Muffins, donuts, blondies, and apples and spice and everything nice
Rebecca Blackwell shares fall baking inspiration from the FoodStack library.
This edition of FoodStack reads was curated by
, who writes Let’s Get Lost, a newsletter with recipes and stories from her life as a full time traveler. Rebecca has been writing, photographing, and publishing recipes on her two recipe websites since 2013. In early 2020, she and her husband sold their suburban home and moved into an RV. They’ve been criss-crossing the country ever since, living and working from beaches, forests, big cities, small towns, open spaces, and everywhere in between. She launched Let’s Get Lost in February of 2024 as a way to share more about her life on the road. If you enjoy this post, be sure to subscribe to Let’s Get Lost.Hello, fellow cooks, bakers, eaters, and dishwashers! Welcome to fall.
I am writing this from Bryson City, North Carolina, against the backdrop of the changing leaves of the Great Smoky Mountains. The air seems to get a little more crisp each day and all I want to do is bake cozy food filled with warm spices, pour something hot into a giant mug, and take it all outside to eat next to the fire. Who wants to join me?
Regardless of where you are in the world, this issue is your invitation to sink into fall vibes full stop and let the season coax you gently into the indulgent rewards of cooler, shorter days. May you find something here that inspires and delights, and connects you with someone new.
BREAKFAST
top of the mmmuffin to you
observations around appetites, ingredient trends, and 90s home baking
- in AnthroDish
Dr. Sarah Duignan writes Anthrodish essays, a stimulating dive into food, climate change, and weird wellness culture through medical anthropology.
*Best enjoyed with a mug of hot coffee and a stack of whole wheat carrot bran muffins spread with the caramel pumpkin jam you’ll find below.
“Muffins feel like a cultural zeitgeist of a time where appetites were increasingly not fed at the home table. Snacking and on-the-go eating were bolstered by chains like Mmmuffins opening across malls, or third spaces like coffee shops becoming more youth-friendly. Smoking sections were torn down in Tim Hortons (a relief for kids like me who grew up around their dad’s ash trays), and a food culture that embraced comforts, like warm spices and earthy espresso. I was not a kid that visited many cafes, but by the time I hit my teen years, our small town had at very least opened the opportunity for kids to use their part-time earnings on burnt coffee and bad café dates.”
Caramel-Pumpkin Jam, Butter, Spread Thing
- in Delicious Stuff
Quick and easy, fun to read recipes made from everyday ingredients garnished with a soupcon of humor.
“Here's the recipe for my Caramel-Pumpkin Jam, Butter, Spread Thing. Not sure what to call it exactly, It’s not really a jam although it’s jammy and very few people know what a butter is except for apple butter which everyone knows. Calling it a spread doesn’t do it justice although you’ll see similar things called fruit spreads in expensive gourmet shops. Whatever you call it, if you buy it you will pay a fortune because everyone takes advantage of those of us who crave pumpkin this time of year.”
Gluten Free Pumpkin Spice Latte Donuts
Gluten free recipes that are delicious and really work.
*Best served with a pumpkin spice latte, of course.
“You would not believe the number of texts, emails and DMs I’ve gotten lately about the pumpkin spice latte. If I know if it’s gluten free and if there’s a safe dupe are the top questions. But nobody asked the most pertinent question of all. Can it be a donut?? Well, since nobody asked, I’ll definitely answer. Yes my friends, yes it can. This donut with it’s classic spiced pumpkin base and slightly bitter latte glaze may even become your new favorite PSL. There, I’ve said it, now let them come for me.”
LUNCH
Spiced Carrot Cake Blondies
and an ode to Diaspora pumpkin spice blend
- in Bayou Saint News
Recipes and reflections on food culture, running a small cake business, and, occasionally, emergency preparedness.
*Absolutely delicious with apple cheddar salad.
“Tasked with developing my own recipe to feature the Diaspora pumpkin spice blend, I knew I wanted to create something that could bridge the gap between these last days of August and the upcoming fall season. The result - carrot cake blondies, which are, in the words of another favorite LA pastry chef Sasha Piligian, “aggressively spiced”. They feature white chocolate, another famously polarizing ingredient I’ve only recently admitted that I love, as well as shredded carrots (of course), dates, and toasted pecans. The spices are bloomed in brown butter, and while it’s perfectly ok to use solely all-purpose flour here, this recipe would also work beautifully with a little rye or whole wheat thrown in as well. The best thing about this blondie is the way the texture shifts: cookie-like at the crisp edges and sinking into fudgy territory in the center.”
AFTERNOON TEA
it's time to stop for elevenses + oat, raisin and tea soda buns
- in Apples & Elderflower
Food, recipes and stories from Tasmania’s far south.
*Best enjoyed with a steaming mug of your favorite tea, plenty of butter, and the crunchy chai cookies pictured below.
“The washing and polishing took place over a number of hours, but we always stopped for elevenses. Grandma always called this late morning break elevenses, a very English term that I think is rarely used now. We had what Grandma called milk coffee, instant coffee stirred into milk and heated in a small saucepan on the stove accompanied by something Grandma had baked. If we were lucky it was a slice of Victoria sponge, but it could have been a different type of cake or scones or rock cakes. Something to tide you over until lunchtime. It became a ritual, and I always associate elevenses with Grandma, polishing silver and a hearty snack.”
Crunchy Chai Cookies
....to bridge the miles and smiles between friends.
- in Food, Finds & Forays
Reflections and recipes of a food loving photographer and writer at large in Australia.
Best enjoyed with a steaming mug of chai and the soda buns pictured above.
“A small plate of cookies shared with a pal over a cuppa while highs and lows are shared or a snack grabbed by a loved one from a stocked up cookie jar, they’re often something that can be the start of a conversation or something to hold and nibble on while the ‘problems of the world’ are unpacked and re-packaged. They take little effort for big punch. Little nuggets of love and comfort as it were, butter sugar and a few little extras welded together.”
DESSERT
brown butter apple crumb cake
A newsletter for people who love to eat and can’t wait to cook.
*Best enjoyed after a cozy bowl of creamy chicken and potato soup.
“this is a humble cake, but it might be one of the best i’ve ever made. there are so many things to love about it from the crunchy oat crumble to the soft, sweet apples, the deep toasty and nutty flavors to the moist, almost chewy crumb. it’s incredibly versatile and can flex at breakfast, as a mid-afternoon snack or after dinner.”
Apple and Frangipane Tart
An open tart. Easier than making a pie.
FoodStack Library is committed to highlighting food writers, recipe creators and food bloggers of all audience sizes.
Best served after a warming dinner of red lentil and oxtail stew.
“This easy Apple and Frangipane Tart is made with a simple wholemeal shortcrust pastry. A thin layer of marmalade lines the base of the pastry, which is then topped with an almond frangipane filling and slices of fresh dessert apples. Swap the wholemeal flour for plain white flour if you wish.”
Pumpkin Crunch Cake
- in Sunny Side Breakfasts and Desserts
This cake is perfect for cozy fall baking. It comes together in minutes and then bakes up to golden deliciousness.
“I love the contrast of textures. The creamy pumpkin layer has just the right amount of sweetness and autumn spice, while the cake layer is fluffy and sweet. Crunchy pecans baked in butter top it all off. Put all three layers together and you’ve got yourself a killer pumpkin dessert, especially if you serve it with whipped cream!”
FROM ME
Ending this post with a favorite recipe of mine…
- in Let’s Get Lost
Recipes and stories from life on the road.
Amaretto soaked cardamom pound cake
*Best served after a hearty dinner of braised pork chops.
“If you come to my house for dinner, you are most likely going to be served some version of a recipe that is in progress. This means that sometimes the meal will be fabulous. It also means that sometimes it will be a bust. I feel that if you have been invited to dinner, we are good enough friends that you will understand the risk. 😁 A couple of weeks ago we had some friends over for dinner that we hadn’t seen in many years. It was absolutely delightful getting reacquainted. I served ricotta ravioli and this cake.”
FoodStack Reads is a weekly roundup from the best food writers in the FoodStack library. This week’s edition was guest edited by
who writes Let’s Get Lost.Do you have a recipe or food writer to recommend? Tell us about it in the comments.
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Such a great roundup!!
These are good!!!!