Recipes Comfort Food 24 Hearty Fall Dinner Ideas By Food & Wine Editors Updated on June 3, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Kelly Marshall With the beginning of autumn comes the beginning of cozy-food season, when hearty dishes help us adjust to colder weather. Our ideas for fall dinner menus start to include recipes like Pasta with Pumpkin Brown Butter Sauce (made with our homemade Pumpkin Butter!), Pork Loin Braised with Mushrooms and Wine, and a one-skillet chicken pot pie that gets a boost of flavor from Dijon mustard. There are always a few key ingredients we turn to as well, including butternut squash, apples, and brussels sprouts. Read on to find out how to use them in some of our favorite fall dinner ideas. 01 of 24 Pork Chops in Sage Butter with Beet Puree and Swiss Chard John Kernick The vibrant magenta beet puree that accompanies these luscious pork chops is made with almost equal parts beets and creamy Yukon Gold potatoes. Get the Recipe 02 of 24 Curried Carrot and Apple Soup Con Poulos This velvety soup has a wonderful balance of sweetness, spice, and tang. The secret ingredient: gingersnap cookies. Get the Recipe 03 of 24 Butternut Squash Casserole with Leeks, Prosciutto, and Thyme © Alexandra Rowley This luscious squash-studded bread pudding is the ideal accompaniment to roasted meats and birds. To serve it as a main course, cut it into large squares and serve with a green salad on the side. Get the Recipe 04 of 24 Pork Loin Braised with Mushrooms and Wine Greg DuPree Fistfuls of fresh herbs, fragrant strips of orange peel, and plenty of garlic perfume the wine-infused braising liquid that penetrates this essential Corsican comfort food. The resulting jus is vibrant and richly seasoned; ladle extra over the polenta on each plate. Get the Recipe 05 of 24 Pork Meatball Stew with Carrots and Pickled Mustard Greens Christopher Testani Rich pork broth—made with pork butt and smoked ham—brings together this comforting stew loaded with hearty meatballs and quick-pickled vegetables. Get the Recipe 06 of 24 Pumpkin Lasagne Karen Mordechai There's no need to roast fresh pumpkin for this dish (although you certainly could); using canned unseasoned pumpkin puree is much quicker, and it works just fine. Like most lasagnes, this one is easier to cut if left to set for 10 minutes or so before serving. Get the Recipe 07 of 24 Mayan Pepita-Chicken Stew Greg DuPree This chicken stew is seasoned with a carefully toasted mix of seeds and spices, which are ground into a coarse paste with roasted tomatoes and tomatillos. Stirred into the stew toward the end of the cooking process, the paste both thickens and seasons this warming fall dish. Get the Recipe 08 of 24 Pasta with Pumpkin Brown Butter Sauce Abby Hocking A classic browned butter and sage sauce gets a boost of fall flavor from pumpkin butter. Be generous with the Parmigiano-Reggiano—its salty, savory bite adds the perfect hit of umami flavor to this decadent pasta dish. Get the Recipe 09 of 24 Roasted Merguez Sausage with Apples and Onions Victor Protasio For this sheet-pan dinner, use Honeycrisp or Pink Lady apples, which hold their shape better during roasting than other varieties. Plus, their pleasant sweetness balances the intensely spiced merguez sausage. Get the Recipe 10 of 24 Roasted Chicken and Acorn Squash with Sumac Brown Butter Victor Protasio Pre-salting the chicken makes for savory flavor throughout and helps crisp up the skin. Browning the butter adds nutty depth to the sauce; a flourish of sumac and Aleppo chile adds a fresh, bright flavor to the finished dish. Get the Recipe 11 of 24 Chicken Pot Pie with Leeks and Thyme Greg DuPree This classic chicken pot pie comes together in just about an hour and uses only one skillet. Come for the patchwork of crispy, golden-brown puff pastry; stay for the comforting, classic flavors of the filling. Leeks and thyme lend a cozy, traditional flavor to this dish, while Dijon mustard adds a subtle, unexpected punch. Get the Recipe 12 of 24 Pork Chops with Three-Apple Slaw Victor Protasio For his zippy version of coleslaw, F&W's Justin Chapple swaps the cabbage for a mix of sweet and tart apples—Gala, Honeycrisp, and Granny Smith—and then tosses them with a creamy, Tabasco-laced dressing. Get the Recipe 13 of 24 Dutch Oven Classic Beef Stew There's nothing better than coming home to a simmering pot of this hearty stew on a cool fall or winter day. Hearty chunks of beef turn tender after a low and slow trip in your favorite Dutch oven; potatoes join the party during the tail end of cooking so they don't dissolve into the stew. Cut potatoes into similar-size pieces to guarantee they cook evenly. Get the Recipe 14 of 24 Delicata Squash and Sausage Crostata with Ricotta and Honey Justin Walker In their book Wine Food, sommelier Dana Frank and recipe developer Andrea Slonecker pair funky, bright wines with flavorful, vegetable-forward dishes like this easy weeknight crostata, which layers fennel-spiced sausage, chile, delicata squash, and honey for a dinner that pairs well with a northern Italian Dolcetto. Get the Recipe 15 of 24 Pasta with Roasted Cauliflower and Crispy Capers Caitlin Bensel "Cooler weather taps into my cravings for heartier fare, and I'm happy to turn on the oven again," cookbook author Colu Henry says. "Of all the fall vegetables, it's the return of my beloved cauliflower and its elegant florets that I celebrate the most." In this recipe, cauliflower comes together with capers, garlic, anchovy, crushed red pepper, lemon zest, parsley, and Pecorino Romano to form a comforting pasta dish that's ready in under an hour. Get the Recipe 16 of 24 Cauliflower Soup with Herbed Goat Cheese © Nicole Franzen This luscious, creamy cauliflower soup from star chef Anne Burrell gets a delicious topping of crispy roasted cauliflower and brussels sprouts. Get the Recipe 17 of 24 Roasted Butternut Squash with Chorizo-Spiced Kale Photo by David Malosh / Prop Styling by Amy Wilson / Food Styling by Maggie Ruggiero Chef Damian Sansonetti seasons thick butternut squash steaks with a chorizo spice mix of oil-bloomed cumin, Pimentón, and coriander, resulting in a smoky, sweet, and earthy shoulder-season dish. Get the Recipe 18 of 24 Patty Melts with Charred Scallion-Chipotle Mayo Photo by David Malosh / Prop Styling by Amy Wilson / Food Styling by Maggie Ruggiero Cookbook author Molly Stevens swaps time-consuming caramelized onions for quick-charred scallions in this patty melt. Chipotle-spiked mayonnaise adds an extra dose of lushness and a punch of smoky heat. Get the Recipe 19 of 24 Braised Duck Legs with Spaetzle and Mushroom Ragout David Malosh Inspired by German celebratory harvest meals from centuries past, this comforting braised dish trades the traditional goose leg quarters for easier-to-source duck, served on a bed of buttery-crisp spaetzle and saucy mushrooms. Get the Recipe 20 of 24 Smoked Ham Hock and Lentil Soup Photo by Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Lydia Pursell "I love making this lentil soup when the weather begins to cool," says 2017 F&W Best New Chef Nina Compton. "The ham-hock aroma hangs around the kitchen beautifully; the smell alone makes you warmer. Adding a little ginger and lemongrass brightens the soup and reminds me of being back home in St. Lucia." Get the Recipe 21 of 24 Gnocchi with Pomodoro Sauce Photo by Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Lydia Pursell In this recipe, easy-to-make gnocchi made from russet potatoes, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and egg yolks are paired with a buttery tomato sauce laced with fresh basil. Get the Recipe 22 of 24 Pan-Roasted Chicken with Grapes, Garlic, and Rosemary Photo by Greg Dupree / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Lydia Pursell Dinner doesn't get simpler or more elegant than this pan-roasted chicken. To make it, a whole chicken is cut into eight pieces, then roasted with grapes, garlic cloves, and sprigs of rosemary to yield crispy-skinned chicken in a schmaltzy pan sauce that begs for a crusty piece of bread. Get the Recipe 23 of 24 Farro Salad with Roasted Root Vegetables David Malosh Crispy roasted root vegetables like parsnips and celery root add an earthy, caramelized depth to this simple grain salad made with tender, chewy farro. Get the Recipe 24 of 24 Buttermilk Macaroni and Cheese with Baby Kale Kelly Marshall A quick sauté renders baby kale leaves perfectly tender, allowing them to almost melt into the buttermilk-enriched béchamel in chef and cookbook author Alexander Smalls' riff on mac and cheese. Get the Recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit