34 Carefully Picked Fall Recipes (2024)

To me, no season really calls for a certain type of recipe more so than fall. Summer screams for salads and ice-creams, but fall cools down and makes a person want to add something with a different type of flavor and a little more ‘oomph’.

These recipes are comfort foods, especially for the person who, like me, needs just a little bit more comfort in fall.

Great Fall Recipes to Swoon Over

1. Creamy Green Bean Casserole

Sally’s Baking Addiction is the place to go when you want to find a good recipe. The girl just knows her stuff. Afterall, you know someone does when they get to stay home and write about their cooking adventures and get paid for it!

This green bean casserole is made from scratch and she notes that it is very easy to make. I trust her. You should too.

Make this. You won’t regret it!

2. Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Squash and Cranberries

Here’s one where you have to take my word for it. I made this last year at Thanksgiving time with my culinary students. I was running all over the school having teachers try it because it was so amazingly good. Julia fromJulia’s Album did an outstanding job on this recipe.

I love the fact that she uses maple syrup in the recipe instead of sugar. Interesting titbit about maple syrup v. sugar and honey. The latter two will make your blood sugar spike and crash, maple syrup will not. Please, please, please don’t be afraid of Brussell sprouts and give this one a try.

3. Twice Baked Potatoes

I hear from teenagers all the time, “Have you ever had twiced baked potatoes?” I smile and tell them that the teenagers before them made it for my going away party.

One thing I will say is twiced baked potatoes is definately a crowd pleaser. Melanie at Garnish & Glaze made hers beautiful enough to showcase, which I am sure means that everyone is grabbing her food if she ever takes it to a pot luck.

The red really makes it pop while the sour cream, green onions, and cheedar cheese gives it that truly baked potato taste.

4. Make it a Brunch to Remember

These look so delicious! Made by Tieghan over at Half Baked Harvest, they are definately something I would put on my list, say, the Saturday morning after Thanksgiving! One thing about us Texans is we love our brunch.

Mashed potato waffles seem a bit odd but they are very light. It’s a nice kind of interesting to get that first taste of crunch followed by the softness of the mashed potatoes. She adds the savoriness of bacon to the sweetness of the cranberries and it is almost a perfect way to start a fall morning.

With a cup of coffee, of course.

5. Cookies and Cream Hot Chocolate

If you’re not a coffee person, this might be what you need to go with the previous recipe. I mean, hot chocolate with Oreos in it? I may not be much of a sweet coffee girl but this hot chocolate is a great alternative!

Fall seems to be known more and more for Pumpkin Spice hot drinks or even cold drinks but thanks to Jessica over at Sprinkle Some Sugarwe now have an idea of something else to make for a warm drink.

Perfect brunch is now ready!

6. Cauliflower Chowder

I love chowder. When I was a young girl, my town had a chowder festival and I would easily gulp down a corn chowder while listening to the music they provided.

This soup reminds me more of a potato soup though, and I feel like this would be a nice substitute if you were looking for something a little less carbohydrate loaded. In case I haven’t mentioned it, I love bacon.

If you are looking for a healthy recipe that is gluten free, opt for cornstarch instead of flour to thicken your chowder.

Chungah really shines with her healthier recipe here. Be sure to check out her blog over at Damn Delicious.

7. Garlic Cheddar Biscuits

Yum, yum. I feel like I am at Red Lobster. This is a recipe that will leave your whole family, young and old begging for more. As a matter of fact her children asked if she had brought them home from the restaurant.

What makes it even better is that the recipe can all be made in one bowl. The less dishes to do the better!

If you want to see these on your table during the fall- or any season, really- be sure to head over to Malinda’s Countryside Cravings.

8. Apple Fries with Caramel Dip

I know, I know… about time I add some sweetness to this list. Many public schools have gone peanut free and do not allow cupcakes or any unhealthy recipes anymore. This is a great way to bring something sweet to the table without tipping that unhealthy scale.

I like that she uses Granny Smith because the tartness seared in and the sugar/cinnamon coat on top really mix well together.

The three ladies over at Favorite Family recipe really outdid themselves on this one.

9. Pumpkin Pie Snowballs

I had never had a snowball cookie recipe until I was in high school but I thought it was really great and make it frequently at Christmas time for cookie exchanges.

It was pointed out that pumpkin is definitely a great fall treat so combining the two is a double treat. I love when I can combine fall with a holiday favorite because the fall reminds me that my favorite seasons are almost one and the same.

I tip my hat toSo Happily Hannah for coming up with this delicious recipe that combines two of our favorite seasons.

10. Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon

Alyssa over at The Recipe Critic came up with this great recipe. I know it’s great because after watching Julie and Julia for the umpteenth time I decided it was finally time I made one of her recipes. Naturally time did not allow for me to cook it so I opted for the crock pot version.

I combined it with a nice Texas toast, white wine cheddar spread, and of course, a créme bruleé. Healthy, hearty meal that adds a taste of wine, what could be better?

11. Apple Glazed Pork Tenderloins

Keri over at Fashionable Foods came up with this great idea and she makes a good point that it is hard to eat healthy in the fall beause you want the comfort foods. This recipe is so perfect because it keeps it healthy- healthy enough to be a Whole 30 recipe!

Her potatoes don’t even have milk in them. Excited to try this recipe. I might even like the carrots.

12. Apple Pie Cake

How cute is this apple pie cake made by Liv at Liv for Cake? I have to tell you it’s pretty fun to make too. I made this last week at school and the kids really loved making the center, “Wow! I didn’t know how to make apple pie filling, thanks Chef.” Why, you’re welcome.

I didn’t do the pie crust because I made the cake as a practice for my cake decorating class but I think it is very beautiful and makes the cake look more unique. The flowers are beautiful.

13. Pumpkin Seeds

Let me tell you how delicious pumpkin seeds are. I had them for the first time today and they are so crunchy. Mmmm… better than potato chips any day. The art teacher actually made them and she made several different varieties- spicy, sweet, and barbeque to name a few.

Home Cooking Memoriesuses Lowery’s seasoning to make her pumpkin seeds taking me to another happy place. They really are tasty and did such a great job on theirs so I just had to share.

14. Pear and Proscuitto Triangles

Lindsey over at With Salt and Pepper came up with this delicious recipe that is sure to wow a crowd. I like to have a few recipes that are unique to my friends but something they cannot wait to get their hands on. Cheese and fruit pair well together, add puff pastry to that and drizzle with honey sounds like it is dessert. Or a side. Or the main dish.

Either way, delicious, unique, and sure to bring people around the dining room table.

15. Red Wine Short Ribs

Kate over at Framed Cooks came up with this recipe that really hits the nail on the head with warmth all over. She starts off the post by talking about what really makes fall, well, fall. The first fire in the fireplace, a grey Sunday, and food just like this.

She also points out that this recipe helps her to use the red wine that she is not able to drink. She gets headaches from drinking the red wine alcohol but does not when she cooks with it. I have to agree, it is probably because the taste stays in while most of the alcohol cooks out.

16. Butternut Squash Carbonara

I felt that it was important to add a noodle recipe. Sometimes pasta can be as much of a comfort food as meat and potatoes do. Pop Sugar really knocked us out of the water with this Butternut Squash Carbonara. She notes the importance of noodles in her life, so keeping the basics for this dish on hand is important.

The basics consists of eggs, cheese, pasta, and bacon. You can add ingredients from there. Ingredients such as mushrooms, or in this case, butternut squash. A perfect fall treat.

17. Fall Pizza

Martha Stewart came up with this delicious twist on a classic! Don’t hate, the lady has some great recipes and this is one of them. I mean, it’s pizza! It’s fall!

I love pizza. So much so that we had it for dinner tonight. Pizza really is versatile and these vegetables are a great addition to a ricotta topped crust. Carrots, onions, and some more butternut squash. Fall pizza? Yes please.

18. Crock Pot Chicken and Stuffing

I think fall is one of the busiest times of the year and the crock pot sure can save the day. Stephanie over at The Cozy Cook understands this and came up with a recipe that is both tasty and quick. And she gives you a recipe no matter how you like your meal… like softer stuffing? Here’s what you do. Need a low sodium option? Check. It’s all there.

19. Chocolate Turtle Apple Slices

I love this more so than chocolate covered whole apples because the whole apples are too big and hurt my teeth when I bite into them. I made something similar a few years back with the girls but we cut them into wedges instead of slices like this. I like the look of this one a lot better.

Not to mention, I don’t know very many people who could eat a whole chocolate covered apple in one bite. This kills two birds with one stone. Get the recipe here.

20. Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Cupcake

Although Pecan Pie is delicious, Pecan Pie with chocolate chips added to it is down right sinful. My absolute favorite holiday pie. I normally eat Thanksgiving dinner, wait until I am finally hungry again and then pull out the Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie because I know that I might not eat again the rest of the day after having that treat.

Add in the fact that Fall equals football and football equal beer, this makes the perfect fall dessert. I read recently that some foods, such as steaks and potatoes, are considered man food and some more feminine. This is a dessert for the masses- chocolate for the females and a hint of alcohol for the males. Dig in! If you agree, find the recipe here.

21. Baked Honeycrisp Apples

This dessert has three great things going for it: one, it’s healthy, two, it’s pretty, and three, it tastes delicious. I love cranberries, walnuts, and cinnamon during this time of year. Adding in the apple is an added bonus.

Not to mention, there is no waste as even the “bowl” is edible! Baked to perfection, I can already tell you this will be on my teacher’s dinner plans for my students this month and probably a recurring dessert from here on out if I’m not mistaken. If you want to add this to your dinner table one night, check it out here.

22. Pie Crust Chips and Cinnamon Dip

This recipe is great for feeding a crowd and the cookie cutter shapemakes it perfect for something like an open house where people can come and go as they please. Not to mention, if your guests are not much of a dip person, they still have something delicious to eat.

It is also good for those times when you want something sweet but do not have much time to get involved in making a dessert. Seems like we have all been there, on both fronts, at one point or another. The good news with this one too: when you get to the website, you go straight to the recipe! Find it here.

23. Autumn Oreo Brownies

This one is pretty but easy enough to make. And the recipe is vegan to boot.

If you are not vegan and have a great recipe for brownies, then follow her recipe and just make the brownies the way you like to make them. If you don’t have a great recipe, that’s okay too; it looks like her recipe could be easily tweaked for those of us who are okay with eating eggs and milk.

She points out that this recipe would be great for other holidays too, so long as you use the Oreos from the holiday they correspond with. This great recipe can be found here.

24. Halloween Chex Mix Muddy Buddies

My mother always made candy corn and peanuts in a jar as a Halloween treat for my brother and myself. I started this tradition when my daughters were little, but soon decided not to keep it in a bowl because our then three-year-old would make herself sick eating them. It was that good.

This recipe replaced the peanut corn eventually because our younger girl had to stay up all night at five years old in order to have something done to check her brain waves while she slept. I came up with all sorts of fun events to do that night and making this recipe was one of them. Naturally, it was a tough night but this recipe now holds a special place in my heart.

Delicious. I shared with co-workers and my family in order for us not to eat it all. I highly recommend this recipe as we still use it to this day.

25. Sweet Potato Cheesecake

Some of the recipes you will see from here down are recipes that have an ingredient we don’t often think of as dessert. I was in the seventh grade before I ever bit into a sweet potato and even then it was typically a baked sweet potato with butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon.

Thanksgiving of that year changed it all when my mother’s boyfriend’s family made sweet potato casserole- the kind with the streusel on top. I was sold.

I don’t look at sweet potatoes as just a side dish anymore and this recipe is a great way to show off this vegetable’s unique ability to be sweet and delicious. To break away from the sweet potato mold.

26. Pumpkin Rice Crispies

I added this recipe for my older daughter who absolutely adores rice crispies. After adding the picture, I found some great fall rice crispy treat recipes where they had turned them into shapes representing all things fall- especially pumpkins.

She has been asking me to make her rice crispies for a while now and after seeing this recipe I guess I might have to make them soon. So if you’re looking for a traditional recipe with a hint of “whoop! whoop! fall is here” thenthis recipe is for you.

27. Apple Cider Floats

I have something to admit. I am not a fan of apples. There, I said it. I will eat them on occasion, so they are not too taboo but they are just not the first thing on my list of things to grab when I need a quick snack.

I do love apple cider though. There is something so soothing and delicious about the cinnamon infused richness that comes from apple cider.

We had an orchard that I would go to in Kentucky to get their home-made apple cider as soon as fall started. I loved the fact that I could purchase it locally.

This recipe is a good treat for those of us who live where it is hot even in September and well into October. I am grateful for drinks such as this and frozen hot chocolate (like Serendipity in NYC) that make us deep south southerners feel as if we have seasons too. If you just want something chilly or need a reminder that fall really is coming, you can find the recipehere.

28. Caramel Apple Fudge

Last school year in Food Science we learned about the science of fudge as our final exam during the fall semester. For whatever reason, the recipe didn’t work out. Being the person that I am, I decided that I was going to find a different recipe, go home and make the darn thing work. Partially my desire to feed my students fudge and, more so, my desire to make it work, I went home and recreated a different fudge recipe. The next day, “We have GOT to make those again when we get back”. Success!

This recipe is as easy to make as my second batch and goes out of the norm for traditional fudge recipes. I love the taste of caramels and the hint of apple that this recipe brings. It tastes like fall melting in your mouth!

29. Homemade Fresh Pumpkin Pie

Starbucks changed their pumpkin spiced latte game this year by using real pumpkins instead of flavoring. I’ll be honest, it was a bit more than I expected and I ended up having to dilute mine to fifty percent their drink and fifty percent my homemade coffee. That being said I am glad that national chains are recognizing our desire to have real food and not this artificial, imitation stuff.

Likewise, this pumpkin pie recipewas added on here because it uses real pumpkin and not the canned stuff. I love, love, love making the real deal of something that many Americans have become all too complacent and just purchase from the store.

So if you love to garden and have sugar (or pie) pumpkins in your garden or you go to the farmers market and pick this up from your local farmer, I highly recommend this recipe as she teaches us how to make something that used to be considered common knowledge before the advent of grocery stores.

30. Cornmeal Crepes with Figs and Pears

Here’s a recipe that stands out for a number of reasons. One, it is not too sweet and two, it combines ingredients that have, sadly, become a back burner to apples and pumpkins.

I can remember the first time I ate a fig. I was volunteering for a CSA, packing their boxes in order to get a free box myself. After working for three hours I was sweating and starving. That first bite was a great experience. The rest of the figs went into a dessert recipe similar to this one.

So, don’t be afraid to think outside the box and give this recipe a try. You won’t regret it.

31. Apple Nachos

A while back my girls went to a school that was peanut free and they also didn’t allow typical dessert foods in the school. Since cookies and cupcakes were out, I opted to make this recipe and it got rave reviews from all of the teachers. I was so happy they liked it that I have made it several more times since then.

It is a great combination of something just a little sweet while still having a healthy element. Naturally the apples, caramel, and chocolate give it that fall-ish feel to it. In order to make it extra fall like, I changed out the multi colored sprinkles and opted for fall colored sprinkles.

You can find the recipehere.

32. Oreo Football Helmets

Being in charge of the press box for high school football games meant my culinary class and I had to get creative every couple of weeks. We really enjoyed it.

One week we created a football stadium full of snacks and on the outside, we created football helmets made out of oreo balls and pretzel bites. We added the numbers of our players on the side and beamed with pride when it was done.

Oreo balls are not hard to make and could honestly be done in many different ways, including pumpkins, acorns, and anything else that has a round shape. If you have never had oreo balls but you like dirt cake, you are in for a treat!

33. Gingerbread, Pear, and Almond Tart

The thing that I love about fall is the holidays ebb and flow beautifully. We go from Halloween to Thanksgiving, and before we know it Christmas and New Years is here. It is as if it is almost magical.

So when people hear gingerbread they almost immediately think of Christmas but paired with the tartness of the pear, it makes for a great fall dessert that hardly anyone can resist. The feel of what is yet to come melts in your mouth as you taste the subtle sweetness of this dessert.

34. Harry Potter Pumpkin Juice

The oldest daughter started reading Harry Potter between her third and fourth-grade year and has been trying to get me to read them. Working full-time, having a part-time job (albeit, freelancing), going back and forth to their practices for dance and theater, being a full-time graduate student, and still holding up to mommy and wife duties means there is not much time to read anything outside of what my professors tell me.

In order to make her happy and find a way we can bond, I have started listening to them through audio on the way to the different activities and to be honest, I cannot get enough. Sometimes I will sit out in the car just to hear the next few chapters.

Once I have “read” them all, I plan to buy the set of movies and watch them since I haven’t done that yet either and within the next year, I want to take a trip to Universal Studio’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

In the mean time, I will settle for the free moments that I can listen to J.K. Rowling’s fabulous book and sip some ofHarry Potter’s Pumpkin Juice. A sweet middle ground of fall blendings, this pumpkin juice combines apple cider and pumpkin puree. Mmm-hmmm!