6 Fall Recipes You'll Love This Season

Fall recipes bring the best kind of comfort when the air turns crisp. Here in Northern Illinois, the chill has officially set in, and it’s the perfect time to fill the kitchen with the cozy aromas of hearty soups, savory casseroles, and slow-roasted dinners.

This roundup of favorite fall dinners, like comforting chicken pot pie, rich rib roast, and apple-cider chicken with butternut squash, will warm you from the inside out and make weeknight meals feel extra special.

For even more soul-warming ideas, visit our Comfort Foods & Classic Recipes page to keep your fall menu full of cozy favorites.

fall recipes, soup, casseroles, and roasts

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Helpful Tools for Fall Dinners

Make these cozy fall recipes even easier with the right tools. Here are some of my go-to kitchen essentials:

Heavy-Duty Dutch Oven – Perfect for slow-cooking rib roast or hearty soups.
Cast Iron Skillet – Ideal for searing chicken or baking pot pie.
Immersion Blender – Makes pureeing butternut apple soup a breeze.
Crock Pot or Instant Pot – Makes meals convenient on busy weeknights.
Glass Casserole Dish – A must-have in the kitchen for casseroles.

Why We Love Fall Dinners

It’s finally time for some fall comfort foods! I make casseroles and soups all year long, but they just hit differently when the weather starts to cool down. I love these fall dinner recipes because we can use what’s in season from our gardens and what’s on sale at the grocery stores. Grab those root veggies, apples, and your favorite casserole dish, and let’s get cooking.

Chicken Broccoli & Potato Casserole

This casserole looks so delicious, and it is perfect to throw in the oven on nights when you just need a quick meal. This gluten-free and dairy-free casserole is great if you have anyone with food sensitivities in your house. If you’re not dairy-free, you can substitute your preferred cheese, butter, and milk back into the recipe. I love having these recipe options in my back pocket in case I am hosting guests for dinner who have food sensitivities.

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fall recipes, ham & beans — Photo Courtesy of Heart’s Content Farmhouse

Ham and Bean Soup

This recipe is great for the whole family on a chilly night. Toss the ingredients into the crockpot and let that baby do the work. I don’t know who wouldn’t be excited for dinner if they walked into the house with this recipe brewing in the crockpot.

In the past, I have been stuck on chicken recipes, so this ham soup is a welcome change to our regularly scheduled programming! I love finding recipes that get me out of the same ol’ same ol’ ruts.

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Classic Chicken Pot Pie

This has been a go-to recipe of mine for the last several years. If you have kids, you know that sometimes it is difficult to please everyone in the family at dinnertime. This recipe does it for us, and it is even highly requested when we have grandparents over.

This is on my fall recipes list every year (along with my winter, spring, and summer lists if I’m being honest!) Ditch the cream of chicken soup and try this from-scratch chicken pot pie.

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fall recipes, butternut squash soup — Photo Courtesy of Ahead of Thyme

Butternut Squash Apple Soup

Adding apples to any recipe qualifies it to be a fall recipe, am I right? Soups & fall go hand in hand, and I can’t wait to add this recipe to our rotation during this cold-weather season.

Soups are a great way to get veggies into kids’ diets without them noticing too much. This one has carrots, onions, celery, and of course, squash! You get amazing flavors from all of them in one smooth soup, and there’s nothing for the kids to pick out.

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fall recipes, apple chicken — Photo Courtesy of Ahead of Thyme

Apple Cider Chicken with Butternut Squash

Something this delicious can be whipped up in just 40 minutes? You’ve got to be kidding me! Delicious dinner on a busy night is a momma’s dream.

You could make this recipe as is or swap the chicken for pork. Apple cider pork chops would be delicious, too. Make it work for you and what you already have in your fridge.

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Prime Rib Roast

Although you’ll have to whip up your potatoes on the side, this recipe is worth an honorable mention because it is so fricken good. I had never had prime rib roast before trying this recipe. I only tried it because I happened to see that prime rib roast was on sale around Thanksgiving a couple of years ago. Watch for those sales this year and grab your roast because this is a MUST-TRY recipe from my bestie Lisa. Quoting my daughter here, “The most delicious roast I’ve ever tasted.”

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Tips for Easy Fall Meal Planning

Batch-cooking or doubling recipes for freezer meals is an easy way to prep future meals. This makes having leftovers super easy and makes for easy grab-and-go dinners.
Use a slow cooker or Instant Pot for busy evenings. If you’ve frozen meals ahead of time, just throw them in the slow cooker in the morning, and they’ll be ready for a delicious dinner when you get home.
Store fall produce (like squash or potatoes) in a cool, dry place so it lasts through the season. After curing and prepping your veggies, they should last a while!

Explore More Seasonal Recipes

Now that you’ve got some dinner ideas down, here are some must-try fall desserts that your family will love!

Homemade Apple Recipes – desserts and canning ideas for your apple harvest.
Pumpkin Pie with Homemade Pecan Crumble – classic fall dessert made from scratch.
Apple Cider Donut Bread – a cozy breakfast treat.
Raspberry Crumble – delicious and sweet berry dessert for your autumn harvest.

FAQs About Fall Dinners

There are always a few questions about the details of making meals, so we hope to answer some of them!

Can I make these dinners ahead of time?

Yes, soups, stews, and casseroles all reheat well; most can be frozen for up to 3 months. Batch cooking or just doubling a meal makes for easy meals later.

What are vegetarian swaps I can make?

Replace meat in stews with beans or lentils; use veggie broth instead of chicken broth.

Which fal veggies are best to keep on hand?

Butternut squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, onions, kale, and hearty herbs like rosemary or sage are always great to add to autumn meals.

Enjoy these Fall Recipes

Fall’s harvest makes it easy to gather around the table with comforting flavors. Try one (or all!) of these cozy dinners this week, and share your favorite in the comments. For even more inspiration, check out our From Scratch Cooking page.