The smell of warm, oven-baked cookies floats through the air, the scents swirling around pumpkins and jars of candy corn. Containers filled with cinnamon, pumpkin spice, and sugar are sprawled around the fall baking scene. Seasonal goods fill the autumn months with tasteful treats that put a smile on many faces.  

The best fall gatherings start with a delicious spread of appetizers and a variety of flavorful dips. Hummus is commonly found on the table year round, but to add a seasonal spice, following the directions for a Roasted Garlic and Rosemary Pumpkin Hummus will send one’s friends to “fall heaven.” To appeal to those with a sweet tooth, try whipping up a Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip that can be served with crackers or a crisp apple. 

“Whenever I have one of the dips at fall gathering, it brings back so many memories and reminds me of the new ones I make each fall. I think it would be interesting to try different fall themed dips because they are delicious and fun to try,” Peyton Truelove, freshman, said. 

A typical party should start with a bang and end with one too. Top off the filling meals with a dessert more interesting than the typical pumpkin pie. Fall-spiced cakes are one tasty way to really get into the season, so explore the exotic world of icing with Brown Butter Banana Cake, Maple Walnut, or a Chai Layer Cake. Sometimes it is nice to keep it classy, and a Chocolate Pumpkin Pudding Pie is a fun way to add a slight twist to a staple fall dessert.  

“My mom bakes the best homemade banana bread, and in my opinion, banana bread from grocery stores and bakeries just is not as good,” Cooper Gilreath, junior, said. 

A good seasonal drink is another way to work in the taste of autumn. Starbucks and Dunkin have popular favorites, which include Pumpkin Spice Lattes, Pumpkin Cream Cold Brews, and more. Chick-Fil-A debuted their new Autumn Spice milkshake on Sept. 12, 2022, blending cinnamon and brown sugar flavors in an appetizing swirl.  

“I recently tried the new Autumn Spice milkshake, and I loved it. I look forward to the fall flavors every year, and it is one of my favorite parts of the season,” Caroline Byars, senior, said.  

Bake to impress this season, and try out a few of these recipes to incorporate everyone’s favorite flavors. If not specifically talented in the kitchen, a drive-through run can satisfy and power any Etowah student through the fall.