73 Must-Make Pumpkin Recipes for Fall

updated Oct 10, 2023

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Credit: Kelli Foster
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

I used to wait until we were deep into fall, when the leaves were changing and the cool weather demanded cozy sweaters, to jump into pumpkin mode. But as Starbucks has moved up the release of their Pumpkin Spice Lattes earlier and earlier, I can’t help but to follow their lead (although I still stick with making my pumpkin lattes at home). It’s never too soon to dig into a batch of pumpkin cookies, quick breads, porridge, or stuffed pumpkins and even quesadillas.

If you, too, are currently smitten with all things pumpkin — whether you’re using canned or homemade pumpkin purée — consider this your recipe hit list. And if you’re ready to get cooking or baking only to realize you’re out of pumpkin purée, roasted butternut squash, acorn squash, and sweet potatoes all make good pumpkin purée substitutes.

We’re sharing more than 70 sweet and savory pumpkin recipes that are sure to satisfy your fall cravings from breakfast, dinner, to all the snacks in between.

Vegetarian Pumpkin Recipes

Whether you start by roasting a fresh pumpkin in the oven or opening a can of purée, there are so many ways to make this seasonal squash the star of the dinner table. From soups and creamy pastas to casseroles and quesadillas, what will you try first?

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Instant Pot Pumpkin Purée

Yes, you can make fresh, homemade pumpkin purée at home with the help of an electric pressure cooker. Here's how.

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Pumpkin Pasta Sauce

This vegetarian one-pot pasta, which is built on cans of diced tomatoes and pumpkin purée, is ready in about 15 minutes.

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Pumpkin Quesadillas with Lime-Jalapeño Yogurt

The next time you have a lone cup of leftover purée lingering in the fridge, I highly suggest using it for cheesy quesadillas.

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Slow Cooker Vegan Pumpkin Curry

A few hours in the slow cooker leaves the pumpkin wonderfully tender and infused with warm, spiced aromas.

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Creamy One-Pot Pumpkin Pasta

If you love a good creamy pasta dinner, you cannot let fall pass you by without making this one.

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How To Make Pumpkin Soup in 20 Minutes

The easiest (and tastiest) pumpkin soup, thanks to a can of pumpkin and your spice drawer.

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Mini Pumpkins Stuffed with Onion, Mushrooms, and Chard

These easy but impressive vegetarian stuffed pumpkins are a festive fall main dish or starter.

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Pumpkin & Ricotta Pasta Casserole

Take a pound of pasta, a can of pumpkin purée, some cheese, some herbs, and there you go — a hot, bubbly, fragrant casserole for dinner. All with about 10 minutes of work.

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Miso Pumpkin Soup

After you've had your fill of basic pumpkin soup, go ahead and try this one. Umami-rich miso paste packs this naturally sweet soup with a wave of savory flavor.

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Two-Ingredient Pumpkin Hummus

It’s an easy, impressive-looking super fall-themed appetizer that wows friends and calls for just two ingredients.

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Pumpkin Risotto

If you only make one savory pumpkin dish this season, this just has to be it. Pumpkin risotto is one of the many variations on the classic Italian slow-cooked rice dish, which is made with a type of rice that releases some of its starch into the cooking liquid, creating its own sauce.

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How To Make a Vegetarian Stuffed Pumpkin Masterpiece

Learn how to stuff and bake a whole pumpkin with cornbread, mushrooms, and kale to serve as a vegetarian entrée for Thanksgiving and beyond.

Best Pumpkin Desserts

When it comes to pumpkin desserts, there are so many options. So to help make your decision a little easier and guarantee you’ll have a truly delicious treat, we’re sharing the best of the best, from pie to cake to no-bake treats and everything in between.

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Pumpkin Ice Cream

Whipped together with pumpkin purée and warm baking spices, this no-churn pumpkin ice cream practically screams fall.

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Pumpkin Cookies

These soft and cakey cookies are made with pumpkin purée, pumpkin pie spice, and a spiced sugar coating.

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How To Make Pumpkin Dessert Lasagna

Pumpkin dessert lasagna is an easy make-ahead dessert perfect for Thanksgiving.

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Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

They’re everything you love about a classic chewy-yet-crisp chocolate chip cookie amped up with a generous amount of pumpkin and warm spices.

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Classic Pumpkin Pie

When you're craving classic pumpkin pie with a just sweet enough, lightly spiced, creamy custard, this is the answer.

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Pumpkin Tres Leches

The classic "three milks" cake gets a cozy autumnal makeover thanks to pumpkin purée and warming spices like cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, and cloves.

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Pumpkin Bundt with Cinnamon Streusel and Salted Caramel

With a moist pumpkin base, a sweet brown sugar streusel, and a generous pour of salted caramel sauce, it’s the cake you’ll want to make more than once this fall.

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Pumpkin Cheesecake

The lively, familiar spices of classic pumpkin pie are balanced by the creamy goodness of a New York-style cheesecake.

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Pumpkin Patch Brownies

These chewy chocolate brownies are topped with toasted coconut "hay" and candy pumpkins for a fun and festive fall treat.

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Pumpkin Pie Bars

With just 5 ingredients, these pumpkin pie bars are easy to make and share.

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Frozen 3-Ingredient Peanut Butter-Pumpkin Bites

You only need 3 ingredients for these frozen treats: chocolate-covered pretzels, pumpkin purée, and peanut butter!

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Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

A classic sweetly-spiced pumpkin sheet cake with soft cream cheese frosting.

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Easy 5-Ingredient Mini Pumpkin Pies

Mini pies are just as sweet, creamy, and warmly spiced as their full-sized friends, but they bake up faster and are easy enough for kids to make.

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No-Bake Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake

This easy-peasy dessert packs all the best parts of a full-sized cheesecake — the light-as-air spiced pumpkin filling, the crumbly graham cracker crust, the swoosh of whipped cream — into a single-serve treat.

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Easy, Foolproof Pumpkin Roll

This delicately sweet and warmly spiced cake tastes just as gorgeous as it looks and bakes up tender and moist. Here's a pumpkin roll that anyone can make!

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No-Knead Pumpkin Rolls with Brown Sugar Glaze

With a full can of pumpkin purée and a sticky pecan filling, these swirled rolls might just be the best thing you eat for breakfast all fall.

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Pumpkin Spiced Peanut Butter Cups

If peanut butter cups hold a permanent spot in your heart, you've got to make this fall-inspired version ASAP.

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This easy pumpkin mousse has silky whipped canned pumpkin, mascarpone cream cheese, and crunchy graham cracker crumbs.

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Vegan Pumpkin Pie with Orange-Scented Crust

Made with a buttery, flaky orange-infused crust and topped with a creamy pumpkin-spiced filling, this recipe is a vegan take on a holiday mainstay.

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Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Pumpkin purée and chocolate chips give oatmeal cookies an instant upgrade.

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Chai-Spiced Pumpkin Bars

Made with a tender, nutty crust and fluffy pumpkin and chai spice filling, these bars also happen to be completely free of gluten, dairy, eggs, nuts, and refined sugar.

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Ginger Pumpkin Pie with Graham Cracker Crust

A new favorite take on pumpkin pie made with a graham cracker crust and a heaping spoonful of fresh ginger.

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Pumpkin Custard

Pumpkin custard is the ideal dessert for anyone who loves the filling in pumpkin pie.

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Crustless Pumpkin Pie

In lieu of crust, this crustless pumpkin pie gets its crunch from chopped candied pecans.

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Pumpkin Black Sesame Pie

Nutty black sesame makes this twist on a very traditional pie nothing short of a show-stopper.

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Vegan Pumpkin Pie

This rich and creamy vegan pumpkin pie features an easy homemade coconut oil pie crust and silky-smooth vegan filling.

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Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispie Treats

An easy recipe for Rice Krispies treats flavored with pumpkin purée and spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg.

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Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

Cheesecake meets pumpkin pie, all layered on a classic graham cracker crust.

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Pumpkin Dump Cake

This pumpkin dump cake, which bakes up into three distinct, delicious layers, is impressive enough to serve on your holiday table, but easy enough for even the most amateur baker.

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Pumpkin Pie Mug Cake

An easy single-serve pumpkin pie mug cake with a gingersnap crust and snappy spices.

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Pumpkin Magic Cake

This cake has a little something to satisfy all the pumpkin lovers around the table. It's thick at the bottom, rich and custardy in the middle, and fluffy like a super-moist sponge cake on top.

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Soft and Easy (Lofthouse-Style) Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting

Soft and easy Lofthouse-style pumpkin cookies come together with just five ingredients, and are finished with cream cheese frosting.

Sweet Pumpkin Recipes

When we think of pumpkin recipes, it’s easy to jump straight to sweets, like quick breads and breakfast treats. This lineup includes favorites we’ll be devouring all season.

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Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

Pillowy pumpkin rolls are swirled with a gooey spiced brown sugar and pumpkin filling, then topped with maple cream cheese icing.

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Pumpkin Banana Bread

Ripe, speckled bananas and earthy pumpkin give each spiced slice of this fall quick bread a moist texture and natural sweetness.

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The secret to making these pumpkin scones ultra-fluffy? Don't over-mix the batter.

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Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

A squidgy loaf of pumpkin chocolate chip bread full of warm baking spices and a generous amount of chocolate chips.

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Pumpkin Pancakes

These ultra-fluffy pancakes are loaded with real pumpkin and sweet spices.

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Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

In case you didn't know, pumpkin, warm fall spices, and chocolate chips are a delicious trifecta.

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Pumpkin Waffles

Easy-to-make pumpkin waffles make for an autumn brunch favorite.

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Inspired by the version at Starbucks, this is the pumpkin bread our whole team keeps coming back to again and again. Best of all, it uses up a whole can of pumpkin.

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Pumpkin Spice French Toast

This recipe is everything you love about Starbucks' iconic pumpkin spice latte transformed into a quick and easy French toast recipe. It comes together in less than 20 minutes and is seasoned with warm pumpkin pie spice and a dash of espresso powder to make it taste just like the real deal.

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Pumpkin French Toast Casserole

Thick cubes of brioche are infused with rich custard packed with warm spices and a double dose of pumpkin, then topped with a brown sugar-pecan streusel.

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Slow Cooker Creamy Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal

Toss everything into the slow cooker before going to bed, and not only will you wake up to breakfast, but your kitchen will smell amazing.

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Korean Pumpkin Porridge with Rice Dumplings (Hobakjuk)

In addition to the velvety pumpkin, hobakjuk has delightfully chewy rice balls and makes a delicious winter breakfast or subtly sweet dessert.

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Pumpkin Chai-Spiced Monkey Bread

This sweet and gooey monkey bread comes loaded with pumpkin and chai flavors, and is sure to be loved by the entire family.

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This pumpkin-spiced spread comes together in 30 minutes and is perfect for swiping on breakfast, snacks, and so much more.

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Pumpkin Bread Pudding

Cubes of rich bread baked in a warmly spiced pumpkin-purée custard.

Pumpkin Recipes for Dinner

Consider this one last reminder that pumpkin most definitely has a place in savory dishes on the dinner table. Its natural sweetness pairs particularly well with warm, smoky spices and meats.

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One-Pot Creamy Pumpkin Pasta

This vegetarian one-pot pasta, which is made with mostly pantry staples, is ready in 15 minutes flat.

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Stir in some pumpkin purée and you'll be on the fast track to a truly memorable pot of chili.

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Syrian Stuffed Pumpkins

Syrian stuffed peppers are the inspiration for this hearty seasonal recipe

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Pork, Pumpkin, and Cornbread Casserole

This savory and smoky casserole is totally doable any night of the week.

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Pumpkin Stuffed with Everything Good

From the mind of Dorie Greenspan comes a festive cooking project that is as tasty as it is fun to make.

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Pork, Poblano, and Pumpkin Stew

Starting with lean pork tenderloin keeps the cook time on this seasonal stew to a minimum, and doable on a weeknight.

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Savory Stuffed Pumpkin with Sausage and Gruyère

Stuffed with an ultra-savory, cheesy bread pudding, this dinner tastes just as incredible as it looks. You can keep it vegetarian by using plant-based sausage instead of Italian sausage.

Pumpkin Drinks

Pricey coffee-shop drinks aren’t the only way to get your fill of pumpkin-kissed favorites. Stay in your PJs and make these cozy drinks at home.

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Pumpkin Spice Frozen Latte

A blended frozen coffee drink made with ice, coffee concentrate, milk, syrup, pumpkin spice, and pumpkin purée.

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Pumpkin Spice Latte

How to make the best-ever PSL in your own kitchen — no milk frother or special syrup required.

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Slow Cooker Pumpkin Spice Lattes

This pumpkin spice latte recipe keeps warm in the slow cooker and doesn't even require an espresso machine, so you can cozy up and stay inside instead.

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Spiked Pumpkin Spice Creamer

Homemade pumpkin spice creamer, spiked with bourbon and flavored with pumpkin purée and spices, turns coffee into an after-dinner treat.

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Spiked Pumpkin Pie Milkshake

Or if you want something a bit more decadent, go for the spiked pumpkin pie milkshake. You won't be sorry.

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Hot Pumpkin Buttered Rum

Hot buttered rum is already like a warm hug. Add pumpkin and you've got fall's best cocktail.

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Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Yes, pie for breakfast is a wonderful treat on it's own, but this pumpkin pie smoothie really takes that to the next level!

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