Thanksgiving

Here you'll find the recipes to help you put together the perfect Thanksgiving dinner menu for you and your loved ones. I share my best tips, tricks, and recipes for getting a full Thanksgiving dinner on the table in a fraction of the time, as well as classic Thanksgiving side dishes, desserts, and even leftovers recipes!

Whether you're cooking for a crowd, a family of four, or just you and your sweetie, here you'll find the Thanksgiving recipes you need.

Use this recipe collection to put together your perfect Thanksgiving menu. With everything from turkey dinner recipes, to side dishes, desserts, and even leftovers, it's a one-stop shop for holiday dinner inspiration!

Easy Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas

I have a couple different recipes for incredibly easy, complete Thanksgiving dinners. We're talking turkey and all the fixings! But they feed a lot less people and take a lot less effort to make.

The first option is a full Thanksgiving dinner made on a sheet pan. It's a traditional turkey dinner with the classic side dishes. However, it's scaled way down and made much faster!

On the other hand, if you only have 30 minutes to make a full Thanksgiving dinner complete with all the classic sides, I have you covered! I'm sharing my best clever tips, tricks, and hacks so you can make it happen.

And if you just want a really great jazzed up roast turkey recipe, Apple Rosemary Brined Roast Turkey is the way to go.

• Small Thanksgiving Dinner for 4 Made on a Sheet Pan - This is a full Thanksgiving dinner made from scratch on a sheet pan. The menu is scaled down to feed four people, so it's a lot easier to make (and a lot faster too!). And it still includes all the classic Thanksgiving flavors and side dishes.
• A Traditional Easy Thanksgiving Dinner Menu for 4 in 30 Minutes - This is an entire Thanksgiving dinner made in just 30 minutes! It includes turkey, gravy, stuffing, candied yams, mashed potatoes, green beans, biscuits, and cranberry sauce, as well as a full game plan to avoid the stress.

My Favorite Easy Thanksgiving Recipes

These recipes are as easy as they are delicious. Think of them as an ace up your sleeve to help holiday dinners run smoothly.

• 5-Minute Velouté Sauce - Learn how to make an incredible turkey gravy without drippings.
• Crispy Instant Pot Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Balsamic - Deliciously crispy sprouts, salty bacon, and a sweet and tangy balsamic glaze make this vegetable side dish something special. And it's made entirely in the Instant Pot, so it frees up space on the stovetop and in the oven!
• Air Fryer Apple Crisp for Two - There's no need to skip Thanksgiving dessert even if you're only cooking for a couple people! This has all the flavors of a classic apple crisp, but it's made quickly and easily in the air fryer.

Thanksgiving Side Dishes

Turkey is the star of the Thanksgiving dinner show. But the sides can make or break the meal!

Side dishes like cornbread stuffing, sweet potatoes, cheesy gratins, mashed potatoes, winter squash, fluffy rolls, and green bean casserole are all classic.

I usually like to include at least three or four different sides to give people variety. And if I'm cooking for a crowd, I make sure to have a few special diet-friendly options (such as gluten free, keto, etc.).

• Butternut Squash Puree with Brown Butter - Here we first roast this delicious winter squash, which creates amazing depth of flavor. After that, you only need a few simple ingredients for this rich, velvety mashed butternut squash.
• Corn Pudding Recipe - If you only try one new Thanksgiving side dish, make it this corn pudding! This savory pudding has a secret ingredient - a splash of vanilla extract - that takes it over the top. It'll be the first side dish to go at your Thanksgiving dinner!
• Cheesy Kale Gratin - Rich, creamy, and cheesy, you'll forget that this decadent side dish is gluten free and keto!

Cranberry Sauce Recipes

I keep a stash of homemade cranberry sauce stocked in my fridge the entire holiday season. I use it as jam on toast, waffles, pancakes, yogurt, and oatmeal.

Homemade cranberry sauce is festive and delicious, and only takes 20 minutes to make. Whip up a batch and you'll never want the store-bought variety again!

• Easy Apple Cranberry Sauce Recipe - This is my go-to cranberry sauce that I make as long as I can find fresh cranberries at the grocery store! Apple and cranberry is a match made in heaven.
• Cardamom Spiced Cranberry Pear Sauce - With cooling cardamom and floral pear, this cranberry sauce is as unique as it is delicious.
• Cinnamon and Ginger Spiced Cranberry Orange Sauce - Citrusy orange is the perfect pairing with sweet/tart cranberries in this spiced cranberry sauce.

Thanksgiving Desserts

Save room for dessert! Wait a couple hours after dinner if you have to, because you don't want to miss Thanksgiving dessert.

A slice of homemade pie and a cup of hot coffee is the perfect Thanksgiving nightcap!

• Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe - You won't believe this creamy, rich cheesecake is keto and gluten free! As a total bonus, you can make it in the Instant Pot or the oven. It's laced with pumpkin and warm spices, and is absolutely perfect for Thanksgiving dessert.
• Copycat Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars - This is a seasonal favorite at Starbucks, and for good reason. It's a kicked-up blondies recipe that is flavored with the festive pairing of orange, cranberry, and white chocolate. And it has a luscious cream cheese frosting to top it off!
• The Best Apple Crisp Recipe - If you love apple pie but just don't have time to make it, this apple crisp will be your new best friend. It has a sweet spiced apple filling and buttery brown sugar and oat streusel topping. You can gild the lily with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream!

Thanksgiving Leftovers Recipes

When it comes to Thanksgiving leftovers, I usually eat a full Thanksgiving turkey dinner (just like how it was served on the holiday) for one more meal.

After that, I start to get creative! I like to transform the leftovers into entirely new recipes.

• Pumpkin Soup Recipe for One - At some point, we've all had a little bit of leftover canned pumpkin stashed in our fridge. This soup is the perfect thing to make with just half a cup of pumpkin puree! (Pro Tip: If you don't have leftover canned pumpkin, you can use any type of mashed or pureed winter squash to make this soup.)
• Leftover Turkey Puff Pastry Pie - This delicious turkey dinner uses a couple different Thanksgiving leftovers: turkey and mashed potatoes! Broccoli and a quick homemade cheese sauce give it a completely different flavor profile.
• Easy Cranberry Oatmeal Bars - If you have more cranberry sauce than you know what to do with, whip up these delicious dessert bars.

If you're looking for even more Thanksgiving leftovers recipes, this article shares over 20 clever ways to reinvent turkey dinner!

And for even more Thanksgiving recipe ideas, take a look through the recipes below!