42 Non Pumpkin Fall Recipes You Must Try

Fall is bursting with incredible flavors beyond the pumpkin patch. This collection of 42 non-pumpkin fall recipes celebrates the season's best ingredients organized into seven delicious categories, from fall apple and pear recipes to cozy fall comfort food, roasted fall vegetables, and warm spiced desserts.

Don't get me wrong, I love pumpkin! My Pumpkin Cake Roll, Pumpkin Cream Pie, and Pumpkin Cupcakes are some of my most beloved fall recipes. But let's be honest, pumpkin now takes over the entire season. With so many other star-studded fall flavors available, I think it's worth celebrating everything autumn has to offer.

This time of year is rich with sweet apples and pears, earthy roasted vegetables, warming spices, rich maple flavor, and so much more. These are the ingredients that make fall cooking so special, and they deserve their moment in the spotlight.

Find exactly what you are craving with this collection of 42 non-pumpkin fall recipes. Whether you're looking for a cozy weeknight dinner, a stunning dessert for entertaining, or a fresh new side dish, there is something here to bring the season to your kitchen.

If you're specifically planning for the holidays, check out my Thanksgiving recipe collection.

Fall apple and pear recipes

Apples and pears are the unsung heroes of fall. While everyone is reaching for pumpkin, these two fruits are at their absolute peak, begging to be baked, poached, and roasted. Here are six of my favorite ways to celebrate them:

Apple Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast

This Apple Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast features thick buttery brioche filled with stewed cinnamon apples, and spiced cream cheese. It's topped with toasted pecans and warm apple maple syrup!

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Fat Free Perfect Poached Pears

These elegant poached pears are a stunning and surprisingly simple fall dessert that looks beautiful on any table. A handful of pantry ingredients transform fresh ripe pears into a crave-worthy treat.

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Baked Honeycrisp Apples

These Honeycrisp apples are stuffed with cinnamon, brown sugar, toasted nuts, and cranberries for an easy fall dessert that practically makes itself. Serve them warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for the ultimate autumn treat.

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Pear Frangipane Crostata

This elegant pear and almond crostata is the kind of stunning fall dessert that looks like it took all day but comes together with surprising ease. Sweet ripe pears nestled into a rich almond cream filling make every slice absolutely irresistible.

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Favorite Apple Crisp Recipe

This classic apple crisp is the easiest fall dessert you'll make all season, with tender spiced apples topped with a golden, buttery oat crumble. Serve it warm with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream for a combination that never gets old.

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Spiced Hot Fruit Bake

This easy-to-make Spiced Hot Fruit Bake is a delicious and healthy breakfast, brunch, or dessert! Serve it by itself, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or use it as a topping for your favorite fall sweets and treats.

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Fresh fig and pomegranate recipes

Figs and pomegranates are two of the most stunning ingredients of the fall season, and they are wildly underused in home kitchens. Here are six recipes that put their sweet, jewel-toned beauty in the spotlight:

Almond Fig Cake

Showcase the sweet nutty flavor of almonds in this easy Almond Fig Cake. The soft and tender snack cake is dotted with fresh figs and has an irresistible crackly sugar topping that's sure to be a hit with your family and friends.

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French Onion Phyllo Cups

These crispy golden phyllo cups are filled with rich savory French onion filling and finished with a jewel-like pomegranate garnish for a stunning fall appetizer. They are elegant enough for a dinner party but easy enough to pull together on a weeknight.

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Honey Fig Chicken

This restaurant-quality Fig Chicken is made with honey and will simply melt in your mouth. It’s an easy recipe made with simple ingredients--elegant enough for entertaining but simple enough for a weeknight meal.

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Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad with Apple

This bright and crunchy shaved brussels sprouts salad gets a stunning fall makeover with pomegranate seeds, toasted nuts, and a tangy vinaigrette. You'll crave it all season long!

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Preserved Balsamic Figs

Learning to preserve fresh figs at the peak of the season means you can enjoy their sweet, honeyed flavor long after fall is over. Spoon them over cheese boards, stir them into yogurt, or serve them alongside roasted meats for an elegant finishing touch.

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Pomegranate Chocolate Clusters

These festive pomegranate clusters are as beautiful as they are delicious, making them the perfect edible gift or holiday party treat. They come together in minutes and disappear from the serving platter just as fast.

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Fall roasted vegetable recipes

There is no better way to coax flavor out of fall vegetables than roasting them. High heat caramelizes their natural sugars and brings out a depth of flavor that no other cooking method can match. Here are six roasted vegetable recipes worth turning your oven on for:

Roasted Beet and Carrot Salad

This elegant Roasted Beet and Carrot Salad has a delicious combination of goat cheese, baby kale, and candied pecans. Make it in less than an hour for a real show-stopper.

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Pomegranate Wild Rice and Roasted Squash Salad

This isn't your average wild rice salad! For added flavor, the wild rice is cooked with pomegranate juice before being tossed with roasted squash, sliced scallions, crunchy hazelnuts, and pomegranate arils.

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Roast Parsnips With Sage Butter

These golden roasted parsnips are tossed in fragrant brown sage butter for a simple but stunning fall side dish that elevates any meal. They are the kind of vegetable recipe that converts even the most skeptical dinner guests.

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Tapenade Toasts with Roasted Vegetables

This rustic tapenade toast topped with colorful roasted fall vegetables is as beautiful to look at as it is delicious to eat. It makes a stunning appetizer or light lunch that celebrates the best produce of the season.

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Veggie-Loaded Baba Ganoush

Smoky, creamy, and deeply flavorful, this homemade baba ganoush puts roasted eggplant front and center for a dip that is endlessly versatile. Serve it with warm pita and fresh vegetables for an easy fall appetizer that disappears in minutes.

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Sheet Pan Brats with Roasted Vegtables

Juicy bratwurst and a colorful mix of roasted fall vegetables come together on one sheet pan for a festive, flavor-packed dinner that is as easy as it is satisfying.

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Fall butternut squash and sweet potato recipes

Butternut squash and sweet potatoes are two of the most versatile autumn ingredients. Here are six recipes that pair their natural sweetness in soups, pastas, salads, and sides:

Warm Kale Butternut Squash Salad

This hearty warm kale and butternut squash salad is the kind of fall salad that actually satisfies. Tender roasted squash, hearty kale, and a warm dressing come together for a dish that is as nourishing as it is delicious.

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Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup

Silky smooth and deeply flavorful, this butternut squash and carrot soup is the ultimate fall bowl of comfort. A swirl of cream and a sprinkle of toasted seeds make it feel restaurant-worthy with very little effort.

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Sweet Potato Cornbread Recipe

A twist on a classic cornbread using mashed sweet potatoes. It's sweet, moist, and perfect to add to your weeknight, or holiday table. Plus, it's so simple to assemble, making it perfect for beginner cooks.

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Spaghetti Squash and Meatballs

Spaghetti squash stands in beautifully for pasta in this satisfying fall dinner that feels indulgent without the guilt. Topped with rich savory meatballs and marinara, it is comfort food with a delicious seasonal twist.

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Chipotle Sweet Potato Soup

This velvety chipotle sweet potato soup is warmly spiced with a smoky kick that makes every bowl feel exciting and deeply satisfying. It comes together quickly with simple ingredients and is the kind of soup that warms you from the inside out.

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Creamy Butternut Squash Pasta with Bacon

The nutty, velvety flavor of butternut squash transforms a simple pasta into a rich and deeply satisfying fall dinner. Crispy bacon adds a savory, smoky contrast that takes every bite completely over the top.

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Fall recipes with maple syrup

Maple syrup, with its warm, caramel-like sweetness, works equally well in savory dishes and desserts. Highlight its unique flavor with one of these six recipes:

Spicy Pecan Maple Bacon

Sweet, salty, and completely addictive, this maple bacon with pecans is the kind of recipe that makes everything it touches taste better. Crumble it over salads, stir it into stuffing, or eat it straight from the pan.

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Maple Almond Cream Cheese Dessert Dip

This easy maple cream cheese fruit dip is sweet, creamy, and ready in minutes, making it the perfect fall appetizer or snack. Serve it with sliced apples, pears, and seasonal fruit for a beautiful and effortless spread.

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Spicy Maple Bacon Chicken Drumsticks

These sticky caramelized maple drumsticks are a fun and flavorful fall dinner the whole family will love. The sweet maple glaze gets beautifully lacquered on the outside while the chicken stays juicy and tender on the inside.

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Maple-Walnut Sticky Buns

These gloriously gooey maple walnut sticky buns are the kind of indulgent fall breakfast that makes getting out of bed on a cold morning absolutely worth it. Pull-apart, buttery, and dripping with maple glaze, they are pure fall magic.

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Maple-Glazed Chicken with Sweet Potatoes

Sweet maple syrup and savory chicken come together in this gorgeous 30-minute fall dinner that is as easy as it is impressive. Roasted sweet potatoes round out the dish for a complete meal.

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Soft Maple Sugar Cookies

These soft, tender maple cookies are loaded with warm fall flavor and topped with a sweet maple icing that makes them completely irresistible. They taste like fall in every single bite and disappear from the cookie jar almost immediately.

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Cozy fall comfort food recipes

When the temperatures drop and the days get shorter, nothing satisfies quite like a bowl of something warm and hearty. These six cozy fall comfort food recipes play on repeat all autumn in my kitchen:

Classic Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Creamy, cheesy, and packed with tender broccoli, this broccoli cheddar soup is the bowl of comfort that fall was made for. Serve it in a bread bowl for the full cozy experience.

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Porcupine Meatballs

These might have a funny name, but porcupine meatballs are simply delicious beef meatballs made with white rice, slowly cooked in tomato sauce. Stretch a pound of beef into a family meal, plus you can make these in advance.

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Smoked Gouda Mac and Cheese

This gouda mac and cheese recipe will be your most popular side dish! The creamy Gouda sauce and caramelized onions bake to golden perfection under toasty breadcrumbs.

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Turkey Pot Pie with Puff Pastry

This comforting Turkey Pot Pie with Puff Pastry is perfect for holiday leftovers and weeknight dinners. With minimal effort, enjoy a new family favorite that's ready in less than an hour.

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Ground Beef Chili

This ground beef chili is the ultimate large-batch solution for your next gathering! Whether you're throwing a big bash or looking for an easy weeknight dinner, this recipe uses simple ingredients to deliver classic flavor, and it’s ready in just over an hour.

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Chicken Noodle Casserole

This classic chicken noodle casserole is pure comfort food at its finest, ready with just 10 minutes of prep and a handful of pantry staples. It is the kind of hearty, satisfying dinner the whole family will ask for again and again.

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Warm spiced fall recipes

Cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and cardamom are the flavors that make fall baking so irresistible. These six warm-spiced fall recipes are packed with aromatic flavors to make the season feel truly special:

Crispy Iced Oatmeal Cookies

These crispy, warmly spiced iced oatmeal cookies are a homemade take on the beloved grocery store classic that tastes even better than the original. A sweet vanilla glaze cracks just like it should with every satisfying bite.

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Carrot Cake Pancakes

These fluffy carrot cake pancakes bring all the warm, spiced flavor of a classic carrot cake to the breakfast table in the most delicious way. Topped with a creamy cream cheese drizzle, they are the kind of special morning breakfast that feels like a celebration.

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Spice Cake With Creamy Caramel Icing

This warmly spiced layer cake is draped in rich caramel icing for a showstopping fall dessert that tastes as beautiful as it looks. It fills the whole house with the most incredible aroma while it bakes and is worth every single minute of effort.

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Cashew Blossom Chai Cookies

These fragrant chai cookies are infused with a warming blend of cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and cloves for a spiced fall cookie that is anything but ordinary. They are perfectly crisp at the edges, tender in the center, and completely irresistible.

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Spiced Gingerbread Oatmeal

A splash of molasses and a pinch of warm spices transform everyday oatmeal into a cozy gingerbread-inspired breakfast that makes fall mornings feel extra special. It is quick, nourishing, and deeply satisfying from the very first bite.

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Candied Pecans

These sweet, crunchy candied pecans come together in minutes and make a generous batch that is perfect for snacking, gifting, or sprinkling over salads and desserts. Once you start eating them it is nearly impossible to stop.

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Pumpkin recipes you don't want to miss

Fall is full of so many incredible flavors, but that doesn't mean pumpkin doesn't have its place. Here are a few of my favorite pumpkin recipes to round out your fall recipe collection:

Tara Teaspoon

I’ve been in food publishing for over 25 years, creating recipes & food-styling for magazines, books, television, food brands, & advertising. With two cookbooks under my belt and thousands of my recipes at your fingertips, I hope you'll be inspired to spend more time in the kitchen!

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