Our Favorite Fall Desserts

Updated September 22, 2020
Photo: Brian Woodcock

Fall dessert recipes are one of our favorite things about the season, right up there with crisp evenings and brilliant foliage. We anxiously await the time of cool autumn morning trips to the farmers’ market, and the pounds of fresh apples, pecans, sweet potatoes, and pumpkins that we haul home. When the leaves start changing this fall season, it’s time to cozy up with a soft blanket and one of these soul-warming fall desserts. With seasonal ingredients like spicy cinnamon, rich caramel, and decadent pecans, the fall is hands-down one of the best seasons for baking. From gooey morning coffee cakes to elegant holiday-worthy pies, we’ve pulled together our favorite fall cakes, pies, breads, milkshakes, puddings, and everything in between to keep your sweet tooth satisfied all season long. Pound cake coated in praline sauce, bread pudding drizzled in caramel, and apple pie baked in a buttery, flaky cornmeal crust – these best fall desserts will not disappoint.

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Salted Irish Cream Apple Crostata

Johnny Autry; Prop and Food Styling: Charlotte L. Autry

Recipe: Salted Irish Cream Apple Crostata

Irish cream liqueur makes this dessert sinfully delicious - it's in the dough and rich, velvety sauce poured over the apples. 

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Parsnip-Buttermilk Tart

Peter Frank Edwards; Prop Styling: Kendra Surface; Food Styling: Anna Hampton

Recipe: Parsnip-Buttermilk Tart

This creamy confection has a surprising fall ingredient - parsnips! 

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Concha Tres Leches Cake

Johnny Autry; Prop and Food Styling: Charlotte L. Autry

Recipe: Concha Tres Leches Cake

Easy to prepare and even easier to love, this velvety recipe adds a bit of texture and color to the traditional dessert. 

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Apple Butter Pound Cake with Caramel Frosting

Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Mary Clayton Carl Jones; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Apple Butter Pound Cake with Caramel Frosting

We combined apples and pound cake, our two favorite fall foods, to create one delectable dessert. 

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Apple Butter Cobbler with Drop Biscuits

Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Mary Clayton Carl Jones; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Apple Butter Cobbler with Drop Biscuits

Canned biscuits, lattice crust, and streusel topping make this apple dessert truly show-stopping.

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Old-Fashioned Apple Pie

Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Missie Neville Crawford; Food Styling: Torie Cox

Recipe: Old-Fashioned Apple Pie

This classic apple pie has a delicious double crust for double the fun. 

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Butter-Pecan Shortbread Cookies

Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Butter-Pecan Shortbread Cookies

Excite the butter-pecan lovers in your life with this slice-and-bake cookie recipe. 

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Persimmon Pudding

Greg DuPree; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Persimmon Pudding

Use fresh persimmons while they are still in season to create this richly spiced dessert. 

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Salted Caramel-Apple Hand Pies

Hector Manuel Sanchez; Styling: Katie Jacobs

Recipe: Salted Caramel-Apple Hand Pies

Not sure what fall dessert to make at your next harvest party? You can't go wrong with an apple-centric choice. 

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Our Favorite Fall Desserts

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Coconut-Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

Hector M. Sanchez

Recipe: Coconut-Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

This doctored-up version of a classic pumpkin pie is light, airy, with whispers of spicy fall flavors like coconut and ginger. Says one reviewer, “If this wasn’t on our Thanksgiving table, there would be mutiny.”

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Mexican Chocolate Pudding Cake

Photo: Brian Woodcock

Recipe: Mexican Chocolate Pudding Cake

Chocolate cake is given a hot and spicy fall upgrade from cinnamon, red pepper, chipotle chile pepper, and sliced almonds. Serve with vanilla ice cream for a gooey and rich chocolate treat.

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Caramel-Glazed Monkey Bread

Iain Bagwell

Recipe: Caramel-Glazed Monkey Bread

We’ve officially declared this the best pull-apart bread on Earth. The dough is soft and cakey, and forms a scrumptious sugary crust. Top with a sweet Caramel Glaze for a Southern fall recipe you’ll make every year.

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Rum-Glazed Sweet Potato Cakes

Iain Bagwell; Styling: Heather Chadduck

Recipe: Rum-Glazed Sweet Potato Cakes

Sweet potatoes, raisins, rum, cinnamon, nutmeg, and toasted pecans? We couldn’t possibly fit more flavor in these mini Bundt cakes if we tried.

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Caramel Apple-Brownie Cheesecake

Jennifer R. Davick

Recipe: Caramel Apple-Brownie Cheesecake

This delicious recipe combines our favorite fall flavors into one chocolaty, velvety dessert.

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Mini Apple Cider Pound Cakes

Brian Woodcock

Recipe: Mini Apple Cider Pound Cakes

If fall was a flavor, it would taste like Apple Cider. These moist mini apple cider pound cakes perfectly capture the season, and can be doctored up with three different sweet toppings.

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Caramel-Pecan Pumpkin Bread Puddings

Jim Franco

Recipe: Caramel-Pecan-Pumpkin Bread Puddings

All the best flavors of pumpkin and pecan pies come together in this easy, decadent bread pudding.

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Pumpkin Pie Dip

Southern Living

Recipe: Pumpkin Pie Dip

This sweet and versatile dish adds fall flavor to your tailgate spread. Serve it with everything from cookies to fruit to nuts.

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Peanut Butter-Toffee Turtle Cookies

Southern Living

Recipe: Peanut Butter-Toffee Turtle Cookies

We packed chocolate, peanut butter, caramel, and toffee into these indulgent, bite-sized cookies.

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Pumpkin-Chocolate Brownies

Greg DuPree

Recipe: Pumpkin-Chocolate Brownies

Baked with chocolate chips, pumpkin filling, and a hint of espresso, these dangerously delicious brownies are a chocolate lover’s fall dream.

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Double Apple Pie with Cornmeal Crust

Recipe: Double Apple Pie with Cornmeal Crust

This layered apple pie takes a classic fall dessert to the next level. Its flaky cornmeal crust and sugary sauce with a kick of brandy make it one of our best pies, ever.

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Salted Chocolate Matzo Toffee

Greg Dupree

Recipe: Salted Chocolate Matzo Madness

With savory, salty ingredients like matzos and pecans, and sweet chocolate chips, this easy-to-make snack is perfect for casual fall gatherings.

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Praline-Apple Bread

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Praline-Apple Bread

You’d never guess this rich, moist quick bread recipe doesn’t have any butter or oil in its batter.

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Candy Bar Pie

Jennifer R. Davick

Recipe: Candy Bar Pie

Here’s one of our favorite only test-kitchen approved ways for to use leftover Halloween candy. Line a salty pretzel piecrust with chocolate nougat bars (we used Snickers candy bars), and cover in creamy filling for a fall dessert worth hoarding some candy for.

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Triple Gingersnappers

Recipe: Triple Gingersnappers

Nothing says fall like enjoying a stack of fresh Gingersnappers and a hot cup of tea on a crisp fall evening.

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Pecan-Toffee Shortbread

Southern Living

Recipe: Pecan-Toffee Shortbread

Buttery shortbread, sugary toffee, crunchy pecans, and rich chocolate make this rustic fall treat perfect for any occasion.

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Pumpkin Tart with Whipped Cream and Almond Toffee

Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Pumpkin Tart with Whipped Cream and Almond Toffee

Pumpkin spice latte lovers rejoice: this pumpkin tart captures all the best flavors of one of our favorite fall drinks.

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Apple Butter Pie

Hector Sanchez

Recipe: Apple Butter Pie

With the smooth, creamy texture of a pumpkin pie and the tart flavor of apples, this pie comes together in a flash for a deliciously sweet and simple fall dessert.

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Decadent Cream Puffs with Praline Sauce and Toasted Pecans

Helen Norman

Recipe: Decadent Cream Puffs with Praline Sauce and Toasted Pecans

These show-stopping cream puffs, filled with butter-pecan ice cream and topped with a creamy praline sauce, will soothe any Southern sweet tooth.

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Classic Apple Dumplings

Photo: Jennifer Davick, Beth Dreiling Hontzas

Recipe: Classic Apple Dumplings

These made-from-scratch dumplings are bursting with nutty spices and tart apples. Drizzle in sweet sugar sauce and serve with vanilla ice cream for the ultimate comforting fall dessert.

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Pumpkin Pie Spectacular