Pumpkin spice, apple cinnamon, maple pecan, you name it!
All the best fall flavors are represented here, whether you're aiming for a quick weekend baking session with the family or something a little more extravagant for your holiday table. What sets these recipes apart from your average dessert? They utilize those warm spices that most people reach for when autumn rolls around. Think cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, clove, and the like. Pair with seasonal produce like freshly picked apples or pumpkin purée and your home will be filled with the cozy scents of fall in no time.
1. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Think of these muffins as the more convenient, handheld version of your favorite pumpkin bread, complete with mini chocolate chips in the batter and on top. You'll love the classic combination of pumpkin purée with ginger, nutmeg, and cinnamon. When it comes to fall flavors, this one can't be beat!
2. Apple Cider Donut Holes
If you've ever frequented an orchard in September, you know that the best part of apple picking is those freshly fried apple cider donuts that are impossible to pass up after an afternoon among the trees. Made with real apple cider and rolled in cinnamon sugar, these donut holes will transport you with just one bite.
3. Maple Pecan Cheesecake
Maple is an iconic fall flavor, and for good reason: whether added to a latte or your favorite cookie recipe, its notes of brown sugar and spice make for a nostalgic, comforting experience. With a whole cup of real maple syrup baked into the batter, this maple pecan cheesecake is a great choice for fall birthdays, a Thanksgiving dessert, or a Christmas centerpiece.
4. Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie Pops
What do you get when you cross a cookie with a pie? Well, you're looking at it. These adorable pie pops are filled with chocolate chip cookie dough and adorned with a colorful sanding sugar leaf as pretty as the real thing. Use store-bought pie dough to make this an easy bake, or go all out and use Nellie's Free Range Butter for an extra flaky finish.
5. Pumpkin Spice Creme Brulee
Creme Brulee is all about the experience, and this pumpkin spice version doesn't disappoint. The warm spices are the perfect match for everyone's favorite part of the dessert: the crackly caramelized sugar crust. Once you've made it to the layer of creamy pumpkin custard beneath, you'll be a pumpkin spice convert for life.
6. Caramel Apple Upside-Down Cake
Pro tip: use tart apples like the Granny Smith or Pink Lady variety for the bottom layer of this upside-down cake. The mingling of sweet caramel sauce and slightly sour apple slices will leave you with a beautifully balanced dessert that truly allows the cinnamon and nutmeg to shine through!
7. Colorful Sugar Cookie Wreaths
Fall foliage, but make it edible! Rolling and cutting the dough, painting the leaves, and arranging each wreath are great activities for kids of all ages to help with. If you've been looking for a reason to break out your beloved cookie cutter collection, look no further.
8. Caramel Pear Hand Pies
Why should apples get all the attention? Pears are in peak season during the fall months! Just like their more popular counterparts, they're an excellent fruit for a number of baking applications. In these caramel pear hand pies, they get the ginger and cinnamon treatment between two rounds of buttery pie dough.
9. Pumpkin Spice Scarecrow Cupcakes
Complete with wafer cookie hats and candy corn noses atop their cinnamon-spiced cream cheese frosting faces, these pumpkin spice scarecrow cupcakes are a must for any fall celebration! Kids will love decorating each scarecrow, while adults will appreciate how downright delicious the spiced cupcake batter tastes.
10. Sweet Potato Brownies
Can you believe that sweet potatoes are the not-so-secret ingredient for these ultra fudgy brownies? You may not taste the ubiquitous fall veggie in this baked good, but it sure brings something special to the texture and consistency of each chocolatey bite.
11. Mini Pumpkin Hand Pies
Everyone's favorite fall dessert gets the mini-me treatment in this recipe for pumpkin hand pies. As with any custard-based dessert, the key to a silky smooth filling is our free range eggs: they add an unmistakeable richness and help the filling set for a mess-free dessert experience.
12. Sweet Potato Casserole Cupcakes
A side dish no more! These sweet potato casserole cupcakes are made with real sweet potato purée, maple syrup, and warm spices to mimic the flavors you'll find on most Thanksgiving tables. For the finishing touch, they're topped with mini marshmallows toasted to gooey perfection.
13. Sugar Cookie Hand Turkeys
A nostalgic Thanksgiving craft with an edible twist! That's right: you get to gobble up these sugar cookie hand turkeys once you've added the finishing touches. We recommend icing feathers and plenty of sprinkles!
14. Sweet Potato Pie Ice Cream with Graham Cracker Toffee
Although it may be a popular summer treat, ice cream tastes just as sweet in autumn. This recipe leans into fall flavors with a sweet potato and brown sugar ice cream base, best served with homemade three-ingredient graham cracker toffee on top.