Thanksgiving table with rolls, mashed potatoes, and stuffing.
Photo from flickr by Alaina Buzas

Our Favorite Thanksgiving Side Dishes

November 20, 2023 Recipes, Spoonful

— Spoonful Bloggers

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, it can be stressful choosing what dishes to make for family and friends. Whether it’s a potluck with friends or a traditional family gathering, the Spoonful blog team is here to help with some of our favorite Thanksgiving side dishes. Enjoy!

Roasted Brussel Sprouts – Kayla Parsons

It’s so hard to choose just one favorite side dish, but I can’t help but fill my plate with roasted brussel sprouts on Thanksgiving. I love the crisp, garlic-ly flavor of these cruciferous vegetables in contrast to the other sweet items I have on my plate, such as cranberry sauce or sweet potatoes. The Roasted Garlic Brussels Sprouts recipe is a simple recipe that contains many ingredients you already have at home, like vegetable oil, brown sugar, spices, vinegar and garlic.

Green Beans with Garlic – Kate Yerxa

Green beans are always a part of our Thanksgiving meal, usually as the key ingredient in a traditional green bean casserole. Because we had a terrific green bean harvest from our garden this year, I plan to add a new green bean side dish along with the standard green bean casserole our family makes. The Green Beans with Garlic recipe is just the quick and tasty recipe that I was looking for. The one change I plan to make is that I will be using the green beans I froze from our garden instead of fresh green beans.

Mashed Potatoes – Alex Gayton

My favorite side dish is mashed potatoes, especially with a Thanksgiving meal. This Mashed Potatoes recipe is delicious, and the addition of garlic powder and rosemary really helps elevate this classic side dish. If you have any people you will be hosting that don’t eat meat, a great way to add protein to mashed potatoes is by adding mashed beans. I like to add 1 (15 oz) can of white beans to mine.

Fresh Cranberry Relish – Kathy Savoie

I love to fill one of my grandmother’s condiment trays with my favorite home-preserved goodies like Dilly Beans, Pickled Corn Relish, and Bread and Butter pickles. The holidays are about celebrating with family and it warms my heart to still have a part of her around the table with us. I am also very fond of a super simple, no-cook, fresh cranberry relish that I learned to make while in college. The three ingredients include one, 12 oz. bag of fresh cranberries, washed; one whole orange, (peel included), washed; up to one cup of sugar. Simply combine these ingredients in a food processor and grind to the consistency you like. Enjoy!

Carrots with Rosemary – Alex Bosse

One of my favorite vegetables for the holidays are carrots. With just the right amount of sweetness and warmth, they can be great as a snack plain, roasted, or sauteed. The Carrots with Rosemary recipe is one of my favorite side dishes to bring to gatherings around the holidays, as it is delicious and super easy to make. Adding fresh rosemary from the garden is a great way to incorporate fresh herbs into some of your favorite recipes, including this one and many others. I personally like to roast carrots, so try roasting the ingredients for this recipe for a crispier and more caramelized product.

Spinach Pie – Kate McCarty

With all the attention given to the big meal on Thanksgiving Day, it’s tough to decide what to serve for breakfast or a light brunch before dinner. The solution: a Crustless Spinach Pie. You can make it the day before and reheat it for breakfast—or it’s even good cold! With no crust, this pie is a cinch. Use plenty of fresh greens (I love spinach or Swiss chard) or a bag of frozen greens to make it even easier.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese – Sydney Hauser

Thanksgiving isn’t complete without a delicious mac n’ cheese on the table! My favorite way to have it is baked with breadcrumbs and paprika on top. This Macaroni and Cheese with Spinach recipe is a fun way to incorporate some extra vegetables into the mix. Cheddar is the main cheese it calls for, but finding your own blend of cheeses would definitely take this recipe up a notch!

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