Autumn Dishes

Warm up with delicious fall comfort food

Keep warm with hearty dishes that satisfy appetites and comfort food cravings. Savor the flavors of fall with cozy dinner recipes, warm casseroles, and simmering soups. Rich in flavor, the most satisfying fall menus feature in-season ingredients in comforting combinations for cool-weather meals.

Seasonal fruits and vegetables

Using fresh produce that is abundant in the fall is not only the best tasting, but is also a sensory pleasure that can truly enhance the cooking experience. Autumn's bumper crop of fruits and vegetables offer a range of intense flavors and substantial textures.

Root vegetables and winter squash show their widest variety and dazzle us with their sweet flavors. Broccoli, cauliflower, and leafy greens benefit from a good frost. Chanterelle and porcini mushrooms poke up from a carpet of fallen leaves. 

Apples from Washington and New York make for fresh cider drinking all over the chilling countryside while seasonal fruits like pomegranates and persimmons again become available after a long absence, forming the perfect finish to an autumn meal.

Complementing Your Meal

Autumn favorites of comforting rich stews and tender braised meats, such as this delicious spicy duck, paired with bold red wines are the perfect complement for chilly autumn nights. When menus change to rich sauces and piping-hot dishes, keep in mind complementing aromas, textures, and dominant flavors when choosing a wine for a fall meal. Pair the complex flavors of spiced stews and braised meats with a full-bodied cabernet sauvignon or velvety merlot, and accompany rich chocolate desserts in the colder months with a luscious pinot noir.

Try our Spicy Duck Recipe

Soups and Stews

Nothing warms the soul like a hot bowl of soup or a comforting stew, slow-simmered on the stove.  Soups and stews can be among the simplest of creations, but their often complex flavor can belie the ease of their creation.

Every pot is endlessly customizable — substitute an ingredient here, subtract one there, add a new one this time — so each pot takes on its maker's personality. Most soups and stews benefit from a slow simmer and gain in flavor if made a day ahead, which makes this cooking method a favorite of the Slow Food movement.

Casseroles

Even for the most organized cook, making a quick and wholesome dinner can be a challenge. Making casseroles is a simple, delicious way to pack a lot of goodness into one pan. With most having a short prep time and easy, unattended cooking, these "weeknight wonders" deliver a home-cooked, satisfying supper to the table in no time. Casseroles feature hearty yet familiar flavors everyone loves. Make a hearty casserole ahead of time to reheat for a quick and easy weeknight meal, or serve one as part of your Sunday dinner tradition with friends and family.

Desserts

It's time to get cozy and get baking. With the cooler weather upon us, homemade desserts using fresh fall ingredients are the perfect finish to a savory meal — or just a sweet treat whenever you please. From puddings to cakes to pies, luscious desserts flavored with the fruits and nuts of fall and spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and other flavors are just right for a crisp autumn night.