Staying in a private cabin rental with fun and relaxing amenities in the stunning Great Smoky Mountains is certainly memorable, no matter the time of year. However, visiting during the beautiful fall season and seeing all the colorful leaves, inhaling the crisp autumn air, and munching on seasonal goodies will make your stay extra special. Sure, you can go out and purchase local food and treats to enjoy OR you can try your hand at easy (and yummy) fall recipes at the cabin.
Every Pigeon Forge cabin at Pigeon Forge, TN Cabins features a fully equipped kitchen with all the trimmings, including major appliances, plenty of cookware, utensils, dishes, glasses, mugs, and more! All you need are fresh ingredients and a hearty appetite. We’ve even put together a list of 5 easy-to-make recipes — perfect for your fall stay at a cabin in the Smokies.
Note: If you plan to cook with any unique gadgets or prepare large batches, we do recommend you bring any extra items needed.
- Pumpkin Cream Cheese French Toast Casserole | Laughing Spatula courtesy Kathi & Rachel
Perfect for those with a sweet tooth at breakfast, this casserole takes the cake as a seasonal dish you’ll look forward to year after year. Fluffy bread tossed with chunks of cream cheese is soaked in a mixture of pumpkin puree, half and half, sugar, salt, and eggs, then topped with a crunchy pecan and pumpkin spice streusel and baked until golden. Last but not least, top the warm casserole with a fine amount of maple syrup to taste — it’s autumnally divine.
Main Ingredients
- 1 pound loaf of dense bread (like challah, brioche, or egg bread)
- 8 ounces cream cheese (cubed — easier after 15 minutes in the freezer)
- 6 eggs
- 1½ cups half and half cream
- ¾ cup white, granulated sugar
- 1 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- ½ teaspoon salt
Topping Ingredients
- ½ cup light or dark brown sugar
- ½ cup cold butter (1 stick cubed)
- ½ cup all purpose white flour
- ½ cup chopped pecans (handful set aside as extra topping)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar (garnish)
Directions
1. Butter or spray a 9 x 13 baking pan.
2. Place half of your cubed bread into the prepared dish and sprinkle with half of the cream cheese cubes. Top with remaining bread and cream cheese.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs, half and half cream, pumpkin puree, sugar, and salt. Mix well with a whisk.
4. Pour egg mixture over bread and cream cheese making sure all pieces are covered.
5. Cover with plastic wrap and store in refrigerator for 2 to 24 hours.
6. Combine brown sugar, butter, flour, pecans, and pumpkin pie spice in a medium bowl (keep a few of the large pecan halves out to sprinkle on top if desired).
7. Blend with a fork until crumbly and butter is in small pieces (you can also use the paddle attachment of a Kitchen Aid Mixer to crumble).
8. Sprinkle on top of the bread and cream mixture.
9. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake uncovered for 50-60 minutes or until sides of casserole begin to brown and look puffy.
10. Serve warm with maple syrup!
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- Savory Pumpkin and Sage Soup | Good Housekeeping courtesy The Good Housekeeping Test Kitchen
Warmth and comfort in a bowl, this pumpkin and sage soup is a delectable appetizer or lunch in fall. Spices and onions sautéed, with pure pumpkin and flavorful broth added later. Simmered, blended, then infused with lemon juice, this soup is finally garnished lightly fried sage and shiitake mushrooms. After one sip, your bowl will need a refill faster than you can say delicious!
Main Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 sliced sweet onions (large)
- 3 chopped cloves garlic
- 2 chopped sage leaves (large)
- 2 teaspoons grated and peeled fresh ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 quarts lower-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
- 3 cans pure pumpkin (15 ounces each)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Garnish Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 24 small sage leaves
- kosher salt
- 7 ounces steamed and very thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms
Directions
1. In 5-quart sauce pot, heat oil on medium. Add onions and salt. Cook 40 minutes or until deep golden brown, stirring occasionally.
2. Add garlic, sage, ginger, and nutmeg. Cook 5 minutes or until garlic is golden, stirring occasionally.
3. Add broth and pumpkin. Heat to simmering on high, scraping up browned bits from bottom of pot. Reduce heat to maintain simmer; cook 20 minutes stirring occasionally.
4. With immersion blender or in batches in blender, puree soup until smooth. Stir in lemon juice, salt, and black pepper.
5. In 2-quart saucepan, heat oil on high until hot but not smoking. Add sage leaves to oil. Fry 1 to 2 minutes or until leaves are browned, stirring occasionally.
6. With slotted spoon, transfer sage leaves to large paper-towel-lined plate; sprinkle with pinch of salt.
7. In batches, add shiitake mushrooms to hot oil. Fry 2 minutes or until deep golden brown, stirring occasionally.
8. Transfer shiitake mushrooms to same plate as sage; sprinkle with pinch of salt. Cool completely. Let stand at room temperature.
9. Top soup with fried and seasoned sage leaves and shiitake mushrooms.
Note: Soup can be made and refrigerated up to 2 days ahead (makes about 10 cups). Reheat on medium. (If soup is too thick, add water or broth for desired consistency. Season to taste.) Garnish can be made up to 3 hours ahead.
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- Butternut Squash Ravioli with Rosemary-Sage Butter | Rachel Ray in Season courtesy Rachel Ray Every Day
Filling (pun intended) and delightful, this autumn ravioli is great for lunchtime or supper in the evening on a brisk fall day. The tender squash nestles within the pasta pocket as it cooks until al dente, eagerly awaiting a blanket of buttery sauce infused with sage, rosemary, and parmesan. For those who like their pasta extra cheesy, sprinkle more parmesan on top! This easy cabin recipe is a tasty go-to in fall for sure.
Ingredients
- 1 butternut squash (about 1¾ pound)
- 1 egg
- ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons parmesan (plus even more for serving)
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 pound egg pasta dough
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh sage
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 425°.
2. Halve the squash lengthwise and place cut side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until fork-tender, 45 minutes; let cool.
3. Scoop out and discard the seeds and fleshy strands. Measure out 1½ cups of squash flesh into a medium bowl, reserving any extra squash for another use.
4. Mix in the egg, 2 tablespoons parmesan, the brown sugar, salt, and pepper.
5. Using the pasta dough and squash filling, make the ravioli.
6. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the ravioli, stirring, until al dente, about 5 minutes.
7. Meanwhile, in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in the sage and rosemary for 1 to 2 minutes.
8. Using a spider or small strainer, transfer the pasta from the pot of water to the skillet. Simmer, shaking the pan, for 1 minute.
9. Sprinkle with ¾ cup parmesan and simmer for 1 minute. Stir in ½ cup of the pasta cooking water if desired to thin the sauce.
10. Serve with more parmesan to your heart’s content!
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- Harvest Chicken Casserole | Delish courtesy Lena Abraham
A mouthful of creamy goodness and a colorful fall dish for the dinner table at your Smoky Mountain cabin, this harvest chicken casserole is nothing shy of superbly delicious and nutritious! Bite into seasoned chicken, wild rice, onion, sweet potatoes, Brussel sprouts, cranberries, almonds, and a delectable medley of cumin, paprika, thyme, garlic, salt, and pepper. It’s a crowd pleaser, family favorite, and romantic meal all in one.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (divided + more for baking dish)
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- kosher salt
- freshly ground pepper
- ½ chopped onion
- 2 peeled and cut sweet potatoes (medium)
- 1 pound trimmed and quartered Brussel sprouts
- 2 minced cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth (divided)
- 6 cups cooked wild rice
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup sliced almonds
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350° and grease a 9″-x-13″ baking dish with oil.
2. In a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon oil.
3. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken to skillet and cook until golden and cooked through, 8 minutes per side. Let rest 10 minutes, then cut into 1″ pieces.
4. Heat another tablespoon oil over medium heat.
5. Add onion, sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, garlic, thyme, paprika, and cumin. Season with salt and pepper and cook until softened, 5 minutes.
6. Add 1/4 cup broth, bring to a simmer, and cook, covered, 5 minutes.
7. Place cooked rice in a large baking dish and season with salt and pepper.
8. Stir in chicken, cranberries, cooked vegetables, and remaining 1/4 cup broth.
9. Top with almonds and bake until dish is hot and almonds are toasted, 15 to 18 minutes.
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- Baked Apple Slices | Taste of Home courtesy Linda Gaido
Simple to make yet exquisitely tasty, these baked apple slices are a step up from the norm with spices, butter, and nuts. Best served warm with your favorite vanilla ice cream, this mouthwatering dessert with hints of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg is a classic fall cabin retreat recipe. It goes great with a crowd, a family, a few friends, or a couple, no matter the occasion.
Ingredients
- 3 peeled and sliced tart apples (large)
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¼ cup apple cider or juice
- 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ cup butter
- ½ cup walnuts or raisins
- vanilla ice cream (choose your fav)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Place apples in a greased 1-quart baking dish.
3. In a small bowl, combine sugar, cider, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger; pour over apples. Dot with butter. Sprinkle with nuts.
4. Bake, uncovered, until apples are tender, 45-60 minutes.
5. Serve warm with yummy vanilla ice cream!
With these easy fall cabin recipes, you can cook to impress without the stress at your fall cabin retreat in the Great Smoky Mountains! Need help planning your memorable autumn stay? Give us a call at 866.513.7885 and we’ll help you get ready to head to the Smokies!
