7 Healthy, Fun Fall Foods to Try

3. Beets

The deep, earthy sweetness of a roasted beet is — forgive the pun — hard to beat. And the humble root vegetable is a nutritional powerhouse. A 2021 review in Food Science & Nutrition compiled data from more than 50 studies and found that antioxidant-rich beets exhibit cancer fighting properties, contribute to both improved cognitive function and exercise performance, and have been shown to help manage blood sugar and cholesterol levels.

One thing that makes beets special: their high nitrate content. Your body converts nitrate to nitric oxide, which opens up your blood vessels. That means it can significantly lower blood pressure. So much so, that if you take blood pressure medication, you need to take care.

“Watch it if you juice fresh beets daily,” says Sue-Ellen Anderson-Haynes, nutritionist and founder/CEO of 360Girls&Women and an Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics spokesperson. “It is that potent.”

If you buy beets with the greens attached, don’t toss them. Beet greens are chock-full of nutrients including minerals like magnesium, copper, calcium and potassium, says Gentile. Those minerals contribute to bone and heart health, your energy level and your immune system.

“Chop them up, sauté them, throw in a soup — don’t waste them,” Gentile says.

Try this easy recipe for Roasted Beets and Greens to make the most of both parts of the beet.

4. Chestnuts

If you’re saving these lightly sweet morsels for the holidays, you’re missing out.

Chestnuts are lower in fat than most nuts and a good source of phenols and flavonoids — antioxidants that help prevent cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers. And they provide both manganese and copper, which “are essential for bone mineralization and helps form collagen,” Gentile says. “That can support joint strength and mobility.”

You can buy chestnuts pre-roasted and peeled, ready to eat. But if you’re game, roast them yourself. To do it, wash your chestnuts and use a small, sharp knife to carefully make an X through the shell and membrane of each. Put them in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and bake at 350° F for 35 to 40 minutes. They’re ready when you can easily pierce the flesh with a knife. To make peeling easier, the pros at Food52 recommend wrapping the hot chestnuts in a towel for eight to 10 minutes first.

Eat them warm for the ultimate autumnal experience, or use them in a recipe like Sticky Rice Stuffing with Pumpkin and Chestnuts.

5. Parsnips

Carrots’ paler cousin, parsnips don’t get much attention — and that’s a mistake.

“People say to stay away from white foods, but these are low in carbohydrates,” says Anderson-Haynes. “They’re a non-starchy vegetable, and half your plate should be filled with non-starchy vegetables.”

One cup of cooked parsnip has nearly 6 grams of fiber, about 12 percent of your daily dose of potassium, and almost one-quarter of the recommended amount of folate, which may reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s disease. It also contains high amounts of a plant compound known as coumarin, which demonstrates anti-cancer properties.

Use parsnips anywhere you would potatoes. They’re especially good for mashed potato fans: Swap out half your spuds for ‘snips, and you’ll have all the satisfaction with far fewer carbs and more fiber. Or try this Curried Parsnip & Apple Soup.

6. Sweet Potatoes

You’re probably well acquainted with this staple of the Thanksgiving table, but they’re more than just, y’know, potatoes that taste sweet.

That has a lot to do with their color. Deeper orange flesh means more carotenoids, Gentile says. That makes them helpful for night vision and why they’ve been associated with preventing age-related macular degeneration. They’re also good for the immune system, and their soluble fiber and resistant starch make them great for your gut bacteria and blood sugar control.

Purple-fleshed sweet potatoes may not be everywhere yet, but they’re becoming more widely available. Just like with purple kohlrabi, buy them when you see them. Again, it’s the anthocyanins.

“Purple sweet potatoes offer extra antioxidants,” Gentile says, “and can help regulate blood sugar even more.”

Another variety making its way to many supermarkets is satsumaimo, Japanese sweet potato. It has magenta skin and dense, pale yellow flesh. This potato has an almost nutty quality — it’s less sweet than the usual orange kind, too.

Don’t save sweet potatoes for side dishes. Why would you, when you can make Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili?

7. Winter Squash

Butternut, acorn and pumpkin used to be the main supermarket varieties of these hardy gourds. Expand your horizons with newer-to-market options like the small honeynut, stringy spaghetti or dense kabocha. You can’t go wrong nutritionally — they’ve all got phytonutrients galore, thanks to their varied colors.

A 2021 review of studies in Phytotherapy Research linked the antioxidants in the Cucurbita genus, which includes squashes like butternut, pumpkin and hubbard (one of the larger winter squashes) to lower risks of a wide range of conditions, including heart disease, several cancers and diabetes, and even improved menopause symptoms.

While most winter squashes have tough outer skin, some, like the striped delicata, don’t need to be peeled before eating. That’s a good thing, Gentile points out, because the skin contains a lot of the vegetable’s fiber content.

Delicata’s oblong shape makes it a great candidate for stuffing, like in this Quinoa-Stuffed Delicata Squash.