Keep your kitchen cozy and warm with wonderful fall spices (and a few helpful tips).
8 Spices You’ll Want to Cook with This Fall
Updated on Sep. 24, 2024
Toasty cinnamon, spicy clove, pungent ginger—these are some of the fall spices that make you wish for crisp days, rustling leaves, baked goods fresh from the oven and hearty soups and stews. You can also use them while trying your hand at sweet potato desserts. But which spices should you use when? Find out which spices make poultry, cakes, meats and veggies really shine—and your kitchen smell delicious!
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Allspice
Available whole or ground, allspice combines the flavors of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. This spice complements stews, carrots, pork or poultry, squash, cakes, cookies and some breads.
Don’t have allspice on hand? Try this 1-teaspoon-sized substitution: 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves.
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Cardamom
This warm and aromatic spice is a staple of Indian cuisine and is flavorful in baked goods like shortbread and gingerbread. Cardamom pairs well with cinnamon, cloves and chocolate. Try it in these cardamom recipes.
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Cinnamon
With its mildly-sweet-to-bittersweet flavor, cinnamon is a nice addition to many dishes. There are plenty of ways to bake with cinnamon, but it also works well in stews, curries, fruit, squash, oatmeal, pork and beef.
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Cloves
Found both whole and ground, cloves go well with sweet breads, carrots, onions, potatoes, chocolate, fruit—even coffee!
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Ginger
Ginger’s pungent flavor adds zest to both sweet and savory dishes. Use it in baked goods (gingerbread, anyone?) or add it to stir-fries, curries, hot tea and seafood. It pairs particularly well with garlic.
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Nutmeg
The warm, sweet and spicy flavor of nutmeg enhances baked goods like pies and custard as well as white sauces, spinach and squash. It can be bought whole or ground. Grate fresh nutmeg for the best flavor.
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Pumpkin Pie Spice
Pumpkin pie spice is a blend of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, allspice and mace that’s great in pumpkin dishes and baked goods like cookies, muffins and bread—and of course, pumpkin pie.
Don’t have pumpkin pie spice on hand? Try this 1-teaspoon-sized substitution: 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger + 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg + 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves or allspice
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Star Anise
Generally sold whole, star anise is actually the fruit of an evergreen tree native to southern China. It adds a subtle licorice flavor to soups, stews, braised meats, sauces and some baked goods. These are our best recipes with star anise.
