Fall is, without a doubt, my favorite time of year. It marks the return of cozy sweaters, tall boots, cool mornings for running and beautiful changing leaves. I’m certainly not ready for winter yet, but fall? I’ve been greeting it with open arms over the last month.
In honor of my favorite season, here is a round up of some of my very favorite healthy recipes for fall. I hope you enjoy them!
Sweet Potato Recipes
Did you know that sweet potatoes boast anti-inflammatory benefits due to their high levels of vitamin B-6? This, coupled with the potassium, copper, and manganese they contain, make sweet potatoes a perfect post-workout snack that can help your muscles recover properly! They’re also a great source of fiber and are low on the glycemic index.
I absolutely love sweet potatoes, both in savory and sweet form. Here are a few of my favorite sweet potato recipes – eat up!
Sweet Potato Lentil Coconut Curry {pictured above}
Sweet Potato & Black Bean Veggie Enchiladas
BBQ Chickpeas with Sweet Potatoes & Bok Choy
Sweet Potato Black Bean Quinoa Salad
Sweet Potato Whole Wheat Bread Pudding
Sweet Potato Banana Oat Muffins
Sweet Potato Cranberry Coconut Muffins
Mexican-Style Sweet Potato Fries {pictured below}
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Apple Recipes
Apples have compounds called phytonutrients that can help regulate your blood sugar. One of the most notable is a flavonoid called quercetin, which slows down the enzymes that break carbohydrates into simple sugars while increasing the uptake of glucose from your blood. Apples are also a great source of water-soluble fiber (in the form of pectin), which binds with LDL cholesterol and eliminates it from your body. For the greatest benefits, eat the whole apple, including the skin, where most of the fiber and antioxidants lie.
In the winter, spring, and summer, I’m not really a huge apple person, but fall, with its extraordinarily juicy and flavorful apples, is a different story entirely. If you prefer baking apples to eating them raw (or if you just like to mix it up, like me), here are some ideas!
Almond Butter French Toast with Apple Cinnamon Yogurt Topping {pictured above}
Blueberry Apple Cinnamon Yogurt Bread
Turkey, Gouda, Avocado, Apple & Mustard Sandwich
Cranberry Cinnamon Apple Baked Brie
Apple Walnut Crunch Spelt Muffins {pictured below}
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Winter Squash Recipes {butternut squash & pumpkin}
Winter squashes are a well-recognized source of carotenoids, antioxidants that give them their orange hue. Squashes are particularly high in beta-carotene (which is converted to vitamin A in your body), which helps your cells fight against breast cancer while improving eyesight and supporting healthy skin. In addition, their high antioxidant and potassium content result in anti-inflammatory effects that allow your muscles to recover properly after a tough workout.
Winter squashes are my favorite ingredients to use for fall baked goods, as you can tell by the sheer quantity of muffins and bread in this section! I hope you give some of these pumpkin and butternut squash recipe faves a try:
Spiced Butternut Squash Muffins {pictured above}
Gluten Free Spiced Pumpkin Pancake
Fresh Cranberry and Walnut Pumpkin Bread
Pumpkin Muffins (or Bread) of Deliciousness
Black Bean and Pumpkin Veggie Burgers
Oatmeal Banana Pumpkin Cookies
Pumpkin Goji Biscotti {pictured below}
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Cranberry Recipes
Last but not least, cranberries! Cranberries are extraordinarily high in antioxidants that can help protect against many types of cancers and lower LDL (bad) cholesterol. A compound in cranberries called proanthocyanidine has been found to prevent plaque buildup on teeth and fight bacteria that allow for viral infections.
Fresh cranberries are best in the fall, but you can enjoy their health benefits year round in dried form!
Cranberry Quinoa Peanut Butter Power Bars {pictured above}
Spiced Cranberry Compote Oatmeal
Sweet Potato Cranberry Coconut Muffins
Cranberry Cinnamon Apple Baked Brie
Fresh Cranberry and Walnut Pumpkin Bread {pictured below}
What’s your favorite fall ingredient or recipe?
Fall is, without a doubt, the best season of the year!! I was just looking at some of your sweet tater recipes earlier today.
Awesome, round up!
P.S. Did you take that first photo!?
Yes, I did! :)
This post was perfectly timed! I randomly bought a bunch of sweet potatoes the other day just because they looked good, but I had no plan for them. I may try that quinoa & black bean salad with them this weekend. My favorite fall item to make is pumpkin bread. I love it topped with pumpkin butter from Trader Joe’s, so good!
Sweet potatoes are my favorite currently!
Thanks for sharing all the recipes! Perfect timing. I just got a case of apples and a bunch of pumpkins and squash at the farmers market :)
Cranberries are one of my favorite foods. The cranberry yogurt scones look really good. I think I might have to try making them.
What an awesome roundup! Pinning! I see that you’re in NYC with one of my other favorite bloggers, Janae…. have a blast!
Yes, Janae is such a sweetheart! It was great getting to know her better. :)
Oh that is a wonderful Photo Anne! Thank for sharing the recipes I love apples!
Great list of recipes to check out! Your sweet potato lentil chili is one of my favorites – I need to make it soon. Beautiful pictures up top too.
What a wonderful recipe round-up! Totally pinning!
Great round up! Fall is by far my favorite season and I love the food that goes along with it. Looking forward to trying some new sweet potato recipes.
I happen to have sweet potato AND lentils at home…totally trying out the curry soon! This is a great round-up, I’m loving all of the fall flavours!
That fall foliage photo is absolutely gorgeous! mad photography skills. Bookmarking this for my Thanksgiving feast!
Could your food photography get any better? I want to eat all of that off my computer screen ;-)
I’m with you on the fall in Northern Virginia. It is glorious! And thanks for the recipes. Terrific!
PUMPKIN OF DELICIOUSNESS!!! I couldn’t agree more with that recipe title, LOL!! I literally just cracked open a can of pureed pumpkin and dug a spoon in!!!
It is actually just gone Spring here in Australia so that means mangoes and berries have started to come into season which is great.
I love the look of all those recipes especially those mexican sweet potato fries they sound delicious :)
Well if this doesn’t make you drool ;)
I had never cooked with sweet potatoes before recently making your Sweet Potato Lentil Coconut Curry. I loved it and it is now my fiancés favorite meal. I’d love to try some of your other sweet potato recipes!