40 Easy And Cozy Fall Dinner Recipes
Greg DuPree, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely
Just as the weather begins to cool, we start to look for easy fall recipes made for cozy dinners at home. Many recipes feature apples, just as they come into season, or hearty root vegetables as we transition away from tomatoes, corn, and summer squash. You'll find lots of comforting soups and stews in this collection of recipes, as well warming chicken dinners and tasty pastas made for fall. No matter what you're craving, these easy fall recipes are bound to satisfy you.
Related: The Best Fall Baking Recipes To Make This Season
Crispy Ranch Chicken
Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
Crispy chicken is already a pretty perfect food, but when flavored with a packet of ranch seasoning? It's downright irresistible.
Quick Turkey Chili
Antonis Achilleos; Prop Stylist: Caleb Clarke; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall
It's not often that you find a chili recipe that comes together in 20 minutes, and not only does this recipe do just that, but it doesn't skimp on the flavor either. Chipotle chiles in adobo sauce and taco seasoning ensure every bite is full of flavor.
Garlic Butter Chicken
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
This versatile chicken dish can be served over pasta, mashed potatoes, or even rice. Just make sure to ladle all the tasty garlic-butter sauce over whatever starch you pick.
Instant Pot Pulled Pork Chili
Jennifer Causey; Food Stylist: Melissa Gray; Prop Stylist: Kay Clarke
We love to turn to our Instant Pots for a speedy soup, and this pork chili recipe does just that. While pulled pork alone normally takes hours to make, this easy stew will be ready in well under 2 hours, and is mostly hands-off too.
Slow-Cooker Taco Soup
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Once you brown off the meat for the soup, all you have to do is add it and all the other ingredients to a slow cooker. Then your work is done, and the appliance takes over from there.
Cast-Iron Salmon With Baby Kale Salad
"Love this recipe! Never thought to do salmon in a cast-iron [skillet] but it made for the crispiest skin I've ever gotten at home," said one Southern Living reader about this easy salmon meal.
Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Pork loins are quite lean, which is why bacon is the secret weapon for keeping them extra juicy and flavorful. The added fat and salt of smoky bacon ensures every bite is beautifully seasoned.
Tennessee Onion Pizza
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Store-bought pizza dough and easy, cheesy toppings make for a quick sheet pan pizza the whole family will love.
Garlicky Black Walnut-Breadcrumb Pasta
Greg DuPree; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Shell Royster
Simple ingredients, like garlic and breadcrumbs, shine in this quick fall dinner recipe. Toasty black walnuts and savory Parmesan work their magic, yielding a crunchy and creamy pasta that’s extremely comforting in the colder months.
Mississippi Pot Roast
Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless
This is not your typical pot roast. Made with store-bought flavor shortcuts like ranch dressing dip mix, French onion soup mix, and pepperoncini peppers, you won't have to do much prep work to ensure an ultra tasty dinner.
Chicken Cordon Bleu
Greg Dupree; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
Don't let the fancy name fool you, this gorgeous chicken cutlet recipe is fairly easy to make. If you start with store-bought cutlets instead of pounding out chicken breasts yourself, it will be even easier to pull together.
Pork Tenderloin With Apples
Greg DuPree, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely
Apples and pork are the ultimate fall pairing. Here, we use Honeycrisp but your favorite sweet-tart variety will work just as well.
Cowboy Spaghetti
Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Lauren Odum; Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless
This pasta dish makes use of pantry staples like canned tomatoes, beans, and veggies, for a quick but comforting dinner on the fly.
Maple-Chipotle Air Fryer Pork Chops
It can be tricky to perfectly cook a pork chop, but luckily an air fryer can take a lot of the guesswork out of the process. It gives you that gorgeous crust on the outside, and a moist, juicy center too.
Pulled Pork Bowls
Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
This is the best way to put leftover pulled pork from your favorite local barbecue joint to good use. Feel free to dress the bowl in our Alabama White Sauce instead of a classic red barbecue sauce.
Pork Tenderloin Schnitzel With Fennel Slaw
Greg DuPree, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely
We pound pork tenderloin wafer thin in this speedy recipe, then pan fry it until crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside.
Chicken Sausage with Fennel and Apples
Sheet pan dinners make for effortless weeknight dinners, and this one infused with the sweet fall flavors of apples and fennel is exactly what the season calls for.
Chicken Piccata Meatballs
Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox
This 30 minute meal is loaded with all the classic flavors of Chicken Piccata (lemon, butter, and capers), but in an even easier to make meatball format. Serve over orzo or rice with a light side salad for a complete meal.
No-Peek Chicken
Robby Lozano, Food Stylist: Marianne Williams, Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle
The key to this recipe is patience and trusting the process, because once it goes in the oven, you don't want to peel back the foil until the timer goes off.
Mississippi Salisbury Steak
Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Costen King; Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel
This is not the same Salisbury Steak found in the frozen aisle, this homemade version infused with the tangy and spicy bite of pepperoncini peppers is more than worth getting a pan dirty over.
Skillet Enchiladas Suizas
Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Christine Keely; Food Styling: Torie Cox
These are the easiest enchiladas you'll ever make. They're built and broiled in one skillet, and are ready to eat in just 25 minutes.
Marry Me Chicken
Morgan Hunt Glaze; Food Stylist: Julian Hensarling; Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless
We aren't promising any proposals with this recipe, but we're confident everyone at the table will be more than satisfied by this sun-dried tomato-infused chicken.
Smothered Steaks With Mushroom Sauce
Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely
Make these speedy steaks for a cozy fall date night in. For a money-saving swap, trade the filets for two less expensive New York strip steaks (about 12 ounces each), and reduce the cook time.
Skillet Chicken Pot Pie With Puff Pastry
Brittany Conerly; Food Stylist: Karen Rankin; Prop Stylist: Christina Brockman
Nothing screams comfort food more than a chicken pot pie. Here, we use store-bought puff pastry rather than pie crust, for an extra flaky topper.
Million Dollar Chicken
Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless
There's a lot to love about this over-the-top chicken recipe stuffed with cream cheese, Cheddar cheese, mayonnaise, and bacon.
Honey-Garlic Chicken
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
If you don't already have Asian chili-garlic sauce in your pantry, this recipe will convince you to keep it on hand. It's the garlicky, savory, and spicy condiment that gives this chicken its signature flavor.
Roasted Spatchcock Chicken
Taking the backbone out of a whole chicken makes quick work out of a roast chicken dinner. Especially when the veggie sides cook right alongside.
Stovetop Macaroni And Cheese
Morgan Hunt Glaze; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely
Faster, but just as flavorful as oven-baked versions, turn to this Stovetop Macaroni and Cheese before you even think about reaching for the boxed stuff.
Bourbon-Glazed Salmon
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Who knew that bourbon and salmon were such a perfect flavor pairing? Combined with honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, and orange slices, bourbon forms a sticky, sweet glaze that beautifully lacquers the fish.
Ravioli Lasagna
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Store-bought ravioli streamlines the lasagna making process to make the classic Italian entrée a lot easier to pull off on a weeknight.
Busy Day Soup
Greg Dupree, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Claire Spollen
There's no chopping or peeling required to make this soup thanks to dry onion soup mix and frozen veggies.
Weeknight Bolognese
Greg Dupree, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely
A traditional bolognese simmers for hours, but most of us don't have the time for that on a weeknight. We shorten the cook time in this recipe by using a few flavor-packed ingredients like fennel seeds, 10 garlic cloves (trust us), and sweet Italian sausage.
Easy Pastitsio
Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
"As a traditional Greek food lover who's usually short on time, this recipe fit the bill!" wrote one Southern Living reader. And while this recipe skips the traditional homemade béchamel in favor of a quick ricotta topping, you won't miss out on any of the classic flavor of Pastitsio.
Bourbon Chicken
Morgan Hunt Glaze, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster
Aside from the namesake bourbon, this recipe tosses the chicken in ketchup, brown sugar, honey, soy sauce, and apple cider vinegar for the perfect balance of sweet and savory flavors.
Low-And-Slow Beef Pot Roast
Greg Dupree, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely
You get two for one with this recipe. Leftovers can be made into our Roast Beef Debris Po'Boy so that your hard work stretches a little further.
Cheeseburger Soup
It's rare that a soup comes together start to finish in only 30 minutes, but this recipe does just that. It also allows you to enjoy all the flavors of a grilled cheeseburger long after it's too cold to go outside and fire up the Weber.
Slow-Cooker Chicken And Dumplings
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Dumplings can be time (and labor) intensive to prepare, but this dump and go slow cooker recipe takes most of the hard work out of the process.
White Bean Chicken Chili
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Bright ingredients like chopped green chiles, cumin, and cilantro keep this hearty soup from being too heavy or rich.
Hamburger Stew
Jennifer Causey; Food Stylist: Loren Wood; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely
Although this stew is fantastic, the star of the dish is the hamburger bun croutons that add crunch and a pretty finish (and ensures that every part of the hamburger is incorporated into the meal).
Twice-Baked Potato Casserole
Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Although often served as a side dish, bulk up this casserole with a little rotisserie chicken, and serve with a leafy salad to make it a complete meal.
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Read the original article on Southern Living.
