13 Healthy Fall Dessert Recipes to Wrap up Your Meal in Cozy Style

Apple-Toffee Tartlets
Photo: Andy Lyons

Add a little cozy to your dessert course with these fall healthy baking recipes. Featuring apples, pumpkin, plums, and more, each of these desserts is low in calories and fat yet full of seasonal flavor. Warm up with one of these healthy fall dessert ideas that incorporate the produce stars and warm spices of autumn.

01 of 13

Air-Fried Apple Fritters with Salted Caramel Sauce

Air-Fried Apple Fritters with Salted Caramel Sauce
Caitlin Bensel

Healthy fall desserts that taste like decadent bakery pastries? Sold. These apple-spiked salted caramel goodies have just 210 calories and 5 grams of fat each. The secret: transforming the traditional deep-fried treat into an air-fryer dessert.

02 of 13

Apple-Toffee Tartlets

Apple-Toffee Tartlets
Andy Lyons

Refrigerated piecrust makes these fruity fall pastries a cinch. Shape the dough in muffin cups, then fill with fiber-rich apples and toffee pieces for a healthy fall dessert that can be made and baked ahead and frozen up to three months. Once you master the easy prep steps for this fast and fresh apple recipe, you might get inspired to try it other times of the year with whatever fruit is in season.

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Spiced Roasted Fruit

Spiced Roasted Fruit
Carson Downing

One bite is all the proof you need that gluten-free, healthy fall desserts can be as delicious as their wheat- and calorie-packed counterparts. Fluffy, creamy ricotta cheese or yogurt acts as a luscious base for a pool of cinnamon-scented roasted fruit. To fit the seasonal theme, we recommend trying this with pears or apples—or you could use frozen fruit you preserved in the summer (we love berries!).

04 of 13

Vanilla-Apple Gratin

Vanilla apple gratin on dark surface in individual cast-iron gratin dishes
Blaine Moats

Speaking of apples, they star in this fall healthy baking recipe that comes with a built-in drink pairing. Sip the rest of the sparkling wine you infuse into the recipe along with the finished 202-calorie, vanilla-scented product. For best results, we recommend assembling this gluten-free dessert in a cast-iron skillet, so you can pop it right under the broiler.

Buy It: Ayesha Curry Cast-Iron Skillet ($40, Bed Bath & Beyond)

05 of 13

Cinnamon and Brown Sugar Custards

Cinnamon and Brown Sugar Custards
Karla Conrad

These cozy custards are made with an unexpected ingredient: carrots! Stick with us here—vegetable desserts can be just as tasty and seasonal as fall fruit ones. Remember carrot cake? Blend the vitamin-A-packed root vegetable in a food processor until smooth, then combine with four common pantry ingredients for an easy 130-calorie healthy fall dessert.

06 of 13

Plum Galettes

Plum Galettes
Kritsada Panichgul

Light ingredients like low-sugar marmalade and reduced-fat cream cheese make these gorgeous galettes a healthy fall dessert. Low-calorie, sweet-tart plums contribute vitamins A and C to the pretty pastries. For a pleasant hint of salty crunch and healthy fat boost, sprinkle the petite pies with chopped almonds or walnuts.

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Spiced Molasses Cupcakes with Marshmallow-Cream Cheese Frosting

Spiced Molasses Cupcakes with Marshmallow Cream Cheese Frosting
Karla Conrad

Take a couple of the flavors from your favorite s'mores recipe and tiptoe them into fall territory. Sticky-sweet molasses transforms ordinary cupcakes into a so-seasonal treat. Reduced-fat cream cheese and marshmallow creme keep the healthy fall dessert's tangy frosting fluffy and light. Sprinkle with cinnamon or cocoa powder (the latter to amplify the campfire-side flair).

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Caramel-Apple Cookies

Caramel Apple Cookies
Blaine Moats

Chopped tart apples and apple juice give this low-calorie cookie recipe a double dose of fall flavor. Homemade caramel frosting and a sprinkle of walnuts, which contain a significant amount of omega-3 fatty acids, finish the enticing fall healthy baking recipe.

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No-Bake Peanut Butter Oat Bites

No-Bake Peanut Butter Oat Bites
Andy Lyons

Seeking a last-minute healthy fall dessert recipe? Whip up a batch of these easy no-bake cookie balls. Creamy peanut butter helps bind dried fruit, chocolate pieces, and shredded coconut to rolled oats, which are rich in both fiber and protein.

10 of 13

Caramel-Pecan-Pumpkin Cheesecake Bites

Caramel-Pecan Pumpkin Cheesecake Bites
Blaine Moats

For those times when you can't quite decide between pumpkin or pecan fall healthy baking recipes, we say to have both! These crustless cheesecake bites can be baked in a muffin tin for perfect, 130-calorie portions. The petite pies get their flavor from canned pumpkin, toasted pecans, and a dreamy caramel topping.

Buy It: Made By Design Muffin Pan ($14, Target)

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Coffee Shop Custard

Coffee Shop Custard
Jason Walsmith

We can't stop buzzing over the fact that this healthy fall dessert recipe looks like it would come out of a gourmet restaurant kitchen—yet calls for only 20 minutes of prep time. Fat-free milk helps keep the cozy custards at 177 calories each, while espresso powder gives them a burst of coffee shop flavor. To complete the looks-as-good-as-it-tastes experience, garnish each dish with light whipped cream and cinnamon for a dash of fall flavor.

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Sour Cream-Pumpkin Bars

Sour Cream Pumpkin Bars
Blaine Moats

Pump up the flavor in your next round of bar cookies with (you guessed it!) canned pumpkin. These moist pumpkin bars incorporate whole wheat flour for added nutrients and fiber. Top with crunchy walnuts and heavenly browned butter frosting for a memorable fall healthy baking recipe you'll make time and time again all season.

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Cranberry-Cashew Clusters

Cranberry-Cashew Clusters
Kritsada Panichgul

Cranberries aren't just for Thanksgiving, and cookies aren't just for bake sales and Christmas season! This autumn, savor a batch of no-bake fruit-and-nut clusters featuring dried cranberries and antioxidant-rich semisweet chocolate. Cinnamon and nutmeg add seasonal flavor to the healthy fall dessert's vanilla candy coating.

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