5 Dishes That’ll Make You Want to Go Apple Picking, Right This Second

You know what they say about an apple a day—doctors, and all that. Well, we've got you covered for the next five, at least!

We're excited to announce the top contenders for our current contest, Your Best Recipe With Apples. We've got classics and some new kids on the block. We've got sweetie-pies and more savory takes. Oh, and more than enough warming fall spices to tide you over 'til spring.

But before we get to those, a bit of background on all of the a-peel-ing submissions we received:

• Cinnamon made an appearance in more than half—and lemon sidled into almost a quarter.

• About 60 percent were for sweet dishes, and roughly 40 percent were for savory ones.

• More than three-fourths were vegetarian.

• Almost 50 percent were baked goods.

And now, please join us in using our one-hundredth apple idiom of the day, because we'd like to introduce you to the top five apples of our eyes:

Chai-Spiced Tarte Tatin by Rebecca and Ruth

The sweet short pastry in this tatin blows our socks clear off. It's almost like the caramelized apples are sitting on a giant cookie. Wait a minute: It's exactly like that.

Roasted Apple & Fennel Salad With Toasted Hazelnuts & Goat Cheese By What We Eat Gals

This salad got us thinking: Why aren't we eating more warm, hearty fall salads? Like, every single day? The roasted apple and fennel in this one pair perfectly with the toasted nuts, goat cheese, and herbs. It's equally good as a punchy side and as a main course.

German Apple Streusel Cake with Brown Sugar Mascarpone Cream By Laura Edgerton

In her recipe, Laura writes that this cake is inspired by one her neighbor brought her years ago, when they used to visit each other, "each bearing wedges of warm cake or pie, and chat for hours over mugs of strong black coffee." We hereby nominate ourselves to be Laura's new neighbors!

Apple Mashed Potatoes with Caramelized Onion Cider Gravy by inpatskitchen

Mashed potatoes and apples, topped with an extra apple-y cider gravy that features deeply caramelized onions? We're in. Paging a pork chop.

Apple & Hazelnut Bread Pudding With Warm Maple Sauce By Sara Lynn Hunt

Cozy? Check. Warming? Check. Perfectly sweet and chock-full of spices? Check, and check. We'd take this bread pudding for breakfast, dessert, or anything in between.

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A huge thanks to everyone who submitted a recipe. But before you go, some homework: Pick your favorite of the bushel and take it for a spin in your kitchen! Then let us know what you thought—either by rating the recipe, writing a comment, or reaching out to us directly at [email protected].

On our end, next steps include another round of recipe tests, and spending some time with your feedback. We'll narrow it down to our two finalists, which will be announced on November 1.

How do you like them apples? Let us know in the comments!