Best Fall Recipes for Cooking: Gumbo, Chili, Meatloaf, and More

As much as we love to subsist on no-bake sandwiches and chopped salads all summer long, we’re excited to start cooking in the fall—there’s nothing like the first chill in the morning that signals it’s time to fire up the stove or oven again. Whether that means baking up a platter of bubbling focaccia, busting out the pot of gumbo, or using up a haul of freshly picked apples, these are the recipes the Eater staff uses to celebrate the arrival of fall.

Paula Forbes, Texas Monthly

After months of suffering in the Texas heat, there are few things I look forward to more than the first cool day of fall. After opening the windows to let in the fresh air and pulling the blankets out of the closet, I immediately set about making a pot of chili. Or, if I’m really lazy, I’ll use Paula Forbes’ chili. Excellent Instant Pot Chili Recipe. which allows me to sit on the couch and watch football while the crockpot does all the work of transforming the meat and chiles into a perfect bowl of Texas red wine. And then, of course, I must immediately make a Fritos chili pie, that oh-so-Texas creation that involves piping a ton of chili on corn chips before garnishing it with cheese, sour cream, and lots of pickled jalapeños. Amy McCarthy, reporter

Daniel Gritzer, Serious Eating

I have no qualms about devouring a bowl of gumbo when it’s 80+ degrees out, let’s be clear. But the cooler temperatures at least make the idea of ​​spending hours eating a roux a little more appealing, or in the case of this Serious Eats recipehours with the oven on. I love the hands-off nature of the recipe’s oven roux and, as someone firmly on team #notomato, its embrace of that flavor profile. It also tastes and thickens just as well if you omit the okra (a summer vegetable where I live). This recipe makes a lot, but I’m not sure there’s a better gift for the future weeknight cook than a quart of frozen gumbo. Missy Frederick, Director of Cities

Caroline Anderson, Grateful Pizza

Here’s a paradox that always makes me sad. Summer is, in my opinion, the ideal time to eat focaccia (fluffy yet sturdy focaccia sandwiches are my favorite for the beach or the park), and yet summer is also the time when I feel the least like making focaccia, since it typically requires cranking up the oven to 400+ degrees. So for me, getting back into the routine of making focaccia is a sure sign that fall is coming. It means I’ve finally turned off the AC, put on a sweater, and don’t mind warming up my apartment a bit. I’ve tried a lot of focaccia recipes, and I always come back to this one from a content creator and meal delivery business owner. Carolina AndersonThe result is always a loaf with a crispy crust and a chewy, bubbly interior, no matter how many different ingredients and toppings I put on it. A big slice of focaccia and a bowl of soupy beans is one of my favorite cold-weather meals and soothes the pain of summer being over. Bettina Makalintal, senior reporter

Kitchen in love

I am one of those people who goes apple picking and ends up with too many apples that risk spoiling before I can eat them all. I have searched many times for recipes that use plenty of apples. quantities of applesBut I always come back to this pie from Smitten Kitchen, which makes me scream “fall.” It’s an impressive-looking apple pie that relies on store-bought puff pastry to make it super easy. Surprisingly forgiving (you can’t make sliced ​​apples look bad), it’s a total crowd-pleaser at a dinner party. Plus, it only uses ingredients I almost always have on hand. The only way to make it even better is to serve it with some excellent Vanilla ice cream. — Stephanie Wu, Editor-in-Chief

Ken Forkish, Flour Water Salt Yeast

Even after years of baking, I still come back to Ken Forkish’s blog. Flour Water Yeast Salt as a guide to all things bread. This summer, while attempting to remake my focaccia recipe, I took a risk and transformed Forkish’s recipe for pizza dough with poolish into a loaf. The poolish the night before added immense elasticity to the focaccia, which rose steadily over the next day and blistered beautifully in the oven. I opted to top mine with kimchi and mix in some whole wheat flour for chew, but my experiments with all-purpose flour worked just as well. The lower hydration of the dough compared to regular focaccia recipes made dimpling a breeze, and the fully fermented product easily held the indentations that picked up the rich, silky olive oil. Rebecca Roland, Associate Editor

Sally’s Baking Recipes

As soon as September rolls around, all I want to do is get cozy, read a book, and finally turn the oven back on. Since I’ve been enjoying a summer of fresh strawberry tarts or peach cobblers, pies are on my mind, but I’m usually craving something comforting and savory. This chicken pot pie recipe fits the bill perfectly. I love how thick the sauce is, and the addition of thyme makes the filling extra fragrant. The pie crust recipe is easy enough to follow, but if I’m feeling really lazy, I’ll cheat and buy some from the freezer aisle. Kat Thompson, Associate Editor