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Originally Posted On: https://spiceworldinc.com/tips-and-tricks/welcome-fall-with-these-comforting-dishes/

Welcome Fall with these Comforting Dishes

It’s fall! Bring on the cooler weather, colorful foliage, pumpkin spice everything, and hearty comforting meals.

Spice up your space for fall with a few simple steps.

1. Create a warm welcome: Add visual interest to your front door with a seasonal wreath (think maple leaves, mums, sunflowers, and pinecones) and a few full-sized pumpkins in a variety of colors, shapes, and textures.
2. Add a layer: As temperatures start to drop, add coziness to sofas, chairs, and back porch space with thick throw blankets and pillows. Plaid is having a moment and harvest colors are always a good choice.
3. Simmer a seasonal scent: Make your home smell like the flavors of fall with aromatic Fall Simmer Pot Spices. Apple, orange, and lemon combine with cinnamon, nutmeg, and Spice World Squeezable Minced Ginger in this seasonal stovetop potpourri.

Now that your décor is looking and smelling like fall, let’s get cooking!

Sweet Potato Hummus

This pumpkin-hued hummus is packed with flavor and nutrition, including vitamin A and vitamin C, good-for-you antioxidants, and fiber. Serve it with your favorite raw veggies and baked pita chips or tortilla chips.

Ingredients

• 1 medium sweet potato (about 12 oz.)
• 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
• ½ cup cooked or canned chickpeas
• 1 clove of Spice World Peeled Garlic, roughly chopped, or 1 tsp Spice World Ready-to-use Minced Garlic
• 2 Tbsp tahini
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• ½ tsp sweet or smoked paprika, plus more for garnish
• 2 Tbsp water
• Pepitas for garnish

Instructions 

1. Heat oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Peel sweet potato and chop into large cubes. Toss with oil in a large bowl, then spread in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Roast until tender and just starting to brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.
2. Add the sweet potatoes, chickpeas, Spice World garlic, tahini, lemon juice, salt, paprika, and water to a food processor. Process until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add more water if desired to make a looser dip.
3. Transfer to a bowl. Drizzle with additional olive oil and sprinkle with paprika and pepitas, if desired.

Isn’t it funny how when the weather cools down our busy schedules are just warming up?  Slow cookers are helpful appliances for busy families: They require minimal prep and effort and save stovetop and oven space. Put ingredients in, set the temperature, and return hours later to a flavorful and fully-cooked dish.

Tips for Using a Slow Cooker

• Leave some space:  Slow cookers work best when they’re half to three quarters full. If you overload it, the food might not cook completely or could boil over. However, if you don’t load it enough, then the food inside might burn.
• Keep a lid on it: Avoid opening your slow cooker when the lid is meant to remain on. If you open the lid unnecessarily, the heat inside is going to escape. This will cause whatever you’re cooking to take longer to finish.
• Spray it: Using a disposable slow cooker liner is ideal for easy clean-up, but if you don’t have one handy, spray the inside of your slow cooker with cooking spray. This will prevent the ingredients from sticking to the walls and should help make the machine’s finish last longer.

Try these simple and satisfying slow cooker meals to enjoy all season long.

Slow Cooker Whole Chicken

This healthy and hearty one pot meal of tender chicken and root vegetables is perfect for cooler fall days.

Ingredient

• One 5-6 lb whole chicken, giblets removed
• Salt, to taste
• ½ lemon, sliced
• 2 Tbsp Creole seasoning
• 1-2 stalks celery, cut in chunks
• 5-6 cloves Spice World Fresh Garlic, smashed, or 5-6 tsp Spice World Ready-to-use Minced Garlic
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into thick chunks
• 1 sprig thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ cup Spice World Easy Onion
• 5-6 medium red potatoes, cut in half
• ½ Tbsp bouillon powder (optional)

Instructions

• Remove any giblets from chicken then rinse the chicken with water, inside and out, then pat dry with paper towels.
• Rub the inside and outside of the chicken with salt, pepper, and bouillon powder. Generously rub the chicken with Creole seasoning, stuff it with 3 cloves of Spice World Fresh Garlic and lemon, then refrigerate until ready to cook. If time permits, do this the night before cooking (up to 24 hours is best).
• Remove chicken from the fridge and add Spice World Easy Onion, remaining Spice World Fresh Garlic, and bay leaf to the bottom of your slow cooker.
• Place chicken over onions in the slow cooker, breast side up.
• Tuck the potatoes and carrots (optional) in available spaces all around the chicken. Throw in the thyme sprig.
• Cover and cook chicken: Either set the slow cooker to HIGH and cook for 2½ to 3½ hours or set it to LOW and cook for 4-5 hours. The exact cooking time will depend on the size and type of your chicken.
• Chicken is done when the internal temperature registers 165°F in the breast or 175°F-180°F in the thickest part of the thigh.
• If desired, set the oven to broil, then carefully transfer the chicken from the slow cooker and place it in a roasting pan.
• Broil for 5-8 minutes, until the skin is crispy and brown.
• Remove from oven; let chicken stand 10 minutes before carving so the juices settle back into the meat.
• Before serving, discard the bay leaves, smashed Spice World Fresh Garlic, and lemon. During cooking, the chicken and veggies have been infused with these deep, aromatic flavors.

Craving more cozy slow cooker meals? Try these additional recipes:

This creamy butternut squash soup is full of fall flavors, and it’s also vegan and gluten free. Save prep time by using Spice World Easy Onion instead of chopping a whole onion.

Feeling saucy? This pineapple pork loin with a balsamic onion sauce is simple enough for a weeknight meal but fancy enough for entertaining.

Considering cooking up something sweet? These simple and delicious desserts showcase seasonal fall produce.

Pear Cobbler

Sophisticated and sweet, this pear cobbler has notes of warm spices from cinnamon, cardamom, and Spice World Ginger.

Ingredients

• 6 large ripe Red Anjou pears (about 4 lbs), peeled and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• ⅓ cup light brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp Spice World Squeezable Minced Ginger
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground cardamom
• ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
• ⅔ cup whole wheat flour
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• ⅓ cup canola oil
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• ½ cup whole milk

Instructions 

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish (or large cast-iron skillet) with cooking spray.
2. Toss pear slices, brown sugar, Spice World Squeezable Minced Ginger, cornstarch, cinnamon, and cardamom together in a large bowl. Set aside.
3. Whisk all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
4. Beat sugar, oil, vanilla and eggs with an electric mixer on high speed until very pale and fluffy, about 90 seconds. Add milk and beat on low speed until combined, about 20 seconds. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the flour mixture, beating until just combined, about 1 minute. (Do not overmix.) The batter will be a little thick, but still pourable.
5. Spread the pear mixture evenly in the prepared baking dish (or skillet); pour the batter evenly over the pears. Bake until the topping is golden brown, the pears are tender, and the batter is cooked through, 50 to 60 minutes. Cobbler is thoroughly cooked when a toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean. If necessary, cover with foil after 40 minutes of baking to prevent excessive browning. Allow cobbler to cool for 10 minutes before serving.

These warm, cinnamon-spiced baked apples are the perfect single serve dessert and take just 15 minutes to prepare.

Love pumpkin spice? This sweet, spreadable pumpkin butter is ready in 20 minutes. Try it on pancakes, waffles, biscuits, or stirred into oatmeal.

There’s just something about this season we all seem to fall for: It’s a time that reminds us to slow down and enjoy the simple pleasures, including sharing comforting meals with family and friends. Find recipes and inspiration for fall and every season at Spice World Inc. 

Sources

seasonal wreath

Fall Simmer Pot Spices

Spice World Squeezable Minced Ginger

pumpkin-hued hummus

Spice World Peeled Garlic

Spice World Ready-to-use Minced Garlic

silicone mat

Spice World garlic

food processor

Slow cookers

one pot meal of tender chicken and root vegetables

Creole seasoning

creamy butternut squash soup

Spice World Easy Onion

pineapple pork loin with a balsamic onion sauce

pear cobbler

Spice World Ginger

cinnamon-spiced baked apples

spreadable pumpkin butter