Alcohol infused fall food recipes

It’s about this time of year that everyone in the office starts asking me, “What’s a good way to spice up my favorite fall foods?” To which I normally say, “Shut your cannoli hole, I’m cookin’ here!”

But the easy answer is: booze. Adding a splash of the sauce to your dish is just… *kisses fingers* so I decided to pass along some of my favorite alcohol-infused recipes just in time for the holidays.

This is the perfect beer mustard recipe, or my name isn’t Jared LastNameRedacted. You can dip pretzels in it, use it as a condiment for a pastrami sandwich or a hot dog, or do what I do and just shovel it into your face hole as soon as anyone turns their back. What?! I made it, which means I get to eat it however I please.

– ½ cup yellow mustard seeds
– ½ cup black mustard seeds
– ½ cup apple cider vinegar
– 1 cup dark beer 
– 2 tablespoons brown sugar
– 2 tablespoons honey
– 1/2  teaspoon allspice
– 1 teaspoon salt

Step 1: Pour your mustard seeds into a bowl and stir in half your beer and all your vinegar. Then cover it and leave it in the fridge overnight. Bada boom. 

Step 2: Get yourself a small sauce pan and toss the remaining ingredients in there. Bring it all to a boil over medium heat and then let it cool for a little.

Step 3: Throw everything – your mustard seeds, your mixture of that other stuff, everything – into a blender or food processor and give it a whrrrrr until it’s nice and smooth.

True story: I learned this chili recipe from a cowboy – a real, actual cowboy. His name was Smoky Pete, and he was a ranch hand out in Wyoming with a 10-gallon hat and a mean streak a mile long. He called me a “flatlander” the entire time he was making it and then proceeded to eat it out of his boot when there were bowls, like, right there next to him. Weird guy, that Smoky Pete. 

– 1 pound sliced bacon 
– 1 ½ pounds ground beef
– 1 large red onion, diced
– 2 red or green bell peppers, diced
– 1 jalapeño pepper, diced
– 10 ounces of bourbon/whiskey
– 24 oz dark beer
– 2 15 ounce cans of red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
– 2 cups beef broth
– 2 14 oz cans of crushed, fire roasted tomatoes
– 3 cloves garlic
– 3 oz tomato paste
– ¼ cup brown sugar
– 2 tablespoons ground cumin
– 1 tablespoon chili powder
– a few dashes of hot sauce (your choice)

Step 1: Get yourself 6-quart pot and cook the bacon over medium heat until it’s crispy. Once it is, remove it and cook your beef, peppers and onions in that sweet, sweet bacon grease until the beef is browned and your veggies are tender. 

Step 2: Drain the excess grease from the pot, add in your whiskey, and simmer it until it’s reduced slightly, making sure to scrape up any brown bits that have stuck to the bottom. 

Step 3: Add everything else into the pot and bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for 3-4 hours, stirring every now and again.

I could go on and on about how this pot roast recipe is a great meal for winter because it’s “homey” and has ingredients that “warm you up”, but the truth is that it’s a dish you can throw in a crock pot and ignore for 5 hours while you rewatch The Office for the 80th time, which is what winter is all about, really.

– 1 4-5 pound beef chuck roast
– 2 yellow or white onions, sliced
– 3 carrots, diced
– 3 celery stalks, diced
– 8 ounces mushrooms, chopped
– 5 cloves garlic, minced
– 3 cups red wine
– 2 sprigs thyme
– 1 bay leaf
– 8 cups beef broth
– 2 tablespoons tomato paste
– 2 tablespoons olive oil – salt and pepper
– fresh parsley, chopped

Step 1: Season your roast with salt and pepper, then heat your oil in a large skillet and brown it on all sides. 

Step 2: Remove your roast from the pan and add in your onions, carrots, celery mushrooms and garlic. Saute your veggie mix on medium high heat for 3-5 minutes.

Step 3: Add in your tomato paste to the veggie mix and saute it for 3-5 minutes more. Then add in your red wine and broth and cook until the liquid has reduced by about half. 

Step 4: Add everything into your crockpot, drop your bay leaf and thyme in there and let it stew on high for 4-5 hours.

Ok, two quick things. Yes, penne ala vodka has actual vodka in it. Vodka adds a bit of heat to the sauce. Second, penne is in fact that best shape of pasta STOP IT I WILL NOT HEAR IT.

– 1 pound penne pasta
– 3 tablespoons butter
– 2 garlic cloves, minced
– 1 shallot, diced
– 1 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes
– ½ cup grated Parmesan
– ¼ cup vodka
– 1 cup heavy cream
– salt and pepper
– as much crushed red pepper as you like

Step 1: Cook your pasta. Just read the directions on the box. Boom.

Step 2: While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add in your garlic and shallot and cook until they’re both softened. 

Step 3: Blend your tomatoes until smooth and add that puree to your butter/garlic/shallot mixture, then add your vodka and simmer the sauce for 10-12 minutes. 

Step 4: Stir in your heavy cream and parmesan (saving some of the latter for garnish) and simmer until the sauce is thickened, adding salt and pepper to taste.  Step 5: Toss in your pasta and then garnish with fresh parmesan and crushed red pepper.

Did you know there’s a famous song that’s just about peaches? What a world, amiright? Anyways, at the very least, this dish will give you an excuse to finish off that bottle of peach schnapps that’s been sitting in your liquor cabinet since your grandma came over like two years ago.

– 5-6 fresh peaches, peeled and sliced ½ inch thick
– 1 stick butter
– 1 cup all purpose flour
– 3/4 cup sugar
– ½ cup peach schnapps
– ½ cup brown sugar
– 1 teaspoon lemon juice
– 1 can whipped cream

Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. 

Step 2: Throw your peaches, brown sugar, lemon juice and peach schnapps in a bowl and toss them occasionally until the sugar is dissolved.

Step 3: In another bowl, toss your butter and sugar together and then beat them until you’ve got a nice fluffy mixture. 

Step 4: Add your eggs in one at a time, and continue beating, then start adding your flour in and, you guessed it, beating it until the whole thing is nicely mixed. 

Step 5: Pour the peaches into a standard baking dish and spread your batter over the top. Place the dish in oven and bake for 25-30 minutes.

Step 6: Once you can insert a toothpick into the crust and it comes out clean, remove your cobbler and top with whipped cream (or if you feel like really indulging, vanilla ice cream).

I’ll be honest here, I kinda mailed this one in. I saw a video of someone soaking gummy bears in vodka once and thought, “Hey, these are like jello shots that don’t suck. I’m gonna steal this for my next party.” It’s barely a recipe so anyways here you go.

– some rum (or coconut rum if that’s your thing)
– a bag of gummy bears

Step 1: Put the gummy bears in a bowl and pour the rum over them.

Step 2: Put the bowl in the fridge for an hour so the gummies can absorb the rum.

Step 3: That’s it.

Well, I hope this has been as enlightening for you as it was for me. Feel free to head over to our recipe page for more awesome ideas, or our guides section to get advice on food and drink pairings, buying guides and more.