Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Dessert Ideas

Tarte Tatin — Photo:
Morgan Hunt Glaze / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Josh Hoggle

If you are hosting Thanksgiving, you already know that your oven is going to be extra busy that day. Give yourself a break from trying to figure out how to fit a pie alongside your turkey (spoiler: it won't work) and bake up a dessert in advance. You can make a cake like our Three-Layer Thanksgiving Cake and let it chill in the fridge. Or bake a classic French Tarte Tatin in the morning and let it sit on a sideboard, tucked away from the whir of a pre-meal kitchen as the more time-sensitive dinner components are being prepared. To help you maximize your time and precious kitchen space, we've put together this collection of fantastic make-ahead dessert recipes. Choose from Nutty Baklava Pie, Pecan-Pumpkin Cream Pie, and more.

01 of 15

Nutty Baklava Pie

This hybrid of pecan pie and baklava is crunchy, sticky, and sweet with a hint of orange and spice from Grand Marnier and cardamom. Coconut milk replaces heavy cream in the caramel filling for a velvety, rich vegan version. A garland of crispy phyllo adds a wow factor and delicate crunch that shatters with every bite.

Get the Recipe

02 of 15

Fiadone (Corsican Cheesecake) with Chestnut Honey and Figs

Fiadone, a slightly sweet Corsican cheesecake, is traditionally made with brocciu, a fresh goat or sheep's milk cheese, which gives it a crumbly texture. In this recipe from pastry chef Shawn Gawle of March restaurant in Houston, the cheesecake is topped with chestnut honey, which pairs perfectly with sweet caramelized figs and candied lemon zest.

Get the Recipe

03 of 15

Spiced Carrot Cake with Brown Butter Frosting

A warming blend of cardamom, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg brings festive flavors to this tender, moist spiced carrot cake studded with golden raisins and crunchy pistachios. Brown butter ghee does double duty here: It enriches and flavors the cake batter, and the caramelized milk fat left over from making it adds a nutty flavor to the cream cheese frosting.

Get the Recipe

04 of 15

Tarte Tatin

This classic French dessert is easy but impressive, and is one of our favorite ways to celebrate apples. Bake it in the morning, and then

get the recipe

05 of 15

Gingerbread with Quark Cheesecake

This clever recipe combines two cakes in one: gingerbread and cheesecake. The cheesecake half is light and creamy, with a pleasant tang from quark (a soft, unripened cheese that's similar to sour cream), while the gingerbread half is fragrant, moist, and delicately spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.

Get the Recipe

06 of 15

Apple Flambé Pie

Apple FlambÃ© Pie — Photo: Victor Protasio / Food Stylist Torie Cox /Prop Stylist Claire Spollen

Apple cider joins forces with both fresh and dried apples in this stovetop apple pie filling. The pie is topped with flaming apple brandy just before serving.

Get the Recipe

07 of 15

Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodles

We love having a cookie or two on the dessert table at Thanksgiving to nibble on while you pick between all those pies. The secret to nailing these Thanksgiving-edition Snickerdoodles is to bake them just until they’re set but not browned. They’ll finish cooking as they cool on the baking sheet, delivering their craveable tender-chewy texture.

Get the Recipe

08 of 15

Pumpkin Praline Bars

Praline Pumpkin Bars — Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Christina Daley

A can of Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin Puree is the key to giving these bars created by Kentucky chef Ouita Michel their dense, cake-like texture.

get the recipe

09 of 15

Fig and Caramel Nut Tart

Rich, barely bitter caramel, deeply toasted nuts, and chewy figs combine in a buttery crust for a dessert designed for pairing with Madeira. A pinch of flaky sea salt makes it the perfect end to a long lunch.

Get the Recipe

10 of 15

Pecan-Pumpkin Cream Pie

This pie slices beautifully to reveal not one but two fillings: both pumpkin custard and gooey, syrupy pecan. Chef Joanne Chang’s technique ensures the bottom of the pie shell is perfectly cooked and avoids sogginess. Cooling the blind-baked pie shell with weights keeps it hotter, and flatter, longer.

Get the Recipe

11 of 15

Milk-Chocolate Tart with Pretzel Crust

This dessert from pastry chef Colleen Grapes, a tribute to the chocolate-covered pretzel, hits just the right salty-sweet note. She mixes crushed pretzels with flour, butter, sugar, and egg to make a crunchy crust, pours in a luxurious milk chocolate filling, then sprinkles on more crushed pretzels as a garnish.

Get the Recipe

12 of 15

Three-Layer Thanksgiving Cake

To celebrate the myriad flavors of autumn, we layer three separate cakes — pumpkin, candied pecan, and cranberry cornmeal — into one giant cake, all finished with a luscious cream cheese frosting. It's got a little something for everyone at the Thanksgiving table.

Get the Recipe

13 of 15

Brandy Pecan Pie

A blend of turbinado sugar, maple syrup, and honey makes for a pecan pie with a well-rounded sweetness. A dash of apple brandy adds a faint caramel apple flavor and brightens the nutty toasted pecans.

Get the Recipe

14 of 15

Pumpkin Cream Pie in a Chocolate Crust

Cookbook author Melissa Clark shakes up classic pumpkin pie with this version, which is made of pumpkin custard held together by a chocolate cookie crust.

Get the Recipe

15 of 15

Pear and Cranberry Slab Pie

Instead of making a traditional two-crust pie in a pie plate, F&W culinary director at large Justin Chapple makes this free-form, fruit-filled, ginger-laced pie on a baking sheet.

Get the Recipe

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

Tell us why!