Lauren Graham Shares Her Go-to Fall Coffee Order—and It’s Not a Pumpkin Spice Latte (Exclusive)

Lauren Graham is, arguably, the queen of fall. Not because she’s living off of pumpkin spice lattes and jumping in leaf piles (although that sounds lovely), but because it’s hard to separate her from Lorelai Gilmore, the iconic character played on Gilmore Girls.

And as real fans know, the beginning of fall means it’s Gilmore Girls rewatch season. Set in the cozy fictional New England town of Stars Hollow, where it’s somehow always fall and everyone knows their neighbors, Gilmore Girls is the ultimate comfort show. Parade sat down with Graham ahead of a baking class hosted by Bob’s Red Mill and Graham herself, and when we mentioned the comforting nature of Gilmore Girls, Graham said, “I can’t be comforted by it. I can only be horrified by it.”

That’s fair (and in case you’re wondering, her go-to comfort show is Downton Abbey), but we still had some Gilmore Girls and fall-themed questions for her that she was happy to answer. Below, Graham shares her go-to coffee order in the fall, what she likes to bake for people when the weather cools down and what we can get excited about with the upcoming Gilmore Girls documentary.

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Lauren Graham’s Go-to Fall Coffee Order (And What She Likes To Bake)

Sure, Graham technically lives in LA where the seasons aren’t quite as noticeable and the weather doesn’t really cool down, but she still gets into the spirit. When we asked her about her go-to fall coffee order, we were surprised to hear that she skips right to the late fall and winter drinks.

“I do get more sweet-tooth coffee-ish in the fall,” she tells Parade. “I won’t really get a pumpkin spice latte, but I’ll go chocolate mint, like a peppermint mocha.”

She does more cooking and baking in the fall, too, and especially loves having people over for dinner—a quality that’s aligned with Bob’s Red Mill’s Moregetherness, a platform that aims to bring neighbors together over food.

“I always wanted to be the house that people came over to, and I have become that house, especially for Thanksgiving,” Graham says. “I have dinner parties frequently. I love making things for people, and I’m sort of self-taught, which is why I love that Bob’s Red Mill offers simple mixes, and you don’t have to be a crazy genius to use everything.”

Related: The Unexpected Way Lauren Graham Found Out ‘Gilmore Girls’ Was Canceled

Graham explains that she made cooking, baking and hosting a project for herself, and it’s turned into a passion. She admits to being more of a savory than sweet person, so her go-to fall baking dish is pot pies, explaining, “They’re really easy, and that’s a good thing to do with Thanksgiving leftovers. You can just throw everything in a pot and put any kind of crust or biscuit on top of it, and people are really impressed by that for some reason.”

Graham is gluten-free, so she uses a gluten-free flour, and she makes a ton of pot pies after Thanksgiving because they’re a great way to use leftovers. “And I’m working on my bread—I’m trying to make biscuits,” she says. “My grandmother was Southern and a great biscuit maker, so I’m trying to find the right gluten-free recipe for that.”

Related: The 20 Most Stunning U.S. Destinations for Fall Foliage This Year

How Excited Should We Be About This Gilmore Girls Documentary?

While the title and release date for the Gilmore Girls documentary that was announced last month are still unknown, we should be very excited, according to Graham. “I’ve filmed one day of it so far, and there might be a few more, but already there are questions people haven’t asked, and conversations I had never had with Amy [Sherman-Palladino], the creator of the show,” she tells Parade. “I walked away feeling like, ‘Oh, there is more to say.’ In a shorter interview, you kind of only get so far, and a lot has already come out of it that I think people will enjoy.”

Related: Your Birth Date Reveals Your Ultimate Fall Comfort Food Match

Finally, we had to ask: How similar is Graham to Lorelai Gilmore, really?

“I think there’s a way of speaking, or looking at the world or finding humor in things, that I really relate to,” she says. “I think she was ambitious in a way but still stayed in her town—I definitely went out to the city and tried to do this career, which is a pretty risky endeavor. But I think the reason this brand partnership [with Bob’s Red Mill] works is that the show was about sharing and community, and this beautiful town where people know each other. And that’s something we’re trying to capture in this campaign, and just invite people to reach out to their neighbor. Food is a great way to do that.”

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