Easy Pumpkin Recipes to Celebrate Pumpkin Season
By Rebecca St.Clair
If you want to make the most of pumpkin season, these recipes are a must-try! The leaves turn crisp and bright, the air gets a little cooler, and the kitchen starts to smell like warm spices. This is my favourite time to pull out my mixing bowls and spend a little time making something warm and delicious.
Pumpkin is a wonderfully versatile ingredients that belongs in so much more than pumpkin pie. From soft, spiced pumpkin muffins and baked pumpkin donuts to creamy pumpkin soup and comforting pumpkin pasta, there are so many delicious ways to enjoy this autumn favourite.
Whether you’re looking for easy pumpkin desserts, cozy fall breakfast ideas, or a simple homemade dinner for a chilly evening, these easy pumpkin recipes are a lovely way to celebrate the season. You’ll find sweet treats for sharing, old-fashioned baking favourites, and savoury pumpkin dishes that make the most of this beautiful fall ingredient.
So, grab a can of pumpkin purée or roast a fresh pumpkin and let’s make something delicious!
Why You’ll Love These Recipes
Perfect for fall: These pumpkin recipes are full of the warm, comforting flavours we look forward to every autumn.
Sweet and savoury options: From classic pumpkin pie to cheesy pumpkin and sage pasta, there’s something for every craving.
Lovely for sharing: Most of these homemade pumpkin recipes are perfect for family gatherings, Thanksgiving dinners, bake sales, or a simple afternoon treat.
Made for home cooks: These recipes celebrate simple ingredients and old-fashioned baking, and food from scratch.
A wonderful way to use pumpkin: Pumpkin adds colour, flavour, and moisture to all sorts of baked goods and savoury dishes.
My Favourite Easy Pumpkin Recipes for Pumpkin Season
If you’re wondering what to make with pumpkin this fall, here are my favourite delicious pumpkin recipes to add to your seasonal cooking list. Whether you love traditional pumpkin desserts or want to try something a little different, these recipes are a great place to start.
Classic Pumpkin Pie
The tried and true classic quintessential pumpkin recipe, the pumpkin pie. This one has a light and flaky homemade crust a smooth and creamy spiced pumpkin filling. Perfect for pumpkin season, Thanksgiving, Christmas dinner, and Festive celebrations.
Edible Baked Pumpkin Bowls
Everything tastes better when it’s cooked inside of a pumpkin! Small pumpkins make the perfect personal sized soup bowl. Larger pumpkins can be used to serve a shared side dish or shared meal. Plus it adds so much flavour and charm to your meal.
Pumpkin Spice
Not made of pumpkin, but an essential part of baking with pumpkins is the perfect seasoning blend. This one is full of warm fall spices. It is so easy to make and so nice to have on hand to add into your favourite bakes or to sprinkle on your morning coffee!
Pumpkin Pie Dessert Bars
All the flavours of a pumpkin pie but so much easier! A soft buttery cookie crust is baked with an easy homemade pumpkin pie custard. Slice these into personal-sized squares and top with whipped cream for a delicious fall snack.
Cheesy Pumpkin and Sage Pasta
A quick and easy pasta dinner packed with warm fall flavour. This cheesy pumpkin sauce is rich and perfect for pairing with your favourite pasta. The crispy sage leaves on top add the perfect crisp flavour to compliment this festive dinner.
Pumpkin-Shaped Bagels
Another fun fall recipe made without pumpkin but made to look like a pumpkin! These classic bagels are shaped like pumpkins for a fun way to make delicious sandwich for breakfast or lunch or toast with cream cheese for the perfect chewy bagel.
Pumpkin Streusel Muffins
A delicious grab-and-go breakfast or the perfect fall snack to go with hot coffee or apple cider. These pumpkin muffins bake up golden and have the perfect spiced sugar crunch on top.
Homemade Pumpkin Waffles
Warm, spiced, and full of of soft pumpkin flavour. These homemade waffles are the perfect fall breakfast served with maple syrup or a big dollop of whipped cream on top.
Caramel Glazed Pumpkin doughnuts
Nothing says cozy fall baking quite like homemade pumpkin donuts! These baked pumpkin donuts are soft, tender, and full of warm pumpkin spice flavour. They require no special pan and no deep-frying. They make a delicious sweet breakfast, or a little autumn treat with a cup of coffee.
Pumpkin-Shaped Dinner Rolls
Baked to look like pumpkins, not made from pumpkins. These soft and tender dinner rolls make any fall dinner a little more special. Bring them as a side dish to Thanksgiving or make the sweetest fall sandwiches to pack in lunch boxes.
Easy Pumpkin Biscuits
These tender buttery biscuits are filled with pumpkin flavour. They come together quickly and easily and bake up golden, filled with soft buttery layers. We like to turn these into breakfast sandwiches or serve them as a treat with butter and a little drizzle of honey or maple syrup.
Creamy Pumpkin Soup
Few things are more comforting on a cool fall day than a warm bowl of homemade soup. This pumpkin soup is rich, creamy, and full of soft pumpkin flavour.
Serve it with crusty homemade bread, warm pumpkin biscuits, or a grilled cheese sandwich for an easy autumn lunch or supper.
Soft White Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies
For a sweet treat with a little twist, bake up these white chocolate pumpkin cookies. The warm spices and pumpkin flavour are made even sweeter with creamy white chocolate, creating a cookie that’s perfect for autumn baking.
Creamy Pumpkin Lasagna
A creamy pumpkin sauce mixed with ground sausage meat, sage, a layer of soft ricotta cheese. This easy fall casserole is baked to give it a golden cheesy crust. Perfect for cozy fall dinners.
Banana Banana Pumpkin Bread
Pumpkin and banana have a natural sweetness and moisture, for the perfect moist texture and delicious autumn flavour paired with warm fall spices.
This easy treat is the perfect slice-and-go breakfast or snack!
How to Choose the Best Pumpkin for Cooking and Baking
If you’re planning to make several pumpkin recipes this season, it helps to know which type of pumpkin to use.
Canned pumpkin purée is convenient, consistent, and easy to keep in the pantry. It’s especially handy for muffins, cookies, pumpkin pie, and other baked goods.
Fresh culinary pumpkin is a great option when you want to cook with seasonal produce. Look for smaller sugar pumpkins or pie pumpkins, which generally have sweeter, less watery flesh than large carving pumpkins.
Decorative carving pumpkins are usually not the best choice for recipes. They can be watery, stringy, and less flavourful than pumpkins grown for eating.
One important thing to remember: pumpkin purée and pumpkin pie filling are not interchangeable. Plain pumpkin purée contains cooked pumpkin, while pumpkin pie filling typically includes sweeteners and spices. Check the label before adding it to a recipe.
How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Purée
Making pumpkin purée from fresh pumpkin is a lovely way to use seasonal produce, especially if you enjoy old-fashioned kitchen skills.
- Choose a culinary pumpkin and wash the outside.
- Carefully cut it in half and scoop out the seeds and stringy centre.
- Place the pumpkin halves cut-side down on a baking sheet.
- Roast at approximately 375°F (190°C) until the flesh is tender when pierced with a fork. Cooking time will vary with the pumpkin’s size.
- Let the pumpkin cool enough to handle, then scoop out the flesh.
- Blend or mash the flesh until smooth.
If the purée seems watery, let it drain in a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth-lined strainer before using it in baking.
