Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas

These tried and true Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas will help you to create a delicious holiday meal that your friends and family will love. From turkey to potatoes to pie, I’m sharing all of my easy Thanksgiving recipes here in one place, to help make a delicious dinner without the stress!

With Thanksgiving coming up in a week, it’s time to start finalizing the menu, making the grocery list, coordinating with friends and family and getting everything ready for the big day. Whether you need recipes for each and every dish or are just looking to add one or two new sides to your Thanksgiving dinner, I’ve got you covered! Below you’ll find my top recommendations, but make sure to check out all of my Thanksgiving Recipes – you’ll find many more than I can share here!

Main Dishes

Let’s start at the top… turkey! Our gatherings have been smaller in recent years, and I’ve grown fond of making just a turkey breast. It’s the perfect amount of turkey for our crowd. I have both an Instant Pot Turkey Breast recipe and an Air Fryer Turkey Breast Recipe. If I was pushed to pick a favorite, the air fryer wins for it’s gorgeous browning. Need a recipe for a full size, traditional roasted turkey? Check out Lauren’s No-Fuss Thanksgiving Turkey. Looking to cook outdoors? My friend Rebecca can walk you through Smoked Turkey. If you are having a two main dish type of dinner (good for you!) my Brown Sugar Spiral Ham is fantastic.

Side Dishes

In my opinion, side dishes are where it’s at when it comes to Thanksgiving. I always joke it’s my favorite holiday because it’s a two potato holiday – sweet and mashed. Here are some of my all time favorite, tried and true Thanksgiving side dish recipes.

Potatoes

Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes – I love getting these potatoes ready, then letting the slow cooker keep them warm while I tend to other dishes.
Homemade Scalloped Potatoes – These creamy, cheesy scalloped potatoes pair perfectly with turkey.
Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole – When it comes to comfort food, this cheesy hashbrown dish is about as good as it gets.
Instant Pot Cheesy Potatoes – With bacon, ranch seasoning, garlic, sour cream and cheddar cheese, this is another comfort food potato recipe.
Sweet Potato Casserole With Marshmallows – I am squarely on team marshmallows on sweet potatoes. In my opinion, there simply is no other way to go! This recipe combines creamy sweet potatoes with a crumb topping and finishes it off with marshmallows. It’s divine!
Crockpot Sweet Potato Casserole – Based on the above recipe, if you are short on oven space, let the crockpot carry some of the load.

Vegetable Sides

Thanksgiving veggie sides just might be some of the best vegetable sides dishes in existence. At least in our family, they all get a bit of a comfort food flair, and even picky eaters pile them on their plates.

Green Beans Almondine – Buttery green beans with crispy almonds and a perfect blend of seasoning make these a stellar side.
Homemade Green Bean Casserole – On the other side of the green bean spectrum you’ll find this creamy, rich casserole. No condensed soups in this recipe, but you will find sour cream and cream cheese, which take green beans to a whole new level.
Mashed Butternut Squash – This creamy, mashed squash recipe is nutty and flavorful.
Broccoli Casserole With Ritz Crackers – This delicious and easy dish will convert anyone into a broccoli fan.
Crock Pot Creamed Corn – I have had a number of people tell me they never liked creamed corn until I made them this dish. Now they look forward to it every Thanksgiving.
Glazed Carrots – These candied style carrots are so popular that we never end up having leftovers.

Other Side Dish Recipes

Some of the “other” side dishes just happen to be some of my favorites!

Apple Cranberry Sauce – Turn that canned cranberry sauce on it’s end with this amazing sweet and tart apple cranberry sauce. It’s so easy and ridiculously delicious.
Old Fashioned Macaroni Salad – This simple macaroni salad has nostalgia on the ingredient list!
Easy Homemade Dinner Rolls – If you’ve never made homemade dinner rolls before, don’t be afraid, they can be easy! I walk you through this recipe step by step.
Ambrosia Fruit Salad – I’m not sure about other families, but fruit salad has always been on the menu at my Thanksgiving gatherings.
Jiffy Corn Casserole – This one is hard to explain, it’s almost like a creamy, delicious cornbread pudding. It’d divine!
Jiffy Cornbread – Hands down this is my all time favorite cornbread. If you don’t like the sweetness, leave out the small amount of added sugar.
Easy Mac and Cheese – Another comfort food favorite, this stovetop macaroni recipe is quick to make.
Sausage Stuffing With Apples, Cranberries and Herbs – my friend Mary makes the most amazing stuffing that I have to send you over her way for the recipe, I simply cannot top it!

Thanksgiving Dessert Recipes

I love to serve pumpkin pie along with a variety of other desserts. Here are my favorite options!

Easy Pumpkin Pie – This has been my go to pumpkin pie recipe for over a decade!
Butterscotch Pumpkin Pie – If you love butterscotch, this is such a fun and fresh twist on pumpkin pie!
Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie Bars – I love that it’s easy to cut these into tiny pieces since pecan pie can be quite rich!
Pumpkin Roll – This gorgeous dessert is always impressive, yet is surprisingly easy to make.
Pumpkin Dip – While it goes great with crackers, cookies and pretzels, this actually also makes a great topping on pumpkin pie!
Caramel Apple Pie – Take your traditional apple pie to a whole new level with this caramel wrapped version.
Air Fryer Pumpkin Pie – Did you know you can make pumpkin pie in your air fryer? You can, and it’s great!
Pumpkin Bars With Cream Cheese Frosting – Such a delicious way to end a holiday meal.
Soft Gingerbread Cookies – If I had to pick one cookie to make on Thanksgiving, these amazing ginger cookies get my vote.

I hope these recipes can help you plan and enjoy a delicious Thanksgiving meal. If you have any questions about these recipes, or in general, feel free to leave them here, email me or leave me a comment over on Facebook or Instagram. I’m happy to help!

Click to pin and save.