Fall is my favorite season. Yes, I love chestnuts, truffles, cardigans, chunky scarves and pumpkin pies. But the real reason I love the fall is another, it’s the dark. The dark brings about hints of wintry chill, mixed with the cinnamon tang of cookies. It calls for the first hot chocolate of the season, thick and sweet, topped with whipped cream, with a side of paste di meliga.

Autumnal dark is also filled with ghosts: we head towards the night of All Hallows, the night of All Souls and those more inclined towards these things really feel it. Even those not particularly attracted by the idea of entertaining a candle-lit conversation with spirits are likely to appreciate a ghost story or two, this time of the year: it must be the chill and the dark falling earlier.