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Ah, fall! Whether you are on team apple or team pumpkin spice, there are about a million options for amazing recipes to be trying now that cooler weather has arrived. We’ll save pumpkin spice for another day. For now, get ready to pick some fresh apples and get cooking!

Caramel Apple Bundt Cake Recipe courtesy of errenskitchen.com

Cake Ingredients:

  • 2 ½ cups flour

  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

  • ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg

  • 2 teaspoons baking powder

  • ½ teaspoon baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 1 cup brown sugar (packed)

  • 1 ½ cups granulated sugar

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla

  • 1 cup butter (melted)

  • 4 large eggs

  • 5 medium apples (grated, add lemon juice to keep from browning)

  • ¼ cup milk (as needed)

Glaze Ingredients:

  • 1 ½ sticks of butter (¾ cup)

  • 1 cup brown sugar (packed)

  • ½ cup milk

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Cake Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 10-cup capacity bundt pan. In a small bowl, melt the butter in the microwave, and let cool. In a large mixing bowl mix together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, salt, baking soda, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Add cooled butter, eggs, and vanilla. Mix until smooth. The batter should be easily stirred. If too thick, mix in the milk.

Fold in the apples and spoon the batter into the bundt pan. Bake 50 - 60 minutes until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. While the cake is cooling in the pan, mix together the apple and 1 cup of sugar to make the glaze. After the cake cools in the pan for 10 minutes, invert onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

Glaze Instructions:

Combine the butter, brown sugar, and milk in a medium saucepan and bring to boil.

Reduce the heat and simmer to thicken for 1-2 minutes. Turn off heat, stir in vanilla and set aside to cool. The longer it cools, the thicker it becomes. When it's at your desired consistency, drizzle over the cooled cake and serve.

Spiked Crockpot Apple Cider Recipe courtesy of cookingforkeeps.com

Ingredients:

  • 1 gallon apple cider

  • 2 cinnamon sticks

  • 4 star anise

  • 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon whole cloves

  • 2 oranges, sliced plus more for garnish

  • 2 lemons, sliced plus more for garnish

  • 1 liter whiskey or bourbon

Instructions:

Add apple cider, cinnamon stocks, star anise, whole cloves, oranges, and lemons to the crockpot. Turn the heat on low and cook for 6-7 hours. Take out all of the whole spices, oranges and lemons before serving. Pour in bourbon. Stir and serve. Garnish with sliced orange and lemon.

Healthy Apple Muffins Recipe courtesy of kristineskitchenblog.com

Ingredients:

  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter 1/4 cup

  • 1/2 cup honey or pure maple syrup

  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

  • 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

  • 1/4 cup milk dairy, almond, etc.

  • 2 large eggs

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

  • 1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour

  • 1 large baking apple chopped (1 1/2 cups, no need to peel)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray muffin pans (regular size or mini) with cooking spray. Place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave. Add honey or pure maple syrup, applesauce, plain Greek yogurt, milk, eggs and vanilla to the bowl with the butter. Whisk until well combined. Add the baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon to the bowl with the wet ingredients. Whisk until well combined. Add white whole wheat flour. Use a rubber spatula to mix until almost combined. Add chopped apples, reserving a few pieces for the tops of the muffins, if desired. Use a rubber spatula to mix in the apple until just combined. Scoop the batter into greased muffin pans, filling each well about 2/3 full. If you reserved some of the apple pieces, press them into the tops of the muffins. Bake regular size muffins for 16 - 18 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Bake mini muffins for about 12 minutes.

Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling. Store muffins in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

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