26 Thanksgiving Recipes You'll Want to Make All Year

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Published on October 22, 2021

Chicken & Stuffing Casserole

From savory stuffing to tangy cranberry sauce, the Thanksgiving flavors we love are so cozy and delicious—why only enjoy them once a year? With these stuffing casseroles, stunning main dishes and classic sides, you can celebrate Thanksgiving year-round. Recipes like Chicken & Stuffing Casserole and Apple-Cranberry Spinach Salad with Goat Cheese are tasty and healthy enough to be a part of your meal any time of the year.

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Chicken & Stuffing Casserole

Chicken & Stuffing Casserole

Stuffing is not just for Thanksgiving with this easy chicken and stuffing casserole. And speaking of Thanksgiving, if you have leftover turkey, feel free to substitute it for the chicken in this comforting and healthy recipe. It's also a great use for extra carrots, celery, onions and day-old bread you might have on hand around the holidays. There's no boxed stuffing mix or canned soup in this lighter take on the comfort-food casserole, but it's still super-easy to make. Poultry seasoning helps humble bread to taste like stuffing, while thickened chicken broth takes the place of canned soup. There are plenty of veggies in this one, too, making this a healthy casserole you can feel good about serving year-round.

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Cauliflower Casserole with Everything Bagel Seasoning

The cheesy-seedy crust that tops this healthy cauliflower casserole recipe evokes everything bagels. Serve for the holidays or as a hearty side dish with roast chicken.

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Parmesan-Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Parmesan-Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts

These roasted Brussels sprouts are about to be your new favorite side dish. In addition to getting brown and crispy in the oven, they're topped with Parmesan cheese and balsamic vinegar for a hit of salty, savory flavor. This makes a great vegetable side to serve with roasted meats.

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Wild Rice Stuffing with Apple & Sausage

This amazing wild-rice stuffing recipe is bursting with rustic fall flavors, including rye bread, sausage, apples, dried cherries, pecans and fresh herbs.

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Crispy Roast Chicken

Classic and delicious, this roast chicken recipe will shine on the table fresh from the oven, served with any side. And this oven-roasted chicken is basic enough to play well in any recipe that calls for cooked chicken.

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Apple-Cranberry Spinach Salad with Goat Cheese

The tangy-sweet dressing in this spinach salad beautifully amplifies the apples and cranberries--and the creamy goat cheese transforms it into the perfect salad. Tasters raved about this easy fall salad. If you can't find Pink Lady apples, any sweet, crisp apple is a worthy substitute. Want to make this salad a main meal? Top with some rotisserie chicken, chickpeas or tofu.

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Hasselback Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows

Hasselback Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows

These hasselback sweet potatoes are like mini marshmallow-topped sweet potato casseroles drizzled with sage-infused butter. The hasselback technique, slicing the potato but leaving it whole, makes for a tender potato with a crispy top--the best of both worlds.

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Leftover Turkey Stew

This hearty and healthy turkey stew recipe is just about the best use of Thanksgiving leftovers we can think of. And we don't just mean the turkey. The stew is packed with leftover roasted vegetables--use whatever vegetables you have on hand, such as Brussels sprouts, parsnips, sweet potatoes and green beans. And leftover gravy is used to add depth of flavor and body. Possibly the best part of this stew recipe? It comes together really quickly--because don't we all need a 20-minute dinner after the craziness of Thanksgiving? Add some leftover bread or rolls and dinner is done. This recipe is equally delicious with leftover cooked chicken or rotisserie chicken, and we've included instructions for making a quick gravy in case you don't have leftovers, so you can serve this Thanksgiving-in-a-pot year-round.

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Spatchcock Turkey with Sage & Thyme

spatchcock turkey with thyme and sage on sheet pan on table

When it comes to cooking a whole turkey quickly and evenly, spatchcocking--removing the entire backbone from the bird and splaying it open--is a great technique. This skin on this spatchcocked turkey gets crispy and browned because nearly all of the skin is exposed. This recipe uses a simple blend of oil, fresh herbs and spices for classic roasted turkey flavor. Look for a small turkey, about 12 pounds, as it fits better in most roasting pans.

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Au Gratin Potatoes

Au Gratin Potatoes

We use flour-thickened milk combined with a modest amount of tangy sharp Cheddar to make a creamy cheese sauce for our healthy spin on the classic potatoes au gratin recipe. They're topped with additional cheese and some breadcrumbs, then baked until golden brown and bubbling. Serve the au gratin potatoes as a Thanksgiving side or with roasted chicken and vegetables for a satisfying dinner.

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Apple, Onion & Cranberry Stuffing

Apples and fresh cranberries add a unique twist to this variation on the classic stuffing. Use fresh sage or rubbed sage in this healthy stuffing recipe; the ground version is too bitter.

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Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes

Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes with White Pepper — Johnny Autry

Garlic cloves, cooked along with the potatoes, give this puree extra body and lots of flavor.

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Chicken, Quinoa & Sweet Potato Casserole

This protein-loaded chicken and sweet potato casserole dish is made with multicolored quinoa, a blend of white, red and black varieties, but any color will work.

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Balsamic-Parmesan Sautéed Spinach

Tender spinach with a hint of garlic, Parmesan cheese and sweet balsamic vinegar makes a quick and flavorful side dish. The sturdy leaves of mature spinach hold up best during cooking.

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Creamy Green Beans & Mushrooms

This take on a green bean casserole from José Andrés features perfectly cooked green beans in a mushroom sauce made with real cream. Andrés even gives the traditional canned french-fried onions a run for their money with some freshly frizzled shallot rings. Serve for Thanksgiving or as a side for roast beef or roast chicken.

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Chorizo, Chestnut, Brussels Sprout & Apple Stuffing

Who says a Thanksgiving stuffing recipe has to be dominated by the bread? Check out this veggie-packed healthy stuffing, with 4 cups of Brussels sprouts topping the list. Chorizo adds some piquant flavor, in this case a zesty chile-pepper-and-vinegar kick found in the Mexican version of the sausage, but quite frankly you won't go wrong using any type of fresh, spicy sausage.

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Garlic-Parmesan Roasted Brussels Sprouts

brussels sprouts

Speed up roasting vegetables, like these lemon-and-thyme-infused Brussels sprouts, by cooking them on two large baking sheets instead of just one. This basic roasting technique also works for other root vegetables such as carrots, parsnips and potatoes.

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Cinnamon Swirl Apple Pie

Instead of topping your apple pie with a full crust, cover the dough in cinnamon sugar, roll it up and slice it like cinnamon rolls to make beautiful cinnamon swirls to top the pie. The fragrant cinnamon bun-like topping makes homemade apple pie even more special!

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Caramelized Onion & Apple Stuffing

Caramelized Onion & Apple Stuffing

Caramelized onions are a sweet and savory addition to this healthy stuffing recipe. Choose an apple that becomes tender yet holds its shape when cooked--try Jonagold or Cortland.

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Roasted Carrots with Homemade Marshmallow Fluff & Toasted Coconut

Can we get a drumroll, please, for the marshmallow fluff recipe you've been waiting for? This dish may look like regular oven-roasted carrots, but when you add the homemade marshmallow "fluff" it immediately goes in the direction of sweet potato casserole.

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Slow-Cooker Green Bean Casserole with Crispy Onions

Thanks to fresh green beans, an easy homemade cream sauce and crispy onion topping, this green bean casserole recipe is healthier and more delicious than traditional recipes that use canned soup, beans and onions. Plus, the slow cooker saves you time cooking at the stove. Make sure to use fresh green beans, as frozen green beans will become mushy.

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Slow-Cooker Dinner Rolls

Slow-Cooker Dinner Rolls

These dinner rolls are baked in the slow cooker, then browned under the broiler for a couple minutes for a crisp crust. The results? Billowy, crusty, decadent rolls to serve with any meal.

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Herb-Roasted Turkey

Herb-Roasted Turkey

This easy method produces all the good looks and moist flavor you dream of in an oven-roasted turkey. Make sure you show this beauty off at the table before you carve it. Garnish your serving platter with fresh herb sprigs and citrus wedges for a show-stopping Thanksgiving turkey.

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Purple Sweet Potato Pie

purple sweet potato pie

This purple version of classic sweet potato pie has a shot of brandy, which adds another layer of seasonal flavor. Serve with a dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream.

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Turkey Potpie

You might look forward to the days after Thanksgiving even more than the holiday itself with this easy turkey potpie recipe that's the perfect use for leftover turkey and extra vegetables like carrots and onions you might have on hand from the holiday. The pie is loaded with veggies and a creamy sauce, then topped with a prepared whole-wheat crust so there's no need to make dough. No leftover cooked turkey? This healthy potpie is just as delicious with chicken. Serve it up any time you need a dose of comfort food for dinner.

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Basic Whole Roast Chicken

Basic Whole Roast Chicken

This roasted chicken recipe may be the most useful recipe you'll ever find. It's a meal on its own or the start of any recipe that calls for cooked chicken--perfect for meal-prepping lunches or dinners to have throughout the week.

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