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10 Healthy Fall Recipes for Kids

Feeding your entire family sometimes requires creativity. Younger kids with picky palates may need to try new foods in familiar recipes. Use this guide as inspiration to try kid-friendly fall recipes the whole family will love.

1. Fall Harvest Charcuterie Board

You can’t go wrong with a charcuterie board. Make one for family meals or snacks to please everyone easily. Your autumn-themed board could contain seasonal fruit like apples and pears, cheese slices and whole wheat crackers.

This is also a great recipe to try if you’re looking for fall food activities. Your kids can easily munch on food from the charcuterie board while making autumn crafts or helping you prep ingredients for a big holiday meal.

2. Honeycrisp Overnight Oats

Apples are a famous fall food, so use them to your family’s advantage this year. You can collect delicious varieties like Honeycrisp apples at a local farmer’s market before meal prepping for the week. After slicing a few apples into bite-sized pieces, mix them into milk and oats in Mason jars.

All you need to do is refrigerate the jars overnight to prepare breakfast for the following day. Your older kids can eat the oatmeal on the way to school or while watching early-morning cartoons.

3. Turkey and Pumpkin Puree Sandwich

You can eat turkey all year, but it’s also an autumn food that’s more popular as Thanksgiving approaches. Make sandwiches for your family’s lunches or dinners with sliced turkey fresh from the deli. You’ll create the ultimate sandwich with whole wheat bread, cheese, mixed greens and pumpkin puree spread on each bread slice.

Pack a few for your kids’ school lunches or bring them to seasonal events. Your children will appreciate the healthy meal while carving pumpkins with friends or competing in a costume contest at the local park.

4. Bacon and Brussels Sprouts Salad

Brussels sprouts are another popular fall vegetable, but kids might recognize them as the punchline of jokes about gross food. Transform their opinion by shredding washed brussel sprouts and combining them with crispy bacon pieces. The salty bacon pairs well with the grassy flavor of Brussels sprouts. Add whatever vegetables and dressings your kids love to dazzle their tastebuds with this healthy fall recipe.

5. Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

The best fall food activities involve simple steps that are easy for any kid to try. Get them involved with their next weekend breakfast by asking them to help prepare their favorite pancakes. You can easily use your family’s typical recipe and add a teaspoon or two of a pumpkin spice blend from the grocery store.

If you want a healthier version of pancakes, substitute some of the butter or milk with pumpkin puree. Everyone will get more nutrients in every bite while enjoying the breakfast they love most.

6. Carmelized Butternut Squash

Sometimes kid-friendly fall recipes cloak healthy foods in sweet sauces. Butternut squash is a great base ingredient to use in that case. Chop two butternut squashes into bite-sized pieces and toss them in melted butter and brown sugar or a sugar-free sweetener alternative.

Fry or roast the squash cubes until they’re soft and the coating turns a caramel color. If you use a spatula to turn the cubes a few times during the cooking process, you’ll make a delicious recipe that’s perfect alongside roasted chicken and a side salad.

7. Pumpkin Chili

Chili seasoning and the sweetness in pumpkin puree are great complementary flavors. Mix one cup of pumpkin puree into your family’s usual chili recipe to turn it into an autumn-inspired meal. You could even use sugar-free tomato sauce to keep added sugars from your family’s meals. When combined with beans and chili seasoning, pumpkin is a great additive when you want to serve chili with a new fall flavor.

8. Beef-Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

When you slice spaghetti squash in half and roast it for 40–50 minutes, the insides soften. Use a fork to scrape the spaghetti strings free and mix them with ground beef. You can transform this autumn vegetable into recipes your kids already adore, like alfredo meat sauce or taco fillings.

Combine the matching spices and sauces with the spaghetti squash and ground beef before serving it in the spaghetti squash rinds. You’ll make a quick, versatile dinner your kids will love.

9. Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

There are a few ways to make your kids’ mac and cheese healthier. Use whole-wheat pasta to reduce its impact on your family’s blood sugar and shred hard cheese to avoid processed alternatives.

You can also make mac and cheese one of your recurring kid-friendly fall recipes by mixing butternut squash into the cheese sauce. Roast the squash to soften the insides or steam frozen butternut squash to prepare the produce. A blender will mix it with your melted cheese and milk so your kids never even realize they’re eating something so healthy.

10. Blueberry Breakfast Bars

People often visit blueberry fields to pick baskets while they’re ripe. Get a pound or two from the grocery store or a local farm and make breakfast bars with them. You only need to mix them with old-fashioned oats, whole wheat flour, your family’s preferred healthy sweetener and butter before baking. The bars last all week, making this a perfect fall recipe for busy families.

Try Kid-Friendly Fall Recipes

Whether you’re planning fall food activities or looking for healthy recipes that use seasonal foods, you can try these ideas to impress your family. Kids of all ages will enjoy each dish’s sweet and savory flavors. Plan a new recipe or two each week to stretch your autumn cooking through the season.

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