By Charlotte Wasserman

Fall is finally here! Even though Cleveland’s weather hates following the seasons, it has been officially Fall since September 23rd. 

Now, I am going to share a story with you all. A long time ago, I used to LOVE pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks. Then, I had a really weird experience. I found a piece of plastic in my mouth after taking a sip of my PSL. It was disgusting. That was when I decided Starbucks is a definite NO, and thought maybe I should stick to local coffee shops. 

For about three years, I gave up on Pumpkin Spice and just drank lattes and Chai teas. This fall, I decided it was time to give Pumpkin Spice a second chance. Now, here we are, I tried a few Pumpkin Spice flavored foods around Cleveland. Here are what I tried and my thoughts.

  1. Pumpkin cheesecake cupcakes from White Flower Cupcake shoppe

5/5

I felt very strongly about these. They were so delicious. The right amount of cream cheese frosting with caramel drizzle was placed nicely on top of the pumpkin-flavored cupcakes. As I took my first bite, I knew fall was here! 

  1. Pumpkin Chai from Nervous Dog

4/5

I am a big Nervous Dog customer. Every Friday morning, I usually get a cup before school starts to treat myself on my hard work on the week’s past. Sadly, I wasn’t a big fan of the Pumpkin and chai mixed. I really love the regular chai, and I drank the whole thing, but I don’t know if I really enjoyed the chai and pumpkin flavors together.  

  1. Pumpkin Cinnamon granola from Purely Elizabeth 

5/5

I totally suggest it! Add this granola to yogurt bowls in the morning or an after school energy snack. It’s definitely a yummy seasonal treat. Purely Elizabeth is one of my newest favorite granola places. For the past few weeks, I have been enjoying the Chocolate Salted Peanut Butter granola and thought I would try a seasonal version. The good thing about granola is even if you are rushing to school, you can grab a handful of this and take it on the go with you!

  1. Pumpkin spice ice cream from Mitchell’s 

5/5

Ah, this was delicious! I went to the Van Aken Mitchell’s last Thursday and wanted to try this for fun. I ended up loving it! Not sure what happened to my cone in this photo, but it was delicious too. If you need a pick me up after school, head over to Van Aken Mitchells for a sweet fall treat, you will feel the coziness of fall flavors all in one scoop. 

  1. Pumpkin spice scone from Sugar Me

5/5

First of all, shout out to Sugar Me Desserterie in Chagrin Falls. My family and I always stop there for all birthday cakes. Their treats are even better than ones I make myself! So, back to the fall scone. It was quite a decadent treat. Very yummy, but I split it throughout a weekend. 

  1. Pumpkin Spice tea, optional add honey and cinnamon 

5/5

What is a better way to end the night with a fall tea. The flavors are super prominent in this drink, which is why I think its a 5/5. Check it out at your local grocery store. It tastes a lot like Pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg mix. Each sip reminded me of the leaves changing colors and falling even if they were not actually changing outside.

  1. Pumpkin bread with maple frosting *recipe*

5/5 

Last but not least, my prized fall possession. Ever since I was little and would have Halloween parties with friends, my mom would make this pumpkin bread, it is delicious! You can either make it as a bread or as cupcakes, both same recipe just put the batter into cupcake wrappers if you choose to. Have nothing to do or need a break after the PSAT or over the long weekend? Invite some friends over and bake this!! You won’t regret it- unless you can’t keep yourself away from it 🙂

Pumpkin bread or cupcake with maple frosting recipe

That’s all! Happy fall!

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