History and Popularity of Fall Recipes

By Isabelle Houston ‘25

Fall is here, and with the changing seasons comes some cozy recipes.

Starting off with a classic, the first popular recipe is of course pumpkin pie. Creamy pumpkin puree with a soft and crunchy crust followed by an optional sweet dollop of whipped cream, this dessert is a comfort to many.

Pumpkin pie dates far back, with the pumpkin first being cultivated around 5500 B.C. in Central America. The pumpkin was exported to France and then introduced to Tudor England, where it quickly became incorporated into England's highly developed pie-making culture.

Pumpkin pie recipes could be found in English cookbooks by the seventeenth century, and it wasn’t until the nineteenth century that recipes for the pie began appearing in American and Canadian cookbooks. The pumpkin pies featured in these early-age cookbooks took many forms, only a couple of which resembled a traditional modern-day pie.

Pumpkin pie began to popularize with the regionalization of Thanksgiving as a holiday in England during the eighteenth century. With its popularization, ingredients became more accessible; rather than cooking and blending one’s own pumpkin puree, Libby’s Meat-Canning Company introduced canned pumpkin.

Now, pumpkin pie is a staple in many American and Canadian households during the fall season with Thanksgiving around the corner. Pies are made using pie pumpkins, or sugar pumpkins, which are significantly smaller than pumpkins used for carving, being about the size of a grapefruit. Recipes typically include canned puree, but puree from scratch is made by cooking the pumpkin, then blending the flesh with pumpkin pie spice, including nutmeg, cloves, ginger, and cinnamon. This mixture is then poured into a pie shell, the crust either made from scratch or store-bought, then baked, creating a delicious aroma to fill the kitchen. Many have reinvented and recreated this classic, but here is an easy pumpkin pie recipe to enjoy this fall.

Libby’s Famous Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients:

Granulated sugar
Ground cinnamon
Salt
Ground ginger
Ground cloves
Large eggs
LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk, (Or substitute with an equal amount Lactose-Free or Almond Cooking Milk)
Unbaked 9-inch (4-cup volume) deep-dish pie shell

The recipe is from Libby’s

Find full recipe at: https://www.verybestbaking.com/libbys/recipes/libby-s-famous-pumpkin-pie/

The next recipe is the warm, cozy, and caffeinated, pumpkin spice latte. Pumpkin spice lattes are a popular drink to create at home and are famous at Starbucks and other coffee shops around the fall season.

The idea for this drink was born through Starbucks searching for a fall-themed drink to include on the seasonal menu. Although it’s agreed upon that Starbucks was not the inventor of the pumpkin spice latte, the company contributed significantly to its popularity. Starbucks began developing the pumpkin spice latte in January 2003, and the final recipe was tested in Vancouver and Washington, D.C. The drink was very successful and was released to all Starbucks locations within the U.S.

Since its release, the pumpkin spice latte has grown massively in popularity, and many recipes are available that combine pumpkin and coffee. The drink is typically made up of steamed milk, espresso, and autumn spice flavors such as cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves, then topped with whipped cream and a dash of pumpkin pie spice. Below is a simple recipe to create this delicious and comforting drink at home.

Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte

Ingredients:

Espresso
Milk of choice
Pumpkin puree
Maple syrup, to sweeten
Pumpkin pie spice
Vanilla extract
Whipped cream for topping (optional but recommended

This recipe is from Ambitious Kitchen

Find the full recipe at: https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/homemade-pumpkin-spice-latte/

The last recipe is the deliciously creamy butternut squash soup. This seasonal fruit is blended with other vegetables and spices to create a comforting meal for the fall.

In the mid-1940s, the butternut squash was bred by Charles Legget of Stow, Massachusetts, USA. Legget crossed a gooseneck squash with a hubbard squash to produce one of the most popular variations of winter squash.

This soup is typically made by blending cooked butternut squash, onions, garlic, vegetable broth, and maple syrup, then seasoned with salt, pepper, ginger, nutmeg, and fresh herbs. The texture is creamy, but additional butter or cream will enhance the creamy texture. There are many variations of butternut squash soup, but below is a classic recipe for this popular fall dish.

Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:

Extra-virgin olive oil
Large yellow onion, chopped
Sea salt
Butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed
Garlic cloves, chopped
Chopped fresh sage
Minced fresh rosemary
Grated fresh ginger
Vegetable broth
Freshly ground black pepper
Chopped parsley
Toasted pepitas
Crusty bread

This recipe is from Love & Lemons

Find the full recipe at: https://www.loveandlemons.com/butternut-squash-soup/

In this collection of recipes, which one is the best? To answer this question, I asked Catlin Students to rank the three recipes from first to last place through a survey and interviewed a handful of students asking why they believe each recipe is the best.

The first-place winner is pumpkin pie, with 66.2% of 65 students' responses ranking this recipe as the best. Sophomore Lily Wang shares her reasoning for choosing this yummy dish.

“I chose pie out of all the other options because it’s a Thanksgiving tradition to eat it in my household,” says Wang.

Another student comments on their love for this dish.

“Pumpkin pie, because my parents always get it around Thanksgiving so it’s a nice signal that the holidays are coming,” says freshman Katie Jin.

Second place was awarded to the pumpkin spice latte. The drink received 49.2% of responses choosing it for second place. Some students disagree, believing pumpkin spice lattes are the best choice.

“Pumpkin spice lattes because they are the best gluten-free,” says junior Izzy.

Lastly, in third place was butternut squash soup. The majority believed this dish deserved last place, with 73.8% of responses determining so. On the contrary, some students like butternut squash soup over the other recipes.

“I like butternut squash soup because it’s really homey and I’m not that big of a fan of pumpkin,” says freshman Meret Pajkic.

Recipes evolve over time and touch the lives of many through tradition and nutrition. With leaves falling from the trees and the chill of winter on its way, hopefully these recipes will inspire creativity and provide warmth as we shift into the heart of fall.