The Coziest Autumn Recipes 🍂 Easy, Vegan and Cozy Recipes to Try This Season
Hello, dear friends,
Autumn is here, and it makes me want to cook and bake delicious treats. The rain outside, the sound of something simmering on the stove, warm spices, apples caramelising, bread rising, and the smell of something sweet baking in the oven.
For my Madame Sorcière series, I wanted to create exactly that feeling: a little autumn world filled with cooking, baking, candlelight, rain and plenty of comforting food.
And because I know not everyone wants to spend an entire afternoon cooking complicated recipes, these are all easy vegan autumn recipes that you can make at home.
In this post:
🍂 My Autumn Dress
For these videos, I wore the Diane in Brown Tartan from Son de Flor. I love the warm brown tartan for this time of year, and it fitted perfectly into the series.
If you would like to have a look at the dress, you can find it through my affiliate link below.
🍁 Autumn Cozy Recipes🍁
🍂 Pumpkin Soup with Roasted Chickpeas, Pine Nuts & Parsley
This is one of my favourite soups: creamy pumpkin soup, topped with crispy roasted chickpeas, pine nuts and fresh parsley.
The roasted chickpeas add a lovely crunchy contrast to the smooth soup!
You can adjust the amount of vegetable broth depending on how thick you like your soup.
Ingredients
For the pumpkin soup
1 medium butternut squash (about 1 kg / 2.2 lb whole)
1 tbsp (15 ml) olive oil
2 medium onions, roughly chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 thin carrots, or 2 medium carrots, chopped
600 ml (2½ cups) vegetable broth, plus more if needed
1 tsp dried oregano
½ tsp paprika poweder
A pinch of nutmeg
2 bay leaves
Salt and black pepper, to taste
For the roasted chickpeas
150 g (about 1 cup) canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
3 tbsp (45 ml) olive oil
1 tsp paprika poweder
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Thyme and oregano, to taste
Your favourite spices or seasonings, such as turmeric
To serve
Pine nuts
Fresh parsley
Directions
Peel and cut the butternut squash into small pieces. Remove the seeds and set the squash aside.
Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for a few minutes until softened.
Add the garlic, carrots and butternut squash. Stir well and cook for another few minutes.
Add the vegetable broth, oregano, paprika, nutmeg and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for approximately 20–30 minutes, or until the vegetables are completely tender.
While the soup is cooking, prepare the chickpeas. Pat them dry and place them on a baking tray. Toss with olive oil, paprika, salt, pepper, thyme, oregano and any additional spices you like.
Roast at 200°C / 400°F for approximately 20–30 minutes, shaking the tray occasionally, until golden and crispy.
Remove the bay leaves from the soup and blend until completely smooth. Add more vegetable broth if you prefer a thinner consistency.
Serve warm, topped with roasted chickpeas, toasted pine nuts and fresh parsley.
🍎 The Easiest Vegan Apple Pie
No autumn recipe collection would be complete without apple pie.
This is my all-time favourite vegan pie recipe, with a homemade crust that you can decorate in all sorts of beautiful ways.
For the full recipe and several ideas for decorating your pie, I have a separate post dedicated to it.
If you want something a little more whimsical, I also have a recipe for mini apple pies decorated with sunflower-shaped crust, which are especially lovely for autumn.
🍄 Lentil & Mushroom Stew
This hearty lentil and mushroom stew is one of Madame Sorcière's favourites.
It is simple, warming and full of earthy flavours, exactly the sort of meal I imagine waiting for you at the end of a rainy autumn day.
Ingredients
1 large onion, chopped
8–10 brown mushrooms, such as cremini (also known as baby bella or chestnut mushrooms) sliced
2–3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp (30 g) tomato paste
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 tbsp paprika
600 ml (2½ cups) vegetable broth, plus more as needed
1 medium potato, cut into small cubes
1 cup (about 190 g) dry brown lentils, soaked in water for 4–5 hours and drained
1 tbsp (15 ml) lemon juice
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Olive oil, for cooking
Directions
Heat a little olive oil in a large pot. Add the onion and cook until softened.
Add the mushrooms and cook until they begin to brown and release their moisture.
Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, oregano and paprika. Cook for another minute.
Add the soaked lentils, diced potato and vegetable broth.
Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the lentils and potatoes are tender, approximately 25–35 minutes.
Add more broth or water during cooking if the stew becomes too thick.
Season with salt and black pepper and finish with the lemon juice.
Serve warm with fresh bread.
🍎 Creamy Apple Porridge with Caramelised Apples
I like my porridge quite thick and creamy, so this recipe has very little liquid left when it is ready.
The caramelised apples on top make it feel much more like an autumn dessert than an ordinary bowl of porridge.
Ingredients
For the porridge
½ cup (45–50 g) soft rolled oats
¾–1 cup (180–240 ml) vanilla soy milk, depending on your preferred consistency
Additional vanilla, if using regular soy milk
For the caramelised apples
1 apple, cut into thin wedges
½ tsp cinnamon, or to taste
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla soy milk
A small squeeze of lemon juice
Directions
Add the oats and vanilla soy milk to a small saucepan.
Cook over low to medium heat, stirring regularly, until the oats are soft and the porridge reaches your preferred consistency. Add a little more milk if necessary.
Meanwhile, place the apple wedges in a small saucepan or frying pan.
Add the cinnamon, sugar, vanilla soy milk and a small squeeze of lemon juice.
Cook gently until the apples become soft and lightly caramelised.
Spoon the warm porridge into a bowl and top with the caramelised apples.
Add an extra sprinkle of cinnamon before serving.
🌿 Rosemary, Bell Pepper & Turmeric Braided Bread
This colourful braided bread is one of my favourite ways to make homemade bread feel a little more magical.
The dough is divided into three portions and naturally coloured and flavoured with fresh rosemary, red bell pepper and turmeric before being braided together.
Ingredients
2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp (15 ml) vegetable oil
1 tbsp/package (1 package normally includes 7 g) active dry yeast
⅔ cup (160 ml) warm water
Fresh rosemary, finely chopped
½ red bell pepper, very finely chopped or processed
2–3 tsp turmeric
Directions
Add the flour, salt and sugar to a large bowl and make a well in the centre.
Add the oil and half of the warm water. Make sure the water is no hotter than 46°C / 115°F, as very hot water can damage the yeast.
Add the yeast and gradually stir in the remaining water.
Continue stirring until the mixture begins to form a dough, then knead with your hands until smooth and elastic.
Cover the bowl and leave the dough somewhere warm for approximately 2 hours, or until doubled in size.
Once risen, knead the dough briefly. For an extra elastic dough, you can also lift it and gently throw it against the work surface several times.
Prepare your three colourings: chopped rosemary, finely chopped red pepper and turmeric.
Divide the dough into three equal pieces.
Place each piece in a separate bowl and add one of the colourings (or one after the other in the same bowl). Knead each dough portion thoroughly. The pepper dough will initially feel quite wet, so add a little extra flour as needed until each dough becomes soft and workable.
Once you have three smooth dough balls, roll each one into an equal-length strand.
Braid the three strands together. You can leave it as a traditional braid or join the ends together to create a circular loaf.
Place on a lined baking tray or iron pan and leave to rise for another 30 minutes.
Bake in a preheated oven at 190°C / 374°F for approximately 20 minutes, or until golden and cooked through.
Allow the bread to cool slightly before slicing.
A few extra bread-making notes
Proofing the yeast: If you prefer to proof your yeast first, mix the sugar and warm water in a bowl and add the yeast. If the yeast is active, small bubbles will begin to appear after a few minutes.
For a warm first rise: My mum taught me to place the bowl containing the dough inside a larger container filled with warm water. I use a large enamel basin for this.
For extra decoration: Before baking, brush the bread lightly with plant milk and sprinkle with your favourite seeds.
Another colourful version
If you want stronger colours, I also have another version of this braided bread using beetroot and spinach.
🍪 Easy Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
And finally, something sweet and simple for an afternoon in the kitchen.
These vegan chocolate chip cookies are especially delicious when you let the butter become golden and foamy before mixing it into the dough. That extra step gives the cookies a lovely, deeper, almost caramel-like flavour.
Ingredients
½ cup (113 g) unsalted vegan butter
1 cup (about 200 g) brown sugar
¼ cup (60 ml) vanilla soy milk, or regular soy milk
½ tbsp (7.5 ml) vanilla extract when using vanilla soy milk, or 1 tbsp (15 ml) when using regular soy milk
2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
A pinch of salt
150 g (about 1 cup) vegan chocolate chips
Directions
Melt the vegan butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
Continue heating gently until the butter becomes golden brown and foamy, watching it carefully so it doesn't burn.
Remove from the heat and allow it to cool slightly.
In a large bowl, combine the brown sugar, vanilla soy milk and vanilla extract.
Add the warm butter and mix well.
Sift in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir until a soft dough forms.
Fold in the chocolate chips.
Shape the dough into balls (I used an ice cream scoop) and place them on a lined baking tray, leaving enough space between them.
Bake at 180°C / 350°F until the edges are lightly golden. Start checking after approximately 10–12 minutes, as baking time can vary depending on the size of your cookies.
Allow them to cool on the tray for a few minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.
I hope these recipes bring a little autumn magic into your own kitchen. 🍂
Happy autumn, and happy cooking. 🤎
Indoora
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