Ah, autumn. My favorite time of year. As a kid, I loved when the leaves started to turn, and I went back to school. (Yes, I was one of those nerdy kids who actually liked learning.) The One and I met and wooed during autumn thirty years ago. Our fire pit is filled with wood and lit.
And for me, there’s no better season to bake than autumn. In our home, when temperatures drop, the oven goes on. Then, of course, there are all those amazing ingredients spilling out of farm stands: apples, pears, pumpkin, squash, grapes, and more.
Local orchards open their gates for families to pick their own fruit. (Our favorite is Averill Farms.) Apple cider (sparkling and still), caramel apples, and apple butter are everywhere.
So below are some of my favorite autumn desserts. I’m partial to the pumpkin cake with maple cream cheese frosting, sour cream apple pie, and the pear and cardamom caramel upside-down cake.
I hope you like them as much as we do.
Pumpkin Cake With Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
This pumpkin cake is amazing! So delicious! I made it for my husband’s birthday 18 months ago with some candied pecans and I am still getting requests from people to make it for them too.
Catherine
Cinnamon Pear Tarts with Puff Pastry
Sour Cream Apple Pie
This apple pie was amazing! My husband said it was the best apple pie he’s ever had. My son took one forkful and then just picked it up with his hands and gobbled the whole thing down! Yum!
Pat t.
Pumpkin Pots de Crème
Spiced Cider Doughnuts
Pear and Cardamom Caramel Upside-Down Cake
Caramel Apple Slab Pie
Fall Dessert FAQs
Autumn means an abundance of apples, pears, and pumpkins. Combined with warm spices, such as cinnamon and nutmeg, they make many popular cozy fall desserts, including apple crumble, maple pumpkin pie, and pear bread.
You bet! When you are looking for desserts that will feed plenty, look for large cakes, slab pies, or easy bar recipes that can be cut into bite-size pieces. Our favorites include this apple cake with cream cheese frosting, this towering apple spice cake, and these pumpkin spiced seven-layer bars.
The good news is that a lot of apple and pear desserts freeze well. Make up a few classic apple pies or pear-cranberry crumbles and pop them in the freezer for an easy future dessert. If you’ve still got more, whip up some homemade applesauce to have on hand whenever you’ve got a craving for applesauce bread.
If, like me, you’re partial to apple pie, check out this stunning caramel apple pie recipe. If pumpkin is your favorite autumn dessert ingredient, there are plenty of pumpkin pie recipes to choose from, too.
