18 Fall Snacks & Appetizers That’ll Have You Saying, ‘Entrée Who?’

Much in the way that normal people start professing an eager anticipation of summer sometime around March, I begin obsessing over fall on roughly the first day of June.

In particular: fall snacks. There's no season that lends itself better to handfuls of crunchy, cheesy crackers and the like, whether you're on a hike (crisp air!), or settling in for a fall television premiere marathon. ("Settling in" is what I call turning my phone onto airplane mode and self-barricading with soft blankets.)

Over the years, I've cultivated quite the cabal of favorites, whether sweet or savory, composed or more of a trail mix vibe. Here are 18 fall snacks that I would happily eat any day of the season:

1. Spicy, Smoky Homemade Kale Chips

Mix and match seasonings for these kale chips until you find a formula you love (nutritional yeast + onion powder is a personal favorite). These keep for up to four days in an airtight container, and top my list of "light appetizers to serve with a dip."

2. Olive Oil & Brown Sugar Granola, Minus the Grains

This grain-free granola, adapted from Nekisia Davis' version, stars olive oil and maple, and calls in roughly chopped sliced almonds to replace the oats.

3. Homemade Cheez-Its

The only thing better than the prospect of homemade Cheez-Its is the fact that this version comes together about as easily as you can pulse a food processor.

4. Roasted Red Pepper & Cauliflower Dip

This roasted red pepper and cauliflower dip is equal parts creamy and perky, with a welcome tang from lemon and a little kick from cayenne. It keeps for up to a week, and is just as delicious spread beneath a crispy roasted chicken thigh as it is served with crudités or dolloped over a salad.

5. Oregon Trail Mix

If I've agreed to accompany you on a hike, odds are I'm expecting some sort of fall snack mix. Here's a handy formula for appeasing me: 2 cups nuts, 1 cup crunch, 1 cup dried fruit, and 1 cup "surprise" (like, dark chocolate chips—you know the ones I like).

6. Erin French’s From-Scratch Saltines

These homemade saltines are just as perfect on their own as they are crumbled into soup, or used to ferry French onion dip directly into a mouth.

7. Wasabi Pea Snack Mix

"This snack mix is for when you feel like mixing all of the best snacks together in a bowl and dousing them with Sriracha," writes its creator Kendra Vaculin.

8. Labneh bi Toum

Serve this tangy, velvety labneh bi toum with warm pita, and watch as no one looks up from the plate until it's totally gone.

9. ABC Kitchen’s Butternut Squash on Toast

This is the kind of snack you'll think about for weeks after you make it: the onion jam, the roasted squash, the ricotta...

10. Easiest, Cheesiest Skillet Dip

This completely unfussy skillet dip draws inspiration from baked cheeses everywhere, and is endlessly customizable. Swap in any alliums or cheese, and top as you please.

11. "Pizza" Focaccia with Tomato Sauce & Green Onion

Meet the fall finger food that marries focaccia and pizza. Highly recommended: heavy-handed scallion application, and a dollop of ricotta atop each slice.

12. Crispy Parmesan Cauliflower Tots

Fun party game: watch your guests' faces when you tell them these cheesy tots are made from cauliflower.

13. Chicken Nuggets with Warm Kimchi-Bacon Ranch Dip

"Chicken nuggets with warm kimchi-bacon ranch dip" is always my answer when hosts ask if I need anything.

14. Dark Chocolate & Coconut Bites

These are like an Almond Joy, in a truffle's body. Which is exactly as good as it sounds.

15. Great Graham Crackers

Make these homemade graham crackers, and be prepared never to revert to the store-bought version. Alice Medrich calls for a little oat flour, meaning these are as tender as a middle school Myspace profile.

16. Five Minute, No-Bake Vegan Granola Bars

This recipe for granola bars is basically a choose-your-own-adventure book (remember Goosebumps?).

17. Dark Chocolate Avocado Truffles

If you say "three-ingredient, no-cook chocolate truffles" several times fast, it's rumored I'll spontaneously appear in your kitchen.

18. Raw Vegan Chocolate Coconut Bars

"I just made this. It took like five minutes and is SO DELICIOUS I can barely keep myself from eating the whole pan," writes one commenter. Be like that commenter.

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Have favorite fall appetizers or fall snacks? Let us know in the comments! This post contains products that are independently selected by our editors and writers, and Food52 may earn an affiliate commission.