The Best Fall Foods in Portland

I am extremely serious about my autumnal delights. Before December starts, I must attend at least one harvest festival near Salem (Bauman's Farm, typically), pick some apples at a Hood River orchard (Kiyokawa Family Orchards, ideally), tromp through a Sauvie Island pumpkin patch (Bella Organic Farm, naturally), and watch a horror movie at an independent Portland movie theater (Hollywood or Clinton, especially).

Similarly, I’ll work through a checklist of seasonal produce and desserts: slices of pumpkin pie, pumpkin spice lattes, hot apple cider, apple cider doughnuts. So now that we are indisputably in the heart of autumn, I thought I’d share some of my favorite fall treats I’ve encountered so far this year, organized by core ingredients:

🍎

Apple

Let’s start with beverages. Pip’s Original is primarily known for its doughnuts, but the chai is a main draw — those folks know their way around a spice rack. The spicy caramel cider also has a nice balance of sweetness and warm heat, thanks to owner Nate Snell’s vanilla ghost pepper syrup, which he created in 2013 as a secret menu item.

Since the planet is slowly boiling and it’s still weirdly hot around here, the apple cider slushy at Sugarpine Drive-In is a nice alternative, with a hearty dose of ginger, allspice, and nutmeg. Sugarpine has a whole Kiyokawa apple–themed menu this month overflowing with bangers: an apple sundae with hazelnut streusel and apples steeped in spiced beet syrup (which adds a nice earthy note), a cider-braised smoked pork sandwich with apple-cabbage slaw and apple mostarda, and an apple-loaded Hokkaido-style curry soup with smoked mushrooms and fukujinzuke, a Japanese pickle relish.

For classic apple cider doughnuts outside the orchard, Milk Glass Mrkt sells some killer ones on Fridays.

💛 Chanterelle

It’s not just about the sweets for me — we’re in the heart of chanterelle mushroom season, baby. They’re the star of a zippy tagliatelle at Cafe Olli with corn and shallots, and a pizza at Lovely’s Fifty Fifty with shaved spring onions and gremolata. And as soon as I finish this newsletter, I’m going to find my own out in Tillamook State Forest. Wish me luck!

🍐 Pear

So yes, things are a little dire for Hood River pear growers. (In case you missed it, I talked about that on the podcast last month.) However, a few were able to chuck some in the direction of Pinolo Gelato, my absolute favorite ice cream shop in Portland. The shop’s pear sorbetto is so remarkable, such a clear and pristine expression of pear, and not at all grainy — no small feat for a sorbet, I say as someone who makes sorbet on a weekly basis.

Plus, Pizza Kat added its pear-almond praline ice cream to the menu on Friday.

🥧 Pumpkin

Here’s why I think Lauretta Jean’s makes Portland’s best pumpkin pie: A) It doesn’t skimp on the spice (especially cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg). B) It doesn’t skimp on the whipped cream (it’s a full-on layer, akin to what you’d see on a lemon meringue pie, which balances the spice of the base). C) It retains a silky, luxurious texture as opposed to a more jiggly one. They’re also making a pumpkin cheesecake, which is a little too tart for my taste (maybe a little sour cream in the mix?), but nice for folks who want their pumpkin treats more pumpkin-y rather than spice-forward.

Similarly, the pumpkin gelato at Pinolo Gelato really drills in on that delicate flavor of roasted gourd.

Vegans will probably dig the plant-based pumpkin pie soft-serve at Sugarpine, which somehow also captures the flavor of the crust, as opposed to just the filling. It’s the star of the Oregon Trail seasonal sundae, with Cloudforest magic spread sandwich cookies, pumpkin caramel, and pepitas.