15 Must Have End of Summer Recipes

“It’s the moost wonderful tiiime of the yeeeaaar.” Do you know that song? It’s usually associated with Christmas, but I really think that it should be expanded to this time of year as well. Don’t you??

Here is the new version:

It’s the most wonderful time of the year

With the pumpkin seeds roasting

And marshmallows toasting with air crisp and clear

It’s the most wonderful time of the year!

Drop the mic. Ima be famous. In all reality, Christmas really is the BEST time of year…but the best season (in my opinion) is fall. I’m in love with fall. Which is why this time of year is so wonderful! It’s approaching the end of summer and creeping towards the beginning of fall. Which is exciting! It’s like when a birthday or anniversary is coming up and you are getting excited and bubbly.

Now that we are a decent bit into September, I’m not really super in the mood to cook ultra summery things, but it’s also not quite time to break out the chicken pot pie and baked potato soup. Which is why we need some transition recipes that aren’t super summery but also aren’t super fall-y…nah mean??

On that note…number 1!

1. Brown Butter Orecchiette with Bacon, Corn, and Goat Cheese from Cheyanne over at No Spoon Necessary

The perfect transition recipe! You still have the fresh, summery-ness from the corn and goat cheese, but you also get some whispers of fall coming from the brown butter (brown butter is LYFE) and the bacon. Hello most delicious dinner ever, how are you?

2. Perfect 3o Minute Red Curry from The Garlic Diaries

I mean…if I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times…this curry is BAE. It should be and will be in every round up I ever do on this website if I can even make it somewhat relevant to what I’m writing about. Which, in this case, it just so happens to be super relevant! Not too summery, not too fall-y, perfect transition recipe.

3. Pork Chops with Chunky Red Pepper Sauce from Natalie over at Tastes Lovely

Ummm…BRB crying about how good this chunky red pepper sauce looks. But fo reals. She is brilliant and this sauce is brilliant and that is all goodbye.

4. Summer Vegetable Chowder from Keri over at Fashionable Foods

Helllloooooo, do we even need to talk about what a wonderful transition recipe this is?? It’s chowder, which screams fall, AND it’s fresh vegetables, which scream summer. Put them both together and say hello to the perfect recipe for this end-of-summer-beginning-of-fall time!

5. Brown Sugar Maple Baked Beans from The Garlic Diaries

You know what summer is perfect for? Cookouts. You know what fall is perfect for? Cookouts. You know what baked beans are perfect for? COOKOUTS. These beans are perfect for cookouts and barbecues with friends (summer) and they sit over your stove and simmer away to create a pot of happiness (FALL).

6. Pulled Jackfruit Sandwiches with Peach Bourbon BBQ Sauce from Julia over at The Roasted Root 

Let’s get repetitive…what are summer and fall perfect for?? Cookouts! This recipe is the coolest thing EVER because it uses jackfruit instead of pork or chicken. Jackfruit! Making it vegan! Seriously…genius and SO cool.

7. Buffalo Cauliflower Pizza from Jess over at Flying on Jess Fuel

This is another super cool vegetarian substitution…cauliflower instead of chicken! Love it. This recipe combines some bright summer flavors like buffalo sauce, celery, and ranch dressing, but also gets your oven warmed up for these cooler months up ahead.

8. The Most Boss Salad of All Time from The Garlic Diaries

But wait! It’s a salad! That’s straight up summer. False, and I shall tell you why. This amazing salad includes lightly roasted asparagus. Roasted veggies = fall. Bright, fresh salad = summer. Combine the two? Transition recipe!

9. Grilled Mojito Swordfish from Sues over at We Are Not Martha

First of all…what a clever idea using the flavors of a mojito to grill fish. So delicious! The bright flavors make this dish perfect for summer, and the meatier, heavier fish make it a great transition to fall. Also, grilling is perfect for both of these wonderful seasons, so you’re good there, too!

10. S’mores Peanut Butter Cups from Spend with Pennies (it’s a guest post from Sam over at Sugar Spun Run, who is awesome!)

I mean, do I even need to explain? S’mores are an absolute necessity for both summer and fall. NECESSITY. They make me happy. And this picture makes me happy. And I want to shove all four of those babies right into my face, pronto.

11. Thai Pineapple Fried Rice from The Garlic Diaries

The pineapple makes this delicious fried rice perfect for summer. The combination of the other mouthwatering ingredients sautéing together in a pan, leaving you with a steaming hot bowl of spicy fried rice pushes us a little more towards fall. Yay for transitions!

12. Veggie Hawaiian Pizza from Amishi over at Naive Cook Cooks

Just like I said about the Buffalo Cauliflower pizza before, the bright, fresh ingredients on this yummy pie make it a great summer recipe while the use of a hot oven makes it perfect for the beginning of fall!

13. BBQ Chicken Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with Avocado Sauce from Alyssa over at My Sequined Life

Let’s break it down: BBQ Chicken – summer and fall. Baked sweet potatoes – fall. Avocado sauce – summer. See what’s happening here? The perfect balance!

14. Crispy Slow Roasted Carnitas from The Garlic Diaries

The pork itself feels summery to me, and the slow roasting element says “Hello fall! Come on over – don’t be scared.” If you want to read a billion word rant about how delicious these carnitas are, just go ahead and click here. I’ll spare you in this particular post. Spoiler: they are BALLER.

15. Honey Garlic Salmon Quinoa Bowl from Gayle over at Pumpkin ‘N Spice

And last but not least! Perhaps the summeriest of the bunch, but still a wonderful transition recipe. Roasted salmon? Steaming hot quinoa with fresh veggies? Honey and garlic? Yes please. Yeesss please to all of it…

I hope you all enjoy these last few weeks of summer and first few weeks of fall! I know I will be. A suggested way to enjoy said weeks? Stuff your face with every single one of these 15 delicious recipes. YAS.