Autumn flavors are plentiful on local restaurant menus

Clockwise from top left, Boro's pumpkin spice chai latte (The Boro Cafe & Market Photo); Hardscrabble's pumpkin spice hard cider (Anthony Sepe Photo) House-made fig cake at Blue Heron (Matthew Paratore Photo);  Carrot cake cinnamon-spiced ice cream at Miss Mona Makes Ice Cream ( Mona Lipson Photo); Drinks from Goodhouse Social Club; Fondue with beef skewers at The Whitlock (Amy Sowder Photos)

By AMY SOWDER

While the rest of the world obsesses over basic (but delicious) pumpkin spice lattes, northern Westchester’s chefs and food artisans are getting wonderfully inventive with autumn’s bounty. From sweet corn ice cream spiked with habanero caramel to blue cheese fondue with grilled beef skewers flecked with rosemary, our local food scene is embracing fall flavors that go far beyond the expected orange-hued offerings.

The Whitlock

By mid-October, diners can expect blue cheese fondue with marinated grilled beef skewers topped with bacon, chives and grilled bread — a dish with “a nice smokey flavor, and bacon to top it off,” Executive Chef Eric Lapkin said.

The beef gets a sophisticated treatment with a cabernet marinade enhanced by thyme, garlic and rosemary. 

“We’re getting away from soft herbs, going toward hardier herbs,” he said. 

His second standout is honeynut squash gnocchi in a brown butter Parmesan emulsion, finished with sage-hazelnut gremolata. Lapkin uses a baby honeynut squash for more concentrated flavor, and he adds brightness to the gremolata with Parmesan and parsley.

The Whitlock is located at 17 Katonah Ave., Katonah.

Goodhouse Social Club 

The menu celebrates the season with “a balance of refinement and comfort, highlighting local farms, foraged ingredients and bold autumn flavors,” said Gabriel Sorgi, managing partner and director of food and beverage operations.

You’ll find small plates like a salad of roasted fennel and Kyoto carrots with lentils, lardon and Parmigiano cream, plus a tart with caramelized shallot, bacon and thyme. The cod gets poached in cider, scallops a la plancha come with crookneck squash, mushroom broth and autumn greens, and a beef short rib and filet will be accompanied by buttermilk potato puree, onion and red wine-mushroom jus.

The dessert menu embraces autumn’s warmth with a spiced molasses tart, a fig tart with ricotta, almonds, and blood-orange gelato and an intriguing caramel-apple crêpe cake. 

Goodhouse is located at 130 East Main St., Mount Kisco.

Miss Mona Makes Ice Cream

Mona Lipson’s community-supported treats program showcases local makers through creative ice cream flavors that tell stories about the region’s artisans. Her tentative fall lineup includes That Kernel Has a Kick — sweet corn ice cream featuring Captain Cooks’ habanero salted caramel swirl. 

Other inventive flavors include Canel-Yay! (spiked rum ice cream with canelés from Brooklyn’s L’imprimerie Bakery), Tea, Early Grey, Cold (Earl Grey ice cream with Elvis Events scones) and Carrot Cake with cinnamon ice cream featuring Katonah-based 351 Cakes’ gluten-free carrot cake and cream cheese frosting. Find her cold treats on select pickup dates at Katonah Reading Room. 

Blue Heron Tea and Coffee Company

This café embraces fall with nostalgia and European sophistication. Proprietor Matthew Paratore is in the process of concocting a malted mocha latte and a gianduja chocolate latte inspired by the bicerin, a beverage from Turin, Italy.

“It’s a drink that predates espresso by over 100 years, originating from a 1750s café in Northern Italy,” Paratore said. 

Native to Turin, the hot drink is made with espresso, whipped milk or cream and hot chocolate. Blue Heron’s version will have gianduja, which is chocolate stretched with hazelnut butter.

For fall food, there’s a rotating seasonal variety of quiches and tarts, like butternut squash and sage, plus scrumptious scones with cranberry and orange and elegant cakes like fig and rosemary that showcase autumn’s more refined flavor profiles.

Blue Heron Tea and Coffee is located at 9 Kirby Plaza, Mount Kisco.

The Boro Cafe & Market

Founders John Swertfager and Skaz Gecaj are embracing fall with enthusiasm, pumpkin and all. 

“It’s our first fall, so we’re excited to have these new flavors like pumpkin and crème brûlée,” Swertfager said. Beyond the expected — but crowd-pleasing favorite — pumpkin spiced latte, they’re offering pumpkin chai lattes, cinnamon bun lattes and local apple cider, plus pumpkin pecan muffins and pumpkin maple scones.

The Boro Cafe & Market is located at 873 Route 35, Cross River.

Harvest Moon Farm & Orchard

Expect Harvest Moon’s cider doughnuts and apple pies, of course, but don’t forget Hardscrabble Cider manager and head cider maker Anthony Sepe’s fall-inspired hard ciders, including the caramel apple and pumpkin pie varieties at the farm’s cider bar. The farm and cidery’s fall festival throughout September and October also showcases their signature Cider Smash — a sweet cider slushy topped with soft serve vanilla ice cream and a cider doughnut topper. 

“We will also be rolling out a fall-inspired cocktail menu, featuring our signature The 130’ cocktail,” Sepe said about the drink with small-batch, Hudson-Valley-made Bull’s Head bourbon, Harvest Moon’s fresh-pressed cider, ginger beer, Hardscrabble seasonal hard cider, fresh-squeezed lemon juice and Honey Crisp apple. 

Harvest Moon Farm & Orchard is located at 130 Hardscrabble Road, North Salem.

LMNOP Bakery

Baker and co-founder Anne Mayhew takes a farm-to-table approach to fall baking. While heartier spices are a safe bet, coming weeks could also feature baked goods with pears and apples from Salinger’s Orchard in Brewster and raspberries from Hilltop Hanover Farm and Environmental Center in Yorktown Heights.

“For pastries, we’ll be rolling out deeper and spicier flavors,” Mayhew said.

Expect the return of ginger cookies after their summer hiatus, plus apple galettes and hand pies. 

LMNOP Bakery is located at 25 Katonah Ave., Katonah.

123Dough

Baker Paul Park is embracing fall with ancient grain apple pies, raisin bread, cinnamon-raisin scones, hearty ancient grain bread and on Saturdays, sourdough pizza. 

“People love apple pie for fall,” Park said.

His ancient grain version gives traditionalists something familiar yet thoughtfully updated. Like the bakery’s name suggests, the ancient grain bread has only three ingredients: organic whole grain, water and salt. It’s naturally leavened, and the grains are freshly milled and sourced from trusted farms.

123Dough is located at 78 Westchester Ave., Pound Ridge.

Mimi’s Coffee House

People come to this welcoming, colorful cafe with a bohemian vibe and community spirit not just for the warmth in the air.

They also want their favorite year-round coffee, tea, wraps and salads. But behind the register, there’s a chalkboard with seasonal drinks and soups too. And yes, this fall, you’ll be able to get your PSL (also called pumpkin spiced latte). For an Indian twist on this American squash-ified coffee, sip on the pumpkin-spiced chai. 

Mimi’s Coffee House is located at 37 South Moger Ave., Mount Kisco.

Mast Market

“We love fall at Mast Market, and our seasonal offerings will celebrate that with apples, sweet potatoes, all things pumpkin,” said CEO and co-founder Rick Mast. 

The biggest news is they’re adding rotisserie chickens to their offerings. As a nice touch for the community, local teachers receive a 10% discount through September.

Mast Market is located at 1 Court Road, Bedford.