Fall baking makes the whole house smell amazing! Warm spices, melted butter and something fresh out of the oven can turn any kitchen into the busiest room in the house.
Each recipe on this list brings its own reason to turn on the oven this season. Go through and find the one to bake first.
15. Pumpkin Spice Monkey Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting
Pull-apart bread trades its usual cinnamon sugar for a pumpkin spice makeover. Melted butter and brown sugar create a sticky coating that seeps into every piece as it bakes. Once it cools, a simple cream cheese frosting gets drizzled generously over the top. The whole thing is a fun, hands-on project that gets even the littlest kitchen helpers involved.
Pumpkin Spice Monkey Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a bundt pan thoroughly with non-stick cooking spray.
- Combine the granulated sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves in a medium bowl. (Alternatively, place the mixture into a large plastic bag and shake vigorously.)
- Cut each biscuit into quarters and roll each piece into a ball. Coat the dough balls in the pumpkin spice and arrange in the prepared bundt pan. (Alternatively, place the biscuit pieces into the plastic food bag, seal and shake gently to coat.)
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low to medium heat. Stir in the brown sugar. Whisk until the sugar dissolves. Pour melted butter evenly over the biscuit dough.
- Place the bundt pan on the middle rack of the oven with a baking sheet under it on the lower rack to catch any spills. Do not skip this step!
- Bake for 1 hour, until top is golden brown. For best results, cool completely before inverting onto a serving plate.
- Before serving, make the cream cheese frosting: Combine the softened cream cheese and butter together in a small bowl. Whisk in the sugar, milk and vanilla. Drizzle over cooled monkey bread.
14. Bakery Style Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
These muffins taste like they came straight out of a bakery case. Canned pumpkin and warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom round out the batter. Giant chocolate chunks plus a melted chocolate drizzle on top add those glossy puddles everyone swoons over. A one-to-one gluten free flour swaps in easily if needed.
Bakery Style Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins (Gluten Free option)
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a jumbo size muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray, or line with cupcake liners.
- In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs and pumpkin puree.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda and spices.
- Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until fully combined. Fold in 1 cup of the chocolate chunks.
- Fill muffin tins 2/3 of the way with batter. Sprinkle evenly with coarse sugar. Bake 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
- To make the chocolate drizzle, combine 1/2 cup of chocolate chunks and the coconut oil in a small bowl. Microwave in 20 second intervals until melted and smooth. Drizzle over cooled muffins.
13. Pumpkin Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
Cupcakes take over as the star of the fall dessert table with this one. They’re a great alternative for anyone who skips pie at the holiday table, and the batter comes together in one bowl and bakes up moist.
Maple extract gives the cream cheese frosting a subtle sweetness without changing its smooth texture. A one-to-one flour swap makes it simple to keep everyone lingering at the table a little longer.
Pumpkin Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree and eggs. Add brown sugar, oil, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, clove and nutmeg. Mix together. Add the flour and mix until well-combined.
- Lightly grease a muffin pan or line with baking cups. Pour batter 2/3 of the way to the top of each cup. Bake 28-30 minutes. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with an electric hand mixer, beat the cream cheese, butter, maple extract and vanilla extract on medium-high speed for 1-2 minutes. Turn speed down to low and add the confectioner's sugar. Turn speed back up to medium-high and beat for another 1-2 minutes.
12. Apple Cinnamon Sour Cream Coffee Cake
This coffee cake bakes fall right into every single slice. A ripple of cinnamon-spiced apples runs straight through the moist, sour cream cake, and a thick, buttery brown sugar crumb topping sits on top without sinking in thanks to using melted butter instead of cold.
The whole thing bakes up in a 9×13 dish so there’s plenty to share. It travels well too, making it an easy stop for a fall potluck or game day.
Apple Cinnamon Sour Cream Coffee Cake
Ingredients
Method
- Bring the apples, 3/4 cup sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon to a boil in a small saucepan. Lower the heat and simmer until thickened and apples are very soft, 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat. Mixture will thicken as it cools.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Blend in the eggs, sour cream and vanilla.
- In a separate medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. With the mixer on low speed, blend the flour mixture into the wet ingredients until combined. Pour into a greased 9×13 baking dish. Drop spoonfuls of the apple mixture onto the cake batter. Using a knife, swirl the apple mixture evenly into the cake batter.
- In a small bowl, use a fork to mix all of the topping ingredients together until crumbly. Sprinkle evenly over the cake layer. Bake 40 minutes.
11. Quick Pumpkin Spice Bread
Sometimes the simplest bread turns out to be the best bread, and this one proves it. It comes together with just a hand mixer and two bowls, and canned pumpkin along with a warm blend of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves gives the loaf its classic flavor.
A sprinkle of raw sugar on top caramelizes slightly in the oven for a nice bit of crunch. Toasted and smeared with cream cheese, it turns a chilly morning into something worth waking up for.
Quick Pumpkin Spice Bread Recipe
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar with a hand mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and pumpkin puree.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and clove. Whisk together.
- Beat dry ingredients into creamed mixture a little bit at a time, until just combined. Do not overmix. Pour batter into a greased loaf pan and sprinkle raw sugar over top. Bake 1 hour 10 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
10. Apple Butter Cranberry Muffins with Streusel Topping
These muffins bring autumn straight into every bite. Apple butter and sour cream keep them moist, while fresh or frozen cranberries add little bursts of tartness, and a cinnamon streusel topping made with melted butter sits nicely on top instead of sinking into the batter.
Swapping in Greek yogurt for the sour cream works well too if that’s what’s on hand. These are the kind of muffins that make the whole kitchen smell like fall while they bake.
Apple Butter Cranberry Muffins with Streusel Topping
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with paper liners or coat with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, vanilla, sour cream, milk and apple butter.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and stir to combine. Fold in the cranberries. Fill the muffin tin 2/3 of the way with batter.
- Make the streusel: Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir with a fork. Sprinkle streusel on top of the muffins before baking. Bake 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool to room temperature before removing from muffin tin.
9. Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake
Cinnamon lovers, this coffee cake exists just for you. Three layers of cinnamon flavor come together here: a ripple through the cake, a buttery streusel crumb on top and a sweet glaze drizzled over the whole thing.
Pouring half the cake batter, adding a layer of cinnamon and topping it with the rest of the batter creates that signature swirl. It keeps well on the counter for a few days, so the kitchen stays cozy long after it’s baked.
Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until smooth.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
- Add half of the flour mixture into the creamed mixture and beat on low speed until combined. Add the sour cream and stir until combined. Add the remaining flour mixture and stir until combined.
- Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle the cinnamon across the batter evenly. Then pour the remaining batter on top and smooth.
- Make the crumble: Combine all dry ingredients and whisk together in a bowl. Using a fork or just your fingers, work the melted butter into the mixture. Sprinkle the crumb mixture evenly over the batter.
- Bake 45-50 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
- While the cake bakes, make the glaze: Whisk all ingredients together in a liquid measuring cup. Then drizzle over the cooled coffee cake.
8. Baked Apple Butter Doughnuts
These doughnuts skip the fryer without skipping out on flavor. There’s no frying and no added butter here at all, just apple butter for moisture and flavor. A doughnut pan works best though a muffin tin does the job just as well.
Once baked and cooled, each one gets dipped in a simple cinnamon-sugar coating. They come out lighter than a bakery doughnut but still taste like a proper fall treat.
Baked Apple Butter Doughnuts
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a doughnut or muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Whisk eggs together with apple butter, 1/2 cup sugar, buttermilk and brown sugar in a large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Fold the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Batter will be sticky. Fill a doughnut or muffin pan 2/3 of the way with the batter. Bake for 20 minutes.
- In a shallow bowl, mix the cinnamon and 1 cup sugar together. Allow the doughnuts to cool, then dip into the cinnamon/sugar mixture.
7. Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread
Pumpkin bread and cream cheese swirl together into one seriously good loaf. A tangy cream cheese swirl runs through the center of this dense, moist bread, and dotting the cream cheese over the batter before swirling it with a knife creates ribbons throughout the loaf as it bakes.
Toasted pepitas sprinkled on top add a salty crunch that balances the sweetness. Crushing some of the pepitas and leaving others whole gives this cozy loaf a nice mix of texture.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs and pumpkin puree.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking soda and spices.
- Beat the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Pour half of the batter into a prepared loaf pan (coated with nonstick cooking spray or lined with parchment paper).
- Microwave the cream cheese in 20 second intervals until smooth and looser in consistency. Dot spoonfuls of cream cheese over the batter. Use a knife to swirl the cream cheese through the batter. Top with the remaining batter and swirl again.
- Sprinkle the top of the bread evenly with pepitas. Bake 1 hour 10 minutes. Cool completely before turning out of the pan.
6. Monkey Bread Muffins with Cinnamon Sugar
This version turns classic monkey bread into single-serving muffins. Refrigerated biscuit dough gets cut into pieces, rolled in cinnamon sugar and packed into a muffin tin before a brown sugar butter mixture pours over the top.
Once baked and cooled, each muffin gets finished with a simple vanilla glaze. They store well at room temperature for a couple of days, perfect for grabbing during a busy fall week.
Easy Monkey Bread Muffins Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a standard size muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.
- Combine cinnamon and sugar together in a small bowl.
- Cut each biscuit into 6 smaller pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and coat in cinnamon sugar mixture. Place 7-8 biscuit pieces in each muffin cup.
- Heat butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the brown sugar until dissolved. Pour the melted butter mixture over the tops of the muffins evenly, coating each piece of dough as much as possible.
- Bake 25-28 minutes, until golden brown. Cool completely before gently removing from the muffin tin.
- Whisk the glaze ingredients together in a small bowl. Drizzle over cooled monkey bread muffins.
5. Pumpkin Spice Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
This sheet cake feeds a crowd and disappears just as fast. Buttermilk keeps the cake extra moist, while golden raisins and pecans add texture throughout. A rich cream cheese frosting goes on top once the cake has cooled completely. No stand mixer is needed, just two bowls, a whisk and a free afternoon to bake.
Pumpkin Spice Cake Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, whisk pumpkin and eggs together. Add brown sugar, oil and buttermilk. Whisk to combine.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and spices together. Slowly pour the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture and stir to combine.
- Fold in the raisins and pecans.
- Coat a 9×13 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Pour the batter into the pan. Bake 35 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.
- To make the frosting, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together in a stand mixer. (Alternatively, use a handheld electric mixer). With the mixer on low speed, add the confectioner's sugar. Increase mixer speed and whip the frosting until fluffy.
4. Warm Apple Crostata
This apple dessert skips the perfectly crimped crust for something wonderfully rustic. Tart apples get cooked down with butter, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg until soft and syrupy, then get wrapped up in a flaky, buttery crust.
Brushing the dough with heavy cream and turbinado sugar gives it a golden, sparkly finish. A scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side makes it feel like the ultimate fall dessert.
Warm Apple Crostata Recipe
Ingredients
Method
- In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the flour, sugar and salt to combine. Cut the cold butter into cubes. Add the butter to the food processor and process until they are the size of peas.
- With the motor running on low, pour 5 Tbsp. very cold water through the feed tube until a crumbly dough forms.
- Remove the dough and press it into a disc. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add the sugar. Stir continuously until the mixture becomes an amber color. Don't worry if it gets clumpy.
- Stir in the apple slices, cinnamon and nutmeg. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are softened.
- In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch with 1 1/2 Tbsp. of water. Pour the mixture into the apples and stir until thickened. Remove from heat.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Using a rolling pin, roll dough into a large circle on a lightly floured surface. Transfer it to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Spread the apple mixture in the center of the dough, leaving a perimeter of dough about 2 inches.
- Fold and gather the dough in towards the center, slightly overlapping other pieces of dough and overlapping the apple mixture by 1/2 inch.
- Brush the dough with heavy cream. Sprinkle it with turbinado sugar. Bake 50 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool on the baking sheet before transferring it to a serving plate.
3. Cinnamon Scones
These scones pack in double the cinnamon flavor. Cinnamon chips baked right into the dough keep these scones from turning out dry like most, and a food processor cuts the cold butter into the dry ingredients before the dough is finished by hand.
A stint in the freezer helps the scones hold their shape, and a maple glaze goes over the top once they’ve cooled. They also happen to be naturally eggless, a nice bonus on busy baking days.
The BEST Cinnamon Scones Recipe with Maple Glaze
Ingredients
Method
- In a food processor, pulse the flour, white sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon chips and ground cinnamon together until just combined. Cut the butter into cubes and add it to the flour mixture. Pulse until the pieces of butter are the size of peas. Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl.
- Take 2 tbsp. of heavy cream out of the 1 cup and set aside. Pour the remaining cream into the bowl and mix together until a very shaggy dough starts to form. Dump the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until it comes together. It will be quite dry.
- Form the dough into a large disc that is 1 inch thick. Slice the disc into 8 wedges. Place onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Freeze on the baking sheet for 1 hour and up to overnight.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove the scones from the freezer and brush the scones with the reserved 2 Tbsp. of heavy cream. Sprinkle generously with turbinado sugar. Bake 25-27 minutes, until scones are golden brown on the bottom. Cool on the baking sheet before glazing.
- To make the glaze, whisk all ingredients in a small bowl and drizzle onto the scones.
2. Classic Cinnamon Rolls with Vanilla Frosting
These cinnamon rolls taste just like a bakery run without leaving the house. These yeasted rolls take a bit more time than most bakes on this list, but the dough can be made a day ahead and refrigerated overnight so all that’s left in the morning is a half hour in the oven.
A simple vanilla frosting gets spread on top while the rolls are still warm so it melts in slightly. Leaving space between the rolls before they rise is the key to a batch worth waking up early for this fall.
Classic Cinnamon Rolls with Vanilla Frosting
Ingredients
Method
- Combine the yeast, 1/2 tsp. of sugar and warm water in a small bowl. Stir and set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the milk, 1/3 cup sugar, melted butter, salt and eggs. Stir in the yeast mixture. Gradually add the flour, one cup at a time, and beat until a sticky dough forms.
- Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Dump the dough out onto a floured surface and knead 5-7 minutes, until smooth. Place in a buttered bowl and cover loosely with a damp towel. Turn the oven off. Place the bowl in the warm oven for 45 minutes, until the dough is doubled in size.
- Meanwhile, prepare the filling: Combine the cinnamon and 1/2 cup sugar and melt 1/2 stick of butter.
- Punch the dough down and roll out on a floured surface. Form a rectangle measuring 13×19 inches. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle generously with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Start rolling from the long end, jellyroll style. Cut into 15 pieces.
- Melt the other 1/2 stick of butter pour into a 9×13 baking dish. Coat well. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Place the rolls in the pan, making sure there is a little space between them. Cover with a dish towel and let rise for 45 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover the pan loosely with foil and bake 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 15-20 minutes.
- While the rolls are baking, combine all frosting ingredients except for the water in a small bowl. Add the water, one tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is reached. Spread frosting over warm rolls.
1. Apple Butter Cookies with Cinnamon Vanilla Frosting
These cookies bring serious apple butter flavor in every soft, chewy bite. A combination of apple butter and extra brown sugar gives them that cakey texture, and a cinnamon vanilla frosting made with real vanilla bean paste gets spread on top once the cookies have cooled completely.
Since the frosting stays soft rather than hardening, every cookie keeps that cake-like bite all the way through. A gluten free flour blend swaps in easily, so no one misses out on this fall favorite.
Apple Butter Cookies with Cinnamon Vanilla Frosting
Ingredients
Method
- Beat butter and sugars until fluffy. Beat in the egg, vanilla and apple butter.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
- Stir the flour mixture into the apple butter mixture until combined. Cover the dough and chill at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using a 3 Tbsp. cookie scoop, place cookie dough 1 inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.
- Make the frosting: Beat the butter until fluffy. With the mixer on low speed, beat in the confectioner's sugar, vanilla bean paste and cinnamon. Store at room temperature.
I.am finding recipes my grandmother made when i was 5 and sat on a milk can containing sugar bought with ration stamps. Watching her is how
i learned to cook.
those are the best recipes!