Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice: Autumnal Treat Vignettes by The Crimson’s Arts Board

As the leaves turn and the scent of pumpkin spice fills the air, The Crimson’s Arts Board reflects on the treats that feel most like autumn.

Don't Forget The Cannoli… Chips

You scan the shelves carefully for the perfect dip flavor. Whether classic cream cheese, overly-sweet caramel, salty pistachio, or earthy and season-appropriate pumpkin, the choice must be perfect. After all, a fresh box of crunchy cannoli chips awaits at the bottom of your shopping cart.

Cannoli chips are a peculiar treat. When one thinks of a cannoli, the image that first comes to mind is the cylindrical fried dough bursting with white, creamy ricotta. On the other hand, cannoli chips are only part of the duo, the shell without its filling, shaped into triangles with only a sprinkle of powdered sugar. However, this element of anticipation, of an unknown dip flavor to be discovered in the near future, is what makes the cannoli chip a treat of endless possibilities.

Fall is the epitome of anticipation. Anticipating the leaves reddening, yellowing, and falling, for the weather to turn chilly enough to bring back the sweaters at the end of your closet, yet not freezing to the bone.

As the season of change settles in, you, too, take in the shifts in the atmosphere and your surrounding environment. You also take in the changes in your routine, as compelled by the incoming school year.

Though small, a cannoli chip is made up of even smaller pockets, perfect for nesting and absorbing the desired dip. In the same way, you, too, prepare to create internal indents and absorb the swift changes around you, all while munching on a box of cannoli chips.

—Staff writer Erlisa Demneri can be reached at erlisa.demneri@thecrimson.com

Reese’s Pumpkins

Any vignette about fall is incomplete without a mention of the season’s best holiday: Halloween. A time for friends and family to celebrate together with no expectations other than a costume and a good time, this day has always been a special one for me. What better way to celebrate than to unwrap what is unarguably the best shape of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, the pumpkin? The unique, bumpy oblong provides the perfect ratio of chocolate to peanut butter, ensuring each bite will be as delightful as the last.

Yet, these chocolate-peanut butter pumpkins are so much more than a treat for one night of the year. Though the packaging may advertise them as jack-o-lanterns fit for spooky season, the reality is a faceless fruit fit for the full fall season. The moment these candy gourds debut each year — which seems to happen earlier and earlier — you’ll find them in my fridge. Chocolate is best served cold.

—Staff writer Aiden J. Bowers can be reached at aiden.bowers@thecrimson.com.

Sweet Potato Pie

This season, I am most excited for a delicious family treat held close to the heart of many fellow Black Southerners. While some look forward to pumpkin pie on the table this autumn, my grandma’s sweet potato pie is the perfect welcome home gift I look forward to. She’s mastered the sweetness and perfected texture, and no restaurant I have ever tried has come close to competing with her pie. With every bite, memories flood to my mind, as I remember helping her cut potatoes and secretly taste testing the pie filling. The dessert has not only been something delicious to eat, but warmly symbolizes years of bonding time with my favorite chef in the world.

—Staff writer Makayla I. Gathers can be reached at makayla.gathers@thecrimson.com.

Pumpkin Pie

As I’ve written in other articles for The Crimson, autumn has always been an important time for me. Whether it was the Halloween I dressed up as Yoda when I was roughly the same height as the character or the Wednesdays before Thanksgiving when my family and I would drive up to Vermont to see my grandparents — the car packed with chocolate turkeys and desserts — many of my favorite childhood memories took place in this transitional season. For me, one thing epitomizes the autumnal spirit more than anything else: pumpkin pie.

I don’t know what it is about this squash-pie, but just thinking about it transports me back to the fall feeling. This may be a hot take, but other pumpkin-flavored sweets and drinks do nothing for me. It’s just this pie that has my heart. The only time pumpkin pie has failed me was when I tried to make it out of actual pumpkins — this was a bad day. Canned pumpkin works better, I’ve learned, but even this disaster didn’t stop me from making another — correctly this time — the very next day.

—Staff writer Thomas A. Ferro can be reached at thomas.ferro@thecrimson.com.

Pumpkin Spice Pumpkin Seed Covered Yogurt Dipped Mini Pretzels

I’m a pretzel fiend, I won’t deny it. While my usual pretzels of choice are dark chocolate covered, autumn expands the world of flavored mini pretzels in the best way. These bite-sized treats are like autumn in a nutshell — or rather, a mini pretzel. They’re crunchy and sweet, with a main flavor of pumpkin as well as notes of cinnamon and nutmeg coming through — not overpowering but capturing the warm, spicy essence of autumn.

These pretzels have been a staple in the autumnal months of my life for years. From being my snack of choice through long “In The Heights” rehearsals to my go-to pick-me-up whilst waiting for my HATU coupling to go to completion in the lab, these pretzels evoke memories that are distinctly and personally autumnal. These moments however, are not just mine. I’ve shared bags of these pretzels with actors, labmates, pset-buddies, editors, and friends, finding community through a fun, fall-themed snack. It’s this potential for connection — in addition to their exquisite taste — that cements the pumpkin spice pumpkin seed covered yogurt dipped mini pretzels as my favorite autumnal treat.

—Staff writer Anna Moiseieva can be reached at anna.moiseieva@thecrimson.com.

Sweet and Spicy Pumpkin Seeds

The life of a Jack-o’-Lantern is quite sad. You’re bred, your guts are ripped out and discarded, and then your hollow carcass is carved. I become more ambitious with my pumpkin carving goals every year, and it simply feels wasteful to throw away the entire inside of the fruit. Using the seeds for a fall snack is the bare minimum to utilize the whole pumpkin and appreciate its sacrifice. It also creates quite an addictive treat. Though many people bake and eat their pumpkin seeds, my mother is the only person I’ve seen cook them this way and I find myself craving them every year. I’ve asked her to mail them to me at college but she doesn’t seem to understand how serious my craving is. As a result, this year I’m aiming to not only up my game when it comes to Jack-o’-Lantern creativity, but also by baking the seeds myself. The preparation is easy and involves soaking the seeds to clean them and then baking them in two rounds, the second time adding olive oil, salt, brown sugar, and cayenne. These are crunchy, salty, sweet and have a spicy kick that will have you obsessively reaching back into the bowl until you’ve finished it without even realizing.

—Staff writer Margo A. Silliman can be reached at margo.silliman@thecrimson.com.