When it comes to food, there are infinite reasons to love fall. Football snacks, pecan pie, chili and just-picked apples (plus the apple cider doughnuts that go with them) are all high on my list-but my absolute favorite fall food has to be pumpkin.
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To be honest, I hoard canned pumpkin year-round to stir into oatmeal and bake into breads and muffins. But even the canned stuff tastes so much better when there's a chill in the air and the smell of fallen leaves hits you the second you step outside.
Plus, let's be real: Fresh pumpkin blows the canned stuff out of the water. I like roasting big pieces and eating them on salads, throwing them into pastas, smushing them onto sandwiches or just eating them as a side dish with any old meal.
When I'm feeling super ambitious, I even make my own puree from fresh pumpkin-by removing the skin after the chunks of pumpkin are roasted and soft, then blitzing it all in a blender and letting any excess water drain through a fine mesh sieve overnight. It's more of a hassle than opening a can, sure; but I promise it really does taste that much better.
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What makes the trouble of pureeing pumpkin worthwhile? You can use it in almost anything. You can turn it into pasta sauce, cook it into pancake batter, stir it into yogurt or even combine it with melted cheese for an earthy dip.
The following 13 recipes showcase some of my favorite ways to use both pumpkin puree and non-pureed pumpkin, and I recommend you try at least a few of them ASAP. Because if fall's not about gorging on decadent pumpkin dishes, what is it about?
A version of this story was originally published in September 2016.
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