27 Fantastic Fall Recipes To Make All Season Long
Salted Butter-Pecan Shortbread Cookies
Recipe: Salted Butter-Pecan Shortbread Cookies
The classic shortbread cookie is a delicious treat, but adding pecans makes it perfect for fall. Make this dough two days in advance, especially since it requires four hours of chill time. Remove it from the refrigerator, roll it in turbinado sugar, slice, and bake before your guests arrive.
Baked Oatmeal with Apple, Cranberries, and Pecans
Recipe: Baked Oatmeal with Apple, Cranberries, and Pecans
This oatmeal bake is perfect for making the night before, especially if you are entertaining overnight guests. Add pecans, cranberries, and peeled apples into the brown sugar and oats mixtures for a sweet and refreshing breakfast bake. With only 15 minutes of hands-on time, this recipe is one you can make all season long.
Classic Boiled Peanuts
Recipe: Classic Boiled Peanuts
The most challenging part of this recipe is the long waiting time between mixing ingredients and serving. Start by boiling water and adding salt until it dissolves. After, place raw peanuts in the shell or three pounds of green peanuts to soak overnight—at least eight hours.
Sweet-and-Salty Autumn Snack Mix
Recipe: Sweet-and-Salty Snack Mix
Mix and match ingredients for a customized sweet-and-salty snack. This recipe uses salty pieces like bite-size Cheddar cheese crackers, corn, rice, and wheat cereals paired with sweet counterparts like honey, miniature marshmallows, and candy-coated peanut butter pieces. Store this mix in an airtight container and use it for dessert toppings or something to eat by the handful.
Sparkling Caramel-Apple Sangria
Recipe: Sparkling Caramel-Apple Sangria
Entertaining expert Katie Jacobs makes this sangria for every fall get-together. This sangria gets an extra autumnal twist from the pecan-flavored vodka, but you can substitute plain vodka if that's what is available. Scale this recipe up or down based on the size of your crowd, but don't forget the caramel-dipped apple slices for an extra touch of sweetness.
Turkey, Apple, and Brie Sandwich
Recipe: Turkey, Apple, and Brie Sandwich
Step up your turkey sandwich recipe by adding hot pepper jelly to this Brie and apple combination. Baking sandwiches in the oven will melt these ingredients on top of the crispy ciabatta rolls. This recipe calls for Gala apples, but you can substitute them for your favorite variety.
Quinoa with Roasted Butternut Squash
Recipe: Quinoa with Roasted Butternut Squash
Combine the flavors of fall in this vegetable quinoa dish. Start by roasting the butternut squash coated with thyme and olive oil—Remember to toast your pistachios before combining them with the rest of the ingredients. Finish by adding the cranberries and white wine vinegar before mixing it with spinach and quinoa.
Salted Caramel-Apple Hand Pies
Recipe: Salted Caramel-Apple Hand Pies
Pack these hand-pies for a fall picnic or enjoy them straight from the oven. Either way, the seasonal spices, apples, and caramel topping will fill your home with the sweet scents of autumn. Use store-bought pie crust to help assemble this dessert faster.
Baked Mini Pumpkin-Pecan Donuts
Recipe: Baked Mini Pumpkin-Pecan Donuts
These pumpkin donuts only need one bowl, a Ziploc bag, and a donut pan to make. Start by mixing your ingredients, including pumpkin puree and your desired spices, and use a Ziploc bag to pipe the batter into your tray. Finish these delicious fall treats will homemade maple icing.
Hot Spiced Tea
Recipe: Hot Spiced Tea
Cozy up with a mug of homemade tea on a chilly fall day. Start with a cinnamon-spice or chai tea base and add fresh juices like pineapple, orange, and lemon for a unique blend of flavors. Top your autumn drink with mulling spices and a cinnamon stick.
Instant Pot Mississippi Pot Roast
Recipe: Instant Pot Mississippi Pot Roast
Fall is the perfect time to try out the Instant Pot recipes. Between football games and carving pumpkins, you want to find a meal that the entire family can enjoy with little effort. Chuck roast simmers in a stew of flavors, including ranch dressing mix, dill, and chives for a hearty and savory dinner.
Diner-Style Classic Patty Melts
Recipe: Classic Patty Melts
Patty melts make the ultimate comfort food, especially when cooked in a cast-iron skillet. Sourdough bread is perfect for building this enhanced grilled cheese sandwich. On top of the melted cheddar and swiss cheeses, a seasoned ground chuck covered in Dijon mustard, barbecue sauce, and ketchup creates the ideal weeknight meal.
Beefy Butternut Squash Pasta
Recipe: Beefy Butternut Squash Pasta
The best part of this recipe is it comes together in only one pan—plus, it only takes about 30 minutes to cook. Pasta topped with ground sirloin, butternut squash, and collard greens combine for an all-in-one dinner. Finish with a healthy sprinkle of Parmesan cheese, and you have a dinner everyone will enjoy—and request time and time again.
Chicken-Mushroom Skillet
Recipe: Chicken-Mushroom Skillet
Combine two types of mushrooms for an earthy take on a classic chicken skillet dish. Add herbs like thyme and parley and garnish with lemon wedges for an easy dish with many flavors. Pair with rice, and your dinner is complete.
Cheesy Taco Casserole
Recipe: Easy Taco Casserole
Everyone loves taco night, but sometimes it can get messy. Simplify your dinner planning by transforming taco night into a casserole night—still filled with all your favorite ingredients. Layer tortillas, beef, and cheese, so they seamlessly melt when baking, and top with lettuce and pico de gallo.
Beef-and-Vegetable Soup with Gnocchi
Recipe: Beef-and-Vegetable Soup with Gnocchi
Start with store-bought gnocchi and enhance it with fresh vegetables. Adding ground beef makes this a more hearty meal, but it still only takes about 15 minutes of hands-on time to create. Customize this dish with any vegetables you prefer, including fresh spinach, green beans, or zucchini.
Speedy Skillet Beef and Broccoli
Recipe: Easy Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry
Perfect for a weekday meal, beef and broccoli is a classic combination, inspiring this stir fry recipe. Start by browning your beef in a large skillet, followed by broccoli. Follow this by adding rice and bell peppers to your skillet before combining them with the soy sauce mixture. Finish by sprinkling your dish with scallions, salt, and crushed red pepper.
Persimmon Pudding with Cinnamon Whipped Cream
Recipe: Persimmon Pudding
Give pumpkin-everything baking a break by making this persimmons pudding instead. This soft and nutty dish is the perfect pairing to any fall dinner, infused with various rich, autumnal spices. Top off the pudding with homemade Cinnamon Whipped Cream.
Clementine Whiskey Sour
Recipe: Clementine Whiskey Sour
Use clementine syrup or juice to give a refreshing twist to the traditional whiskey sour. Combine whiskey, fresh lemon juice, and egg white in addition to this unique flavoring for an exciting fall cocktail. Orange bitters are optional.
Johnnycakes with Leeks and Collard Greens
Recipe: Johnnycakes with Leeks and Collard Greens
It only takes seven ingredients to make these cornmeal-based pancakes. Skillet cornbread is a Southern favorite, so this alternative presentation will surely be a hit with your family and friends. Add collard greens or turnip greens and leeks to create a new classic side dish.
Oyster Stew
Recipe: Oyster Stew
Stews are great for chilly fall days when you can feel winter knocking on the door. In about 30 minutes, this oyster stew is ready, complete with potatoes, bacon, and a heavy-cream sauce. Prepare the perfect comfort food by serving this stew with freshly toasted bread.
Beer-Braised Beef Tips with Root Vegetables and Horseradish Recipe
Recipe: Beer-Braised Beef Tips with Root Vegetables and Horseradish Recipe
Add some flavoring to a classic comfort dish. Pot roast is excellent fall food because you can simmer it all day in a slow cooker, enjoying the delicious smells filling the crisp autumn air. The horseradish adds a kick to this recipe, but you can alter the amount based on your preferences. This chuck roast, paired with carrots, parsnips, potatoes, and stout beer, is a slow cooker meal you'll want to make all season.
Grilled Oysters
Recipe: Grilled Oysters
Take advantage of your grill one last time before winter begins by making these oysters. Place oysters, cupped side down, over your grill and cover them until they start to open on the wide side. Serve hot and repeat this process with the remaining oysters.
Ginger-Plum Slump Recipe
Recipe: Ginger-Plum Slump Recipe
Add minced fresh ginger to the sugary red and black plum mixture as it simmers in a cast-iron skillet. After preparing the filling, begin baking the dumpling mixture, which you can then drop on top of the plums. Complete this dessert with dollops of a topping made from powdered sugar, heavy cream, and crystallized ginger.
Hot Pepper Vinegar
Recipe: Hot Pepper Vinegar
Instead of traditional oyster condiments, like classic mignonettes and cocktail sauces, try this hot pepper vinegar to add flavor and spice the next time you cook seafood. With only four ingredients, this oyster sauce comes together quickly. Combine seeded jalape?o chiles, apple cider vinegar, kosher salt, and fresh cilantro for a condiment you can use on oysters—or any other dinner you wish.
Cranberry Dreamsicle Trifle
Recipe: Cranberry Dreamsicle Trifle
Start your dinner preparations early by making this dessert the day before your company arrives. Fresh cranberries add a delightful pop of color to this sweet and zesty trifle. Completing this fluffy treat are layers of orange pastry cream and whipped cream.
Double-Crust Chicken Pot Pies
Recipe: Double-Crust Chicken Pot Pies
Chicken pot pie is classic comfort food that hardly can be improved—unless you are doubling the crust in this flaky savory dish. Par-baking, or baking the crust before filling it, will help maintain this meal's golden and crispy exterior. Complete with vegetables and a heavy cream sauce, everyone will feel a bit cozier after sitting down to enjoy this meal.
Fall in the South makes itself known in many ways. From winding through back roads bursting with fall color to football tailgates overflowing with team spirit (and game day dips, of course!), it's everywhere you can see.
But let's not forget the tastes of fall. We're starting with a fall tailgating menu from entertaining expert Katie Jacobs that rivals any dip spread. Pick from sweet and savory snacks like mini pumpkin-pecan doughnuts, caramel-apple hand pies, turkey-and-Brie paninis, and sparkling apple sangria. Next, get your fill of comforting fall supper ideas that have you covered on quick skillets, throw-together casseroles, warm soups, and even a classic Mississippi pot roast.
Don't let autumn pass by without hosting an old-school oyster roast. Grilled oysters, johnnycakes with collard greens, and a showstopping orange-buttermilk trifle will see you through. It's no wonder autumn is many Southerners' favorite season—feast with your loved ones all season long with these 27 fantastic fall recipes.