Ever thought to make your Thanksgiving dinner in a crockpot? How about making some delicious things that take less than an hour? If you are thinking you would like to make your Thanksgiving easy this year, then we have the best recipe ideas for you. Was I ever surprised to learn that most of my favorite Thanksgiving dishes could be prepared with much less effort than usual when you check out these quick and easy ideas for food. Save time and stress with these best ideas for your top Thanksgiving foods- you will only think you are running out of time to cook. From soups to sides, appetizers to desserts, and of course, turkey, stuffing, and gravy, you will find a step by step recipe tutorial for some of the most delicious Thanksgiving recipes around. My favorite is turkey in a bag surrounded by succulent sides like balsamic roasted sprouts or broccoli casserole. These recipes are sure to get you into the Thanksgiving mood.
Table of Contents
- 1. Apple Cranberry Bacon Candied Walnut Salad
- 2. Sheet Pan Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
- 3. Cornbread Sage And Onion Stuffing
- 5. Brown Bag Turkey
- 6. Butternut Squash Soup
- 7. Broccoli Casserole
- 8. Garlic Roasted Carrots
- 9. Sweet Potato Casserole
- 10. Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole
- 11. Apple Cranberry Walnut Salad
- 12. Cheesy Asparagus
- 13. Lentil Loaf With Maple Sweetened Glaze
- 14. Ree Drummond’s Green Bean Casserole
- 15. Baked Apples With Sausage Stuffing
- 16. Slab Pumpkin Pie Bars
- 17. Apple Cranberry Almond Coleslaw
- 18. Turkey Turnovers
- 19. Twice Baked Quinoa Stuffed Butternut Squash
- 20. Orange Amaretto Cranberry Sauce
- 21. Honey Glazed Roasted Delicata Squash
- 22. Creamy Fruit Salad with Cool Whip
- 23. Old Fashioned Apple Crisp
- 24. Green Beans with Bacon
- 25. Praline Topped Sweet Potato Casserole
- 26. Slow Cooker Scalloped Potatoes
- 27. Copycat Longhorn Stuffed Mushrooms
- 28. Southern Style Green Beans
- 29. Apple Bacon And Cheddar Cheese Stuffing
- 30. Herb Roasted Turkey
- 31. Perfect Smoked Turkey
- 32. Perfect Turkey Gravy
1. Apple Cranberry Bacon Candied Walnut Salad
I needed a pre-Thanksgiving brunch dish for a few friends in my Mommy group at church and I found this fantastic salad recipe. This gorgeous salad is bursting with sweet and crunchy apples, juicy dried cranberries, salty, crispy bacon, crunchy red bell peppers, creamy feta, and candied walnuts. Just imagine all that – in one bite! All my friends loved it and ate every bite.
2. Sheet Pan Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
Running to the Kitchen
This sheet pan chicken and sweet potatoes with a maple glaze is an easy, all-in-one holiday meal with minimal cleanup. Cozy fall flavors in every bite. Get the full recipe at Running to the Kitchen.
3. Cornbread Sage And Onion Stuffing
My Mother In Law is coming to our Thanksgiving dinner this year and she is very traditional. I wasn’t in the mood to take a chance on new and exciting and have it backfire, so I was looking for a traditional recipe for stuffing, with no frills. I settled on this one because it has all the basic ingredients of old world savory goodness. I made my cornbread from scratch, but you can use pre-made from your local bakery as well. The stuffing is cooked in an open baking dish on the oven so it yields a very crispy top. Just monitor your oven so it doesn’t dry out before completion. My mother In Law didn’t complain, that meant she loved it. 🙂
5. Brown Bag Turkey
If you haven’t heard of the paper bag turkey get ready, because its all the rage. We have all experienced Thanksgiving turkeys that were a little dried out, especially in the white meat areas. This is the succulent Thanksgiving turkey of your dreams, it’s moist and tender, melts in your mouth. You rub a compound butter mixture all over the turkey then put the entire thing, including the baking pan into the 2 paper bags overlapping each other. Don’t worry, paper burns at 451 so you won’t be in trouble there. The end result of this revolutionary technique is beyond compare. It will be the best turkey you’ve ever had, I promise you.
6. Butternut Squash Soup
I was going to a Thanksgiving potluck celebration with my coworkers and only had one day available to cook the week before, I thought hard to come up with a solution when the idea came to me that I could actually freeze a soup. So I wanted to make the most of all the Fall vegetables in season and I found this lovely festive Fall recipe. I prepared my Autumn soup with all the fresh ingredients I found at my local supermarket. HEB had all the seasonal produce in and it was so affordably priced, I spent very little cash on the whole dish. I froze the soup after it was complete and I brought it to the event and warmed it up for my friends. I had tried a bowl when I first cooked it and can honestly say it tasted better after freezing it for a few days. My coworkers loved it so much and that made me very happy.
7. Broccoli Casserole
I found a glorious twist for my traditional Thanksgiving casserole recipes. This idea uses mayonnaise instead of cream of mushroom soup and cheese crackers as opposed to Frenches fried onions on top. It is so buttery and creamy it melts in your mouth and is the perfect compliment to your Thanksgiving turkey. I served it with the moist and succulent paper bag turkey. My guests were so in love with it, they wanted to move in.
8. Garlic Roasted Carrots
I love carrots so much and they make the perfect accompaniment to a beautiful Thanksgiving turkey. The first time I ever had roasted carrots was in England in the 1980s, most families would have a special family dinner every Sunday consisting of roast beef, Yorkshire pudding and a lovely array of vegetables cooked in an open pan in the oven. I fell in love with roast vegetables then and still eat them almost every day. There’s an interesting flavor twist in this roast carrot recipe attributed to the addition of a special balsamic sauce the carrots lay in while cooking. The balsamic sauce creates a glaze over the carrots and tastes so sweet and savory at the same time. You will not be disappointed with any part of this wonderful Autumn dish.
9. Sweet Potato Casserole
Averie Cooks
This sweet potato casserole is topped with a buttery pecan crumble for the ultimate holiday side dish. Sweet, crunchy, and always a favorite. Get the full recipe at Averie Cooks.
10. Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole
Salt & Lavender
Make ahead is the magic phrase on Thanksgiving, and this one is exactly that. Creamy, cheesy and loaded with bacon and cheddar, it goes into the oven while I deal with everything else. Salt and Lavender has the recipe.
11. Apple Cranberry Walnut Salad
Six Sisters’ Stuff
This apple cranberry walnut salad is a crisp, colorful holiday side with a lovely mix of sweet and crunchy. A fresh break from the heavy dishes. Get the full recipe at Six Sisters’ Stuff.
12. Cheesy Asparagus
Amanda’s Cookin’
Fifteen minutes on a sheet pan under melty mozzarella and parmesan, and I have a green thing on the table that people actually eat. It is the easiest side I make all November. Amanda’s Cookin’ has the recipe.
16. Slab Pumpkin Pie Bars
Kevin Is Cooking
All the goodness of pumpkin pie in bar form, made right in a sheet pan, which means no slicing and no plates. My guests can pick one up and wander off with it. That suits a crowd perfectly. Kevin is Cooking has the recipe.
22. Creamy Fruit Salad with Cool Whip
windingcreekranch
Every Thanksgiving table I have ever sat at has a creamy fruit salad somewhere on it, and this is the one I would make. Cool Whip and vanilla pudding fold through the fruit and hold the whole thing together, and because it wants a night in the fridge it is one less job on the day itself. My kids go for this before they go anywhere near something green. Winding Creek Ranch has the recipe.
23. Old Fashioned Apple Crisp
grannysinthekitchen
Six ingredients and no pastry to roll out, which is exactly what I want when the oven is already full and the day is already long. The buttery oat topping goes properly crisp over soft spiced apples, and the whole house smells like fall while it bakes. I serve it warm with ice cream melting into the edges. Granny’s in the Kitchen walks you through it.
24. Green Beans with Bacon
iowagirleats
Fifteen minutes for a side dish people actually finish. The beans get steamed crisp tender and then tossed into the skillet with bacon, shallot and garlic, so they keep some bite instead of going grey and sad the way boiled beans always do. This is my answer when the rest of the meal is running long. Get it from Iowa Girl Eats.
26. Slow Cooker Scalloped Potatoes
creationsbykara
Oven space is the real constraint on Thanksgiving, not time, so anything I can move to the slow cooker earns its place on the menu. These scalloped potatoes come out cheesy and tender without touching the oven once. I set them going in the morning and then forget about them entirely. Creations by Kara has the how to.
27. Copycat Longhorn Stuffed Mushrooms
alyonascooking
These are a copycat of the Longhorn stuffed mushrooms, baked in a white cheddar sauce, and they vanish off the tray before anybody has even sat down. I make them ahead and bake them while the turkey is resting, which is the one window when the oven is finally free. The full recipe is over at Alyona’s Cooking.
