Longtime readers of SoBros Network know what a weirdo I am when it comes to seasonal habits. Shit, “rituals” might be the more appropriate term given the way I do the same things every season. In the fall, it’s pumpkin-spiced everything, Hocus Pocus, and long drives through the countryside to admire the trees. Part of the ritual is food, too – no doubt that I have a whole catalog of seasonal recipes no matter the occasion, but for me, fall is king. Five of my favorite recipes that I’ve ever stumbled upon are great for this time of year. So, I figured I’d pass those along to the loyal readers of SoBros Network so you can try ’em and maybe add ’em to your annual rotation too.
My Favorite Fall Recipes
Pumpkin Cheese Stuffed Shells Bolognese Bake – Source: Half-baked Harvest – This is what’s pictured in the featured image for this post, and fret not, that’s not at all what the dish looks like when it’s cooked. My wife told me not to post it because it doesn’t look appetizing, but if I waited ’til it was done, you wouldn’t be able to see the pumpkin and sage. Gotta know how this thing is constructed, right?
Anyway, this may be my favorite thing I’ve ever created in my kitchen. It is phenomenal – the combination of flavors are hearty and festive. This is a heavy dish too – I pride myself on being able to clean out an entire casserole, but this is one that I can only eat one and a half bowls of before I’m unbuttoning my jeans. The combination of flavors, between the white win in the bolognese, the pumpkin pureé, the sage, and the fontina cheese is unlike anything I’ve ever had. Pro-tip: I never add the bleu cheese…I’m not the biggest fan of it to begin with, but I feel like that flavor would really jack up the profile of this dish.
Butternut-Sage Pizza – Source: WeightWatchers (fuck yeah!) – So, I have a recipe from one of their cookbooks that calls for this to be made on naan bread instead of pizza dough, which saves you the trouble of rolling it out, etc.. You can also add whatever toppings you like to this – I love adding mushrooms to it, or some fresh jalapeños for a little kick. They’re simple and easy, and make for the perfect week night fall meal.
Spiced Apple Chili – Source: Taste of Home – Bear with me here. The sound of apples in chili tends to turn people off, but if you stop and think about the flavor profile of a rich, smoky apple pie combined with a basic hearty chili, it fucking works. I swear it. And, the recipe only calls for two apples, peeled and chopped so it’s more of a subtle flavor than you’d imagine. It’s a great way to go outside-the-box from the standard old run of the mill chili. I haven’t tried this yet, but I think I might sub one of the cups of beef broth for red wine the next time I make this one.
“Trail Mix” – Source: my dad – To this day, I still don’t really know why my dad called this trail mix, because it is very much NOT the prototypical trail mix. I guess it was something cowboys ate…I don’t know? And yes, this recipe is behind a paywall. If you want my family’s chili recipe, you can at least sling $5 my way, c’mon.
Slow Cooker Root Veggies w/ Apple Cider Glaze – Source: Family Style Food – Okay, so I literally just discovered this one last week when I was looking for something festive to throw in the crockpot on a relaxing lazy Saturday, and I think my version of it is right up there with the pumpkin and sage stuffed jumbo shells in terms of fall favorites. This one was immediately added to the regular rotation. It’s cooked up to be a side at a larger meal (it would kill at Thanksgiving as is), but I wanted it to be our main course, so we added a pound of ground sausage to it and chopped up and sprinkled about six leaves of fresh sage. The veggies I went with – a pound of carrots, a pound of butternut squash (you can buy this pre-diced in a package at Kroger to save you a ton of trouble), two sweet potatoes, and one parsnip.
It was phenomenal – the next morning, we dropped a couple of eggs in the leftovers and scrambled it up for breakfast. It’s so wholesome, filling, and if you get the right combo of root veggies in there, has a nice flavor variance that makes it an amazing and festive dish. I’m going to gain you about 10 pounds this season with this list.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.
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