Turkey may be the centerpiece of Thanksgiving, but sides like mashed potatoes, stuffing, and green bean casserole often steal the show instead.
These mouthwatering side dishes might convince you to ditch the turkey next year:
Potatoes au Gratin
Potatoes are a staple at any Turkey Day feast, and making them au gratin will impress all your party guests. This creamy, cheesy potato dish is the perfect companion to your turkey. It’s an excellent alternative to old-school mashed potatoes that feels fancy but is surprisingly simple.
Cranberry and Orange Sauce
Forget bland jellied cranberry sauce—you’ll want to put this fresh cranberry and orange sauce on everything. It requires minimal effort, with only three ingredients and five minutes of prep time. The secret is using fresh oranges to give the tart cranberries a zesty citrus hint.
Cranberry and Orange Sauce Recipe
Green Bean Casserole
This casserole recipe swaps canned green beans and mushroom soup for fresh vegetables. It completely reinvents the mushy, flavorless green bean casserole you remember from childhood. This dish features a made-from-scratch gravy and French green beans for an elevated take on a familiar Thanksgiving favorite.
Best Green Bean Casserole Recipe
Buttery Herb Stuffing
It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without a classic stuffing dish. Stuffing and turkey might go hand-in-hand, but don’t feel guilty about skipping the meat to enjoy extra servings of this savory side. The fresh vegetables and herbs take this stuffing to the next level, infusing every bite with rich Thanksgiving flavors.
Best Buttery Herb Stuffing Recipe
Southern Collard Greens
Once you taste this irresistible vegetable dish, you’ll never celebrate another holiday without collard greens. These authentic Southern-style collard greens are salty, smoky, and tender. Each bite is cozy and comforting, like a warm hug from within.
How to Make Real-Deal Southern Collard Greens Recipe
Soft Dinner Rolls
Impress everyone at your Thanksgiving feast with these homemade dinner rolls. They’re flaky, buttery, and pillowy—far better than store-bought. The best part is you can make the rolls in advance and freeze the leftovers. They’re truly the gift that keeps on giving.
Sweet Potato Casserole
While sweet potato casserole usually isn’t the star of Thanksgiving, this recipe will give your turkey a run for its money. The sweet potatoes are creamy, buttery, and lightly salted to enhance their natural sweetness. Meanwhile, a brown sugar and pecan crumble topping adds a hint of texture to contrast against the smooth potatoes.
Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad
Get your greens in with a refreshing shaved Brussels sprouts salad. If you don’t consider yourself a fan of Brussels, wait until you try this recipe.
The sprouts, apple, cranberries, and cheese create a salty yet sweet flavor profile perfectly balanced by the tangy dressing. While this salad is the ideal holiday side dish, you can also enjoy it year-round.
Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad Recipe
Mashed Potatoes
Making mashed potatoes is much easier than you think. Nothing beats a heaping pile of hot, creamy, buttery potatoes—this is the ultimate recipe for cooking newbies. The recipe is deceptively simple but flavorful, perfect for enjoying with butter or gravy.
The Best Mashed Potatoes Recipe
Homemade Baked Mac and Cheese
Mac and cheese is a classic addition to any Thanksgiving dinner table, so step things up this year by cooking it from scratch. After tasting this baked pasta dish, you’ll want to say goodbye to boxed macaroni and cheese forever. With heavy cream and two types of cheese, this recipe is velvety smooth and irresistibly savory.
Best Homemade Baked Mac and Cheese Recipe
Sausage-Stuffed Acorn Squash
Sausage-stuffed acorn squash is a fantastic way to incorporate all your favorite fall flavors into one dish. This hearty and satisfying dish has a divine combination of fresh ingredients. It features roasted acorn squash filled with spicy Italian sausage, fresh spinach, and pecans, giving it a distinctly autumn-inspired taste.
Sausage-Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe
Southern Cornbread Dressing
If you’ve never tried Southern cornbread dressing, you’ve been missing out. Traditional buttermilk cornbread is the perfect base for this recipe, with a moist and fluffy texture that holds its own when mixed with chopped vegetables and Thanksgiving herbs. The dressing is delicious enough to enjoy alone but even better when topped with cranberry sauce and gravy.
Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe
Oven-Roasted Vegetables
You can’t beat oven-roasted vegetables for a simple yet impactful side. This healthy Turkey Day dish features bell peppers, zucchini, and broccoli, but you can add any others you like, such as carrots or asparagus.
The vegetables are coated in an oil and mustard sauce before being roasted until tender and slightly crispy. It couldn’t be a simpler or tastier addition to your holiday lineup.
Oven-Roasted Vegetables Recipe
Stuffed Mushrooms
Stuffed mushrooms are the ideal handheld party offering that looks fancy but is easy to make. Every bite-sized morsel has a delightful blend of salty Parmesan cheese and crispy breadcrumbs. Don’t count on having any leftovers—everyone will gobble up these savory treats.
Lighten things up with these healthy Thanksgiving dishes
Are you tired of falling into a food coma after your Turkey Day feast? These healthy holiday recipes let you indulge without going overboard.
15 Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes That Won’t Leave You Stuffed
Ditch tradition this Thanksgiving with non-pie desserts
Pie might be the Thanksgiving go-to, but plenty of other sweet treats are worth trying. Switch things up and skip the pie in favor of these alternative holiday desserts.
15 Divine Thanksgiving Desserts for Pie Haters
Elise Armitage is an entrepreneur and founder of What The Fab, a travel + lifestyle blog based in California. At the beginning of 2019, Elise left her corporate job at Google to chase her dreams: being an entrepreneur and helping women find fabulous in the everyday. Since then, she’s launched her SEO course Six-Figure SEO, where she teaches bloggers how to create a passive revenue stream from their website using SEO. Featured in publications like Forbes, Elle, HerMoney, and Real Simple, Elise is a firm believer that you can be of both substance and style.
