autumn winds kick up, so I'm planning to follow suit.
For those curious, wassail is hot, spiced apple cider. You pour an entire gallon of cider into pot on the stove, make a cheesecloth sachet of whole baking spices, and let it steep in the cider for hours. I have fond memories of sneaking up to the stove to grab an extra cup (or two) as a teenager 😂
Wassail!! Great choice. My high school anatomy teacher introduced us to it (now I can’t remember why, but she definitely brought some to class one day 😂) and I agree that it’s delicious. I think I’ve only had it once or twice over the (many) years after that, but it is definitely a fall beverage I can get behind. How special that you have your grandma’s recipe, too!
When I lived in the US for University, I loved pumpkin pie..I know it's not at all a common thing in the UK and I've never made it before, but I'm going to attempt to this year. I find that Americans enjoy autumn a lot more - perhaps its the transition and the nearing of Thankgiving which is just such a massive holiday?
Butternut squash soup! So good with a dose of cracked black pepper on top.
Apple Pie! I don't know why I'm obsessed with pie 😂 - I think it's because Autumn also reminds me of apple picking and apple cider donuts.
We Americans definitely lean heavily into fall! Fall is...not a thing here in Madrid haha. Maybe the US fall obsession is from Thanksgiving like you said? The cynic in me says it’s just been heavily marketed to us all these years and now there are certain limited edition products or foods we HAVE TO HAVE each year when autumn rolls around.
I actually don’t like pumpkin pie (or the famous pumpkin spice latte), but I do like pumpkin bread and pumpkin muffins!
I love apple pie, too, and really any apple dessert. Last year I was in the US for my birthday and my chosen activity to celebrate was actually apple picking 😂
I do love pumpkin muffins - really anything pumpkin related. Like you said, I think with it being seasonal there's almost this need to consume as much of it as I can while it's available!
I remember when I first went apple picking....I had to eat apples for a few weeks because I brought home so many!
Haha the same thing happened to me last year with the apples I picked. I was visiting my family and we made apple galette a few times so that was a delicious way to use up a lot of them!
I'm so glad September is upon us. Late summer and the transition to autumn are the best time of the year for me, especially this year after a blazing summer. In terms of food, I'd say... cakes! Any cake really. I don't bake as much during the warmer months but I do love a slice of cake twice a day: morning and night, so that's what I'm really looking forward to🥮
Oooh good answer! I also bake way more in the fall and winter. Coffee with cake is one of my favorite breakfasts (or mid afternoon snacks). Are there any traditional Venetian cakes that you like?
Not so much cakes, more like cookies (biscotti). They're S-shaped, buttery and yellow from the many egg yolks used. We call them "essi Buranei" (the Ss from Burano) where Burano is the famous Venetian island. If you happen to be in Venice one day you have to try them! They're sold in tin boxes which makes for a perfect gift, too 😋
Those sound delicious! I’m a huge fan of butter cookies in general so I’m sure I would love these!