Fall entertaining calls for snacks that are just as fun to look at as they are to eat, and these fall leaf tortilla chips deliver on both. Each tortilla gets its vibrant orange, green, or yellow color from a few clever pantry spices before being cut into simple leaf shapes with cookie cutters. A blend of warm fall spices gives every chip bold flavor without turning up the heat, so they're a hit with kids and adults alike. Best of all, the chips bake in just 10 minutes, so the whole batch is ready in about 20 minutes start to finish, making this an easy way to add a colorful, homemade touch to any fall gathering.
Why this is the best Fall Leaf Tortilla Chips recipe
It's a simple recipe for an easy snack. These fall leaf tortilla chips turn ordinary tortillas into a festive fall snack with just a few basic ingredients and leaf-shaped cookie cutters. You do not need any special cooking skills to make a batch that looks impressive.
Fall leaf tortilla chips are fun and festive. Cutting the tortillas into different leaf shapes makes these homemade chips an easy way to dress up a cheese ball, appetizer platter, or fall party table. Guests will love them at a Halloween party, Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving, or any autumn get-together.
Fall leaf tortilla chips are crispy and delicious. The tortillas cook until crisp and crunchy, giving you homemade chips that are sturdy enough for dipping into cucumber salsa, queso, guacamole, pumpkin hummus, or your favorite fall dip.
Fall leaf tortilla chips are fun to make with kids. Kids can help cut the tortilla leaves before cooking, which makes this an easy fall kitchen activity that you can eat when you're finished. They're also a fun addition to lunch boxes, after-school snacks, and family movie nights.
Homemade tortilla chips are super cheap. One bag of Fall Leaf tortilla chips costs $30 on Amazon as of the date of publication. You can make them for just a couple of dollars!
What you'll need to make the best Fall Leaf Tortilla Chips
Equipment
- small leaf shaped cookie cutters - This is the key to the fall leaf shapes! If you don't want to buy cookie cutters, you can try to do the same thing with sharp scissors, but I know that I would just make a mess if I tried that.
- Baking sheet - This is to bake your chips and make them crispy.
- Parchment paper - This is to line your baking sheet so that the chips don't stick.
See the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page for all measurements and nutritional information.
Ingredients
- Tortillas - These can be your choice: flour, corn, whole wheat, low carb, whatever. They should be freshly opened for best results.
- Olive oil - You can use any neutral, flavorless oil.
- Curry powder - These three spices will go on all the tortillas, for a warm flavor.
- Cumin
- Ground coriander
For the red leaves
- Smoked paprika
- Red chili flakes - These are optional and will make the chips a little spicy.
- Salt
- Red gel food color - We didn't use food color in our red or yellow chips, but if you want yours to be more vibrantly colorful, you can use a few drops of food color.
For the yellow leaves
- Turmeric
- Ground coriander
- Salt
- Yellow food coloring - See above
For the green leaves
- Green pepper jelly
- Green food color - The jelly isn't quite as vibrant as the spices, so we did use the food color in this one.
How to make easy Fall Leaf Tortilla Chips
- Preheat oven to 190°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add 2 teaspoons of olive oil to the pepper jelly in a small bowl. If it's not green enough in color, add 1-2 drops of green food coloring and mix it well.
- Place 2 tortillas on a cutting board or flat surface. Brush both sides of each tortilla with the pepper mixture and sprinkle with curry, cumin, and coriander. Set aside for 5 minutes to soften.
- In a small bowl, combine 2 teaspoons of olive oil, salt, paprika, and chili flakes, if using. Add food coloring as needed (we didn't add any).
- Apply the red spice mixture to the second tortilla in the same way. Sprinkle with curry, cumin, and coriander. Set aside to soften.
- Combine turmeric, salt, coriander, and 2 teaspoons of olive oil with yellow food coloring if desired and coat the tortilla on both sides, then sprinkle with curry, cumin, and coriander.
- Starting with the green tortillas (because you made them first, so they have softened the most by now), use small leaf-shaped cookie cutters to cut out autumn leaves from the tortillas. Repeat with red tortillas and then yellow.
- Arrange the leaf-shaped chips on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for about 8 minutes, until the leaves are crisp and lightly golden around the edges. Keep an eye on them because they will go from toasted and crispy to burnt quickly.
Cook's Tips for the best leaf tortilla chips
Tortillas that are freshly opened will be the easiest to cut. You will oil them with olive oil, and this will soften them some, but if you start with stale tortillas, you're going to have a very tough time using the cookie cutters on them.
If you don't have cookie cutters, use sharp, clean scissors and your imagination to cut leaf shapes from the tortillas.
Substitutions & variations
You can use flour tortillas, corn tortillas, whole wheat tortillas, low carb tortillas, or a combination of several. Flour tortillas tend to make lighter, crisp chips, while corn tortillas will give you a more traditional tortilla chip flavor and crunch.
Use several different leaf-shaped cookie cutters to make a mixture of maple leaves, oak leaves, and other fall shapes. If you don't have leaf cutters, pumpkins, acorns, or other autumn cookie cutters will work just as well.
You can use these fall leaf tortilla chips to decorate an autumn charcuterie board or appetizer platter. They're especially pretty arranged around dips, cheese balls, vegetables, meats, cheeses, or other Thanksgiving appetizers.
Check out our Turkey Cheese Ball which is the perfect appetizer to go with these cute homemade tortilla chips.
Storing leftover Fall Leaf Tortilla Chips
Allow the fall leaf tortilla chips to cool completely before storing them. Transfer them to an airtight container or zippered plastic bag and keep them at room temperature for up to 5 days. Don't refrigerate the chips because the moisture in the refrigerator can make them soft.
If the tortilla chips lose some of their crunch, spread them in a single layer on a baking sheet and warm them briefly in the oven until they are crisp again. Allow them to cool completely before serving or returning them to the storage container.
Check out more Fall recipes
- Turkey Cheese Ball
- Pumpkin Chili
- Pumpkin Deviled Eggs
- Savory Pumpkin Hummus Without Tahini
- Pumpkin Dump Cake
- Simple Fall Soup Recipes for Busy Nights
- Simple Fall Dinner Recipes Made for Cozy Nights
Recipe
Fall Leaf Tortilla Chips
Ingredients
- 6 8-inch tortillas your choice, freshly opened
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
For the red leaves
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon red chili flakes optional
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 drop red gel food color optional
For the yellow leaves
- 2 teaspoons turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 drop yellow food coloring optional
For the green leaves
- ¼ cup green pepper jelly
- 1 drop green food color optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 190°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add 2 teaspoons of olive oil to the pepper jelly in a small bowl. If it's not green enough in color, add 1-2 drops of green food coloring and mix it well.
- Place 2 tortillas on a cutting board or flat surface. Brush both sides of each tortilla with the pepper mixture and sprinkle with curry, cumin, and coriander. Set aside for 5 minutes to soften.
- In a small bowl, combine 2 teaspoons of olive oil, salt, paprika, and chili flakes, if using. Add food coloring as needed (we didn't add any).
- Apply the red spice mixture to the second tortilla in the same way. Sprinkle with curry, cumin, and coriander. Set aside to soften.
- Combine turmeric, salt, coriander, and 2 teaspoons of olive oil and coat the tortilla on both sides, then sprinkle with curry, cumin, and coriander.
- Starting with the green tortillas (because you made them first, so they have softened the most by now), use small leaf-shaped cookie cutters to cut out autumn leaves from the tortillas. Repeat with red tortillas and then yellow.
- Arrange the leaf-shaped chips on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for about 8 minutes, until the leaves are crisp and lightly golden around the edges. Keep an eye on them because they will go from toasted and crispy to burnt quickly.
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