25 Pumpkin Recipes to Make This Fall

In the fall, when squash and pumpkins are in their prime, make this pumpkin butter your go-to add-in. This silky preserve toes the line between sweet and savory: Try it on toast with cream cheese, in whipped cream, or melted into a mixture of sage and brown butter for an autumnal pasta sauce.

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.

These soft, lightly spiced cake-like cookies are studded with minced candied ginger and topped with a buttery sugar glaze.

To create a crisp crust on the bottom, Grace Parisi partially bakes the pie shell before adding the filling. If the edge starts to darken too much, cover it with a pie shield or strips of foil.

Jane Tseng uses the tangy, pungent, soft-ripened Italian cheese Robiolina and homemade gingersnaps to make her luscious cheesecake; the simplified version here calls for cream cheese and boxed cookies.

This reimagined pumpkin pie from Mr. Holmes Bakehouse in San Francisco has an ethereal pumpkin-and-white-chocolate-mousse filling and a stellar, crunchy crust.

Sweet pumpkin lends a creamy, silky texture to this autumnal soup, while fresh pistou brightens it up. Serve extra pistou with grilled meats, roasted vegetables, and buttered pasta.

This pie slices beautifully to reveal not one but two fillings: both pumpkin custard and gooey, syrupy pecan. Chef Joanne Chang's technique ensures the bottom of the pie shell is perfectly cooked and avoids sogginess. Cooling the blind-baked pie shell with weights keeps it hotter, and flatter, longer.

"Salted pumpkin seeds, toasted shell-on, are a super-popular snack all around Mexico," F&W Cooks contributor Javier Cabral writes. "They form the base of pipián, a minimalist, savory mole sauce famous in states like Puebla, and they are an indispensable ingredient in Yucatán's famous "pumpkin seed guacamole" called sikil pak. While they aren't the most celebrated Mexican ingredient, they certainly deserve to be, especially when you taste these albóndigas (that's Spanish for meatballs) made from ground pumpkin seeds, cooked rice, and tomatillos."

This take on pumpkin pie has the smooth texture of the classic, but with extra layers of ginger-caramel flavor. Candied pepitas on top add extra flavor and crunch.

Pumpkin butter adds a sweet and spicy flavor to these classic buttermilk pancakes, and a boost of moisture. Cooking them over moderately low heat ensures each pancake cooks through, and gets a perfect golden color with lightly crispy bite. Serve with extra pumpkin butter, or melted butter and drizzles of maple syrup.

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 satisfying pasta dish.

These dairy-free pumpkin cinnamon rolls are baked with a coconut oil-cinnamon sugar smear and topped with an orange marmalade sweetened-whipped coconut cream frosting. If you'd like, you can make the frosting up to one day in advance.

Pumpkin ale and pumpkin pie spice dial up the flavor in this beer bread, which is studded with toasted pumpkin seeds. If you don't have pumpkin pie spice, swap in ½ teaspoon of chili powder instead.

Layers of silky pumpkin mousse and coffee-dipped ladyfingers create a spectacular tiramisu that yields 12 (12!) servings.

Le Coucou chef Daniel Rose tops his silky pumpkin soup with black trumpet mushrooms for a woodsy flavor. It all comes together in just three simple steps.

Food & Wine's Justin Chapple layers super-speedy pumpkin mousse with whipped mascarpone cream and crushed chocolate wafer cookies for his gorgeous, fall-ready parfaits.

These moist, tender gluten-free pumpkin muffins have a delicate crumb. Have leftovers? You can freeze them for up to one month.

Justin Chapple likes mixing canned pumpkin puree into his silky, buttery mashed potatoes for extra color and great flavor.

This classic pumpkin cake from Justin Chapple is perfectly moist and delicately spiced. The simple vanilla buttercream frosting gets a lovely tang from the mascarpone that's blended in.

With nutty, spicy flavor from the prepared pumpkin butter, this mousse comes together in minutes. Tang and body from the crème fraîche and an airy, light texture from the whipped cream complete this super-simple fall dessert. Serve with an extra dollop of whipped cream or with some sugar cookies on the side.

Baking pumpkins whole traps steam inside the vegetable, resulting in a lush, velvety pumpkin puree, and making the skins easy to remove. A simple reduction of dry white wine mingles with butter to balance the sweetness of the pumpkin. The recipe was one prepared by Copenhagen chef Christian F. Puglisi at a week-long culinary retreat at Rocca delle Tre Contrade in Sicily.

Long Island cheese pumpkins have deep, vibrant, orange flesh and a sweet, nutty flavor. They roast smooth and creamy, making them the ideal squash for pies, purees, or serving as edible vessels for soups and curries. Here, rice is cooked to a risotto-like texture inside the pumpkin with red curry paste and coconut milk. Serve it as a hearty and warming main course or as a side dish for roast fish or pork.

Sarah Kieffer's gently spiced pumpkin bars are the perfect segue into autumn treats. The cream cheese enhances the pumpkin filling without making everything too sweet. As Kieffer writes, "I like pumpkin pie alright, but in all honesty I will always take a slice of anything else over it, especially if cheesecake is an option. But pumpkin pie swirled into cheesecake? I will never say no."

Atapakua is a Purhépecha term that refers to a whole range of stew-like dishes thickened with masa. In this atapakua from Imelda Campos Sebastián (also known as doña Mela) of Michoacan, Mexico, sorrel adds bright acidity to a masa-thickened sauce made of a blend of seeds (including pepitas) and vegetables. Greens like mature arugula, mustard greens, or Swiss chard can stand in for sorrel in this dish but will lack its punchy flavor. (If substituting heartier Swiss chard or mustard greens for sorrel, remove the stems before using.) Doña Mela doesn't serve this dish with lemon, but if sorrel is unavailable, squeeze in a few drops of lemon juice before serving. Yerba buena, similar to orange mint, has a citrusy, minty flavor with notes of pine; look for it or orange mint at Mexican grocery stores or at plant nurseries.