If I had to choose the one thing I love the most about fall, it would be baking. While the cooler weather, gorgeous leaves, and autumn sunshine are amazing, there’s nothing better to me than the smell of cinnamon, chocolate, and sugar in the air. I’m no stranger to delicious fall bakes, and this year, I wanted to share my favorites with you! Cozy up with a cup of tea or cocoa, put on your favorite holiday movie, and enjoy one of these ridiculously delicious treats.
- Snickerdoodles
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Snickerdoodle cookies are, without a doubt, one of the most classic fall treats. Sweet and a bit tart, the smell of snickerdoodles baking is enough to melt away all of the stress of this year! Additionally, snickerdoodles are one of the easiest cookies to bake, so they’re perfect for beginners. My favorite recipe is from Modern Honey; her cookies have the perfect ratio of cream of tartar to cinnamon sugar, and they don’t bake too flat. Pro tip: melt some milk or dark chocolate and drizzle it on top of the cooled cookies after baking — it makes them taste even better.
- Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
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I recommend this chocolate chip pumpkin bread from Elisabeth and Butter to everyone and their mothers. My sister discovered this recipe a couple of falls ago, and my entire family has been making it multiple times a year ever since. This bread has the perfect ratio of pumpkin to chocolate (making it less generic than normal pumpkin bread), and it has a melt-in-your-mouth quality that is simply divine. It’s also easily adaptable into muffin form! Simply bake the batter as you would with any muffin mix, and you’re ready to have a yummy breakfast.
- Chocolate Pecan Pie
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My grandma made a chocolate pecan pie for Thanksgiving every year while I was growing up, and it wasn’t until I came to college that I realized not everyone has chocolate pecan pie. Normal pecan pies are fine, but adding chocolate makes them infinitely better. I haven’t managed to find a recipe that matches my grandma’s flavor exactly, but this recipe from Belle of the Kitchen does a pretty fantastic job.
- Maple Cinnamon Rolls
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Cinnamon rolls are my absolute favorite thing to make from scratch. While the process can be difficult, due to the proper treatment of yeast, store-bought rolls really don’t compare to the gooey goodness of homemade buns. That being said, I was extremely excited when Sally’s Baking Addiction posted her maple cinnamon roll recipe (she also has tons of other fall cinnamon rolls that are delicious). These rolls are to die for — I could eat a whole pan by myself.
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cookies
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Whenever I offer to bake something for my friends and family, these cookies are the first thing they ask for. I’m not kidding when I say that these are the best homemade cookies I have ever made (and I make a lot of cookies). The peanut butter, chocolate, and butterscotch combine to make the most delicious bite ever, and the butterscotch makes this recipe perfect for fall! Wow your friends and family on the holidays this year with this recipe from The Food Charlatan. They’re guaranteed to be a crowd-pleaser!
Give yourself a much-needed, and well-deserved treat this fall by baking one (or all) of these goodies for yourself and your loved ones. Stay safe, stay socially distanced, and spread the joy of fall and the holiday season!
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