Meal Planning With Seasonal Fall Produce

Meal Planning With Seasonal Fall Produce

Fall is that wonderful time of year when the leaves change to beautiful colors, we take the kids out to the pumpkin patch to choose pumpkins for carving, and head out to the orchard to fill buckets with apples.   But, what do we do with all of the delicious fall produce we come home with so it doesn’t go to waste?

Here are five delicious fall foods and five ways you can incorporate them into your meal plan, because let’s face it, there are a lot of apples in those buckets and we can only eat so many fresh ones before the rest will begin to go bad.

apple recipes

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Apples:

Place a few in a lovely basket and put them on display in your kitchen or on your dining room table.  These are the ones that the kids can take whenever they are looking for a healthy snack.   How about a fun game of bobbing for apples to keep the kids entertained too.  For the rest of them, take a look at these great ideas:

  • Healthy Halloween Treats for Kids – add this to your Halloween meal plan.
  • Apple Butter – you can stockpile this for yourself or give it to your family, friends, and neighbors as gifts.
  • Sour Cream Apple Pie – it’s not fall without apple pie.
  • Apple Peach Oatmeal Crunch – what a great way to start the day.
  • Applesauce – applesauce is one of those truly versatile foods.  You can use it as a substitute of oil when baking cakes, as a side for pork dishes, and just give it to the kids plain.  It’s simple to make: You simply core and slice the apples (leaving the skin on).  Add a little water to a pan and cook the apples on medium heat until they are going mushy – you will need to keep an eye on them and add more water if needed.  Leaving the skin on red apples gives the apple sauce a pink tinge.  While the apples are still simmering gently remove the skin and then use your potato masher to mash the apples.  I add a little honey too before refrigerating it.

pumpkin recipes

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Pumpkin:

You’ve carved a few pumpkins, you’ve put a few small ones on the table to decorate and more by the door.  You may have even lined your stairwell with them.  Here are a few fabulous ideas on how to incorporate them into your meal plan as well.

sweet potato recipes

Image Courtesy John P.

Sweet Potatoes:

Oh how I love sweet potatoes.  My family though, not so much.  I love sweet potato fries with my grilled vegetable paninis, I love slices of sweet potatoes on my pizza, and I love mashed sweet potatoes.   Here are 5 other ways you can enjoy them:

cranberry recipes

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Cranberries:

Not only are cranberries delicious to eat, but they look beautiful displayed around the home too.  Take a look at these fabulous cranberry decorating tips and then add some of these recipes to your meal plan too.

  • Cranberry Caramelized Onion & Blue Cheese Dip – this sounds and looks delicious and perfect for entertaining.
  • Cranberry Water – Fill jugs or beverage dispensers with water and pop some fresh cranberries inside.  They’ll float on top and add some lovely color to your dining table.
  • Overnight Oatmeal – add some cranberries and you have the perfect fall breakfast.
  • Autumn Almond Bark – add dried cranberries to this fall treat.  Bundle some up and give it to your neighbors.

fig recipes

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Figs:

  • Cheese Platters – Figs are a delightful accompaniment to cheese platters.
  • Figs, in many ways – They can be dried, canned, candied, frozen, eaten fresh, roasted, and turned into jam
  • Fig Appetizer – Wrap figs in bacon or prosciutto and broil until crispy. Serve warm.
  • Figs in lunches – add figs to salads or in sandwiches.
  • Figs for dessert – layer figs over plain cheesecake or dip them in chocolate

So whether you are entertaining guests, or meal planning for your family, let’s enjoy that wonderful fall produce and not let any of it go to waste.

Avatar About Tonya Staab

Tonya Staab is a content creator and the creative mind behind Create-Celebrate-Explore, a lifestyle blog that inspires parents to craft, cook, travel, and celebrate every day.

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