Apple days may be cancelled across this country this year, but that doesn't mean you can't make the most of the fresh produce October has to offer. Take advantage of those longer evenings by trying some new recipes using the best fresh ingredients Britain has to offer.

Squash

With colourful squashes providing the home decor essentials all over the country, it's very handy to have a range of squash recipes at the ready to use them up and ensure they don't go to waste! If you fancy a vegan twist on a classic, many dairy-free mac and cheese rely on squash to create that creamy texture, like this recipe here.  
They can make great crisps like this Great British Chef's recipe here, and finally you could use any squashes in our butternut squash curry (view the recipe here).

Crabapples

Crabapples are distinct for their sour and acidic flavour, which you can harness to make some excellent recipes. Crabapple jelly is probably the most common recipe (view a highly-rated recipe here), but you could also try making liqueur or wine with yours like this liqueur recipe here. 

Sloes

Traditionally, you should wait to pick wild sloes for gin-making until after the first frost. You could always replicate this in your freezer, as the frost is said to split the skin of the ripe berries allowing the juice to flow more freely. 

If you fancy some more foraging, you could try this blackberry and sloe berry jam from Hedgecombers (view the recipe here), while BBC Good Food have got you covered for a classic sloe gin recipe here.

Pumpkins

Of course we couldn't write about October's in-season ingredients and not cover pumpkins! Try them in a risotto like this Gordon Ramsay recipe, as a stuffing for ravioli like this Great British Chef's recipe here (swap the squash for pumpkin puree), and even as a vegan meringue pie in their delicious dessert recipe here. 

Sprouts

Sprouts are back! Their excellent when paired with hazlenuts and sauteed in butter, but we also thought this creamy garlic parmesan sprout recipe deserved a try too (view the recipe here). Who said sprouts were just for Christmas?!