best fall dinner recipes!

We have so many favorite autumn foods that we've created a new separate post for the best fall dinner recipes! We have six pastas (I mean, it is fall...) plus one bean, one pork, and one fish dish!

We've covered all the best fall ingredients for both weeknight and weekend meals at home!

Orecchiette with Pancetta, Pumpkin, Broccoli Rabe

We're going on two years with this as my favorite fall dish. Notice I did this super close up image so you can see all the absolute goodness... Other than adding a bit more olive oil at the end, this recipe as it is written is perfect. It's easy for a weeknight, and if you want to make it extra special, you can make your own orecchiette - it takes more time but it's noticeably tastier and an easy enough pasta shape that even the youngest kids can help!

Penne-wise (or Bowtie) Pumpkin Penne

An oldie but a goodie recipe for our fam. It's super simple, which is maybe also why the kids adore it. :/ We make it several times each fall (and every Halloween eve), and we haven't gotten tired of it yet! If you're meat eaters, we love to chop up an apple turkey sausage and put it on the top of each bowl as some extra protein too. Or you can see here we used bowtie pasta instead and served it with a side of cinnamon bacon!

Costco Brown Butter Squash Ravioli

Alright we made this one up. And it wasn't until I Googled the main ingredient (to get it exactly right for you on the blog) that I realized that a LOT of people are making up their own recipes for this Costco Butternut Squash Ravioli. So in comparison, our recipe was pretty simple - a sage and pancetta brown butter sauce.

Just 1) brown the butter, 2) add the pressed garlic and pancetta cubes and cook until browned and fragrant, then 3) add the sage the last couple minutes... lastly of course... 4) cheese on the top. All the freshly shredded cheese.... and there you have it. A super simple but delicious topping for this pre-made (and fast cooking) ravioli on a weeknight.

One Pot Chicken Pot Pie Pasta

There is something about a chicken pot pie that feels very fall - am I right? And this is a homemade twist (crust is replaced with pasta) that is SO easy - it even uses rotisserie chicken! Plus it has lots and lots of veggies - that the kids actually love.

We have her cookbook (recipe in the image), but it's from Alex at The Defined Dish.

Wild Mushroom Pappardelle

I LOVE mushrooms. My kids are split on them... but when you add pasta, they forget that they don't like them. :) There are also lots of crushed hazelnuts to really hit home on that the fall component. It's from another FAVORITE blogger, Half Baked Harvest - her 'Every Day' book.

I don't see this recipe on her blog (only in the book), so I included the recipe image above. Trust me though... it's worth just buying the whole book because all her recipes are GOLD!

Cinnamon-Pancetta Carbonara

This is another one that we've been making forever - since before we were even married! (Yeah - a LONG time lol.). Giada has pasta recipes for every season, but this one just might be my favorite because of all the ingredients in the line-up... pancetta, cheese, cinnamon, cream... you can make this one all winter too! The only change we make to her recipe is sometimes a little more meat and cinnamon plus we cook it for longer than the recipe says, as we like it with the consistency pictured (not as saucy).... you will 100% thank me for pointing you here!

Olive-Oil Braised Beans

At first, this may seem too simple to be delicious... and too small to be filling... but this is Half Baked Harvest we're talking about... so it's both! And we served with a side of toast for dipping in case you need a few more carbs or have some leftover sauce that you don't want to leave behind!

Again - I can't find it on her blog, but it's in that same book 'Every Day', and I've placed the image above too.

One Pan Fall Pork Chops

Although it honestly doesn't look super special in this picture (clearly my food photography skills are a work in progress)... this recipe is super easy (one baking dish is all you need!) and super fall. Apples and maple syrup? Yup!

Baked Fish with Fall Veggies

We paired these Fall Roasted Vegetables with a baked sea bass from Costco and wow. Awesome!! You could pair it with any protein, but the baked sea bass can be made to fit any season, so we try to keep it in the rotation whenever it's available!

Alright - that is a wrap (for now) on the fall dinners! Stay tuned for drinks, appetizers, and desserts!