My classic Thanksgiving menu features my easy roast turkey recipe, traditional Thanksgiving side dishes, and dessert. I’ve also created a make-ahead timeline so that you can get most of the cooking done before the holiday.
Let Me Take the Stress Out of Planning Thanksgiving Dinner
I’ve hosted Thanksgiving dinner for years and I’ve become a pro at planning and prepping a Thanksgiving menu without feeling overwhelmed. It all comes down to planning the menu in advance, knowing what you can make ahead and letting everyone help.
Below I’ve put together a menu of traditional Thanksgiving side dishes, dessert and the best roast turkey I’ve ever made. These are the tried-and-true Thanksgiving recipes my family and I make again and again. After the recipes, you’ll find my suggested Thanksgiving timeline with tips on what you can make ahead so that you’ll have time to relax and enjoy the holiday.
Classic Thanksgiving Menu
All the favorites are here! If you’re looking for more unique side dishes, you’ll also find some bonus recipes below.
- Turkey Recipe: This is the recipe that made me realize you don’t need any complicated steps to make the best juicy, flavorful roast turkey. My Thanksgiving turkey post also includes tips for thawing your turkey and how much turkey you’ll need per person. See my How to Carve a Turkey tutorial for step-by-step photos and a video of how to carve it.
- Turkey Gravy: Use the drippings from the turkey to make my 20 minute turkey gravy.
- Sweet Potato Casserole: With warm spices, creamy sweet potatoes and a crunchy brown sugar pecan topping, this is one of my favorite holiday side dishes.
- Crockpot Mashed Potatoes: I love making mashed potatoes in the crockpot for Thanksgiving because I can prep them ahead, then mash them right in the slow cooker up to 2 hours before serving.
- Stuffing Recipe: My recipe uses fresh ingredients, including onion, celery and fresh herbs. It’s perfectly crispy on the edges and just soft enough in the center. So much better than the box mix!
- Cranberry Sauce: I add a touch of orange, maple and cinnamon to my homemade cranberry sauce. It’s the best I’ve ever tasted, and it comes together in just 20 minutes.
- Green Bean Casserole: My recipe is made from scratch with fresh green beans and a creamy mushroom sauce.
- Dinner Rolls: These are soft and fluffy with rich, buttery flavor.
- Pumpkin Pie: You don’t need to pre-bake the pie crust for my easy pumpkin pie recipe. The filling is creamy and perfectly spiced!
- Apple Pie: My all-time favorite pie! So many readers have made and loved this recipe.
Thanksgiving Prep Timeline + Make-Ahead Tips
Many of these Thanksgiving recipes can be fully or partially made ahead to save you time on Thanksgiving Day. Here is my suggested timeline. You’ll find full make ahead instructions in the recipe notes for each individual recipe.
Two Weeks Ahead:
- Make and freeze the dinner rolls. Put them in the fridge to thaw 12-18 hours ahead of the meal, then warm in the oven right before serving.
- Make and freeze the pie crust. Then put it in the refrigerator to thaw the night before you plan to roll it out and make the pie.
One Week Ahead:
- Thaw the turkey. Plan for it to take 24 hours per 4 pounds of turkey to thaw in the fridge, plus I always add one extra day just in case.
5 Days Ahead:
- Make the cranberry sauce. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
3 Days Ahead:
- Make the herb butter for the turkey. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
2 Days Ahead:
- Make the stuffing. Cover and store in the fridge.
- Make the pumpkin pie and/or apple pie. Bake, then cover and refrigerate once fully cooled.
One Day Ahead:
- Make the sweet potato casserole. Store the casserole and topping separately in the refrigerator.
- Make the green bean casserole. Store the casserole and topping separately in the refrigerator. Add the topping right before baking.
- Set the table so you’ll have one less thing to think about on the holiday.
Thanksgiving Day:
- Prep and cook the turkey.
- 5-6 hours before the meal prep the crockpot mashed potatoes. Mash them up to 2 hours before serving, then keep them warm in the crockpot.
- Bake the side dishes in the oven while the turkey rests. Plan to take them out of the refrigerator about 45 minutes before baking to take the chill off, and plan for them to take a bit longer to heat through after refrigerating.
- Make the gravy while the turkey rests.
- Warm the dinner rolls in the oven right before serving.
Bonus Dishes to Wow Your Guests
If you’d like to add in something a little different, try one of these recipes:
- Broccoli Casserole: While less traditional than green bean casserole, this is actually my top pick for a Thanksgiving side dish! I’ve been making this recipe for years and it’s such a favorite at our holiday meals.
- Butternut Squash Salad: If you want to serve a green salad at Thanksgiving, this is number one choice. With roasted butternut squash, candied walnuts, pomegranate seeds and goat cheese, this salad is flavor-packed and so festive!
- Balsamic Brussels Sprouts: With garlic, pecans and a maple balsamic glaze, these Brussels sprouts are roasted in the oven until tender and crispy.
- Wild Rice Salad: In this gorgeous salad, earthy, nutty wild rice pairs perfectly with roasted butternut squash, apple, toasted walnuts and dried cranberries.
- Twice Baked Potato Casserole: This casserole is everything you love about twice baked potatoes, with less work. Creamy potatoes with bacon, green onions and cheese make such a comforting side dish.
Helpful Tips
- Let everyone help/bring a dish to share. Usually guests really do want to feel like they contributed to the meal!
- Adjust the menu based on how many guests you are hosting. If you have a smaller crowd, you might need less side dishes. You can double recipes or add in an extra dish or two for a large crowd.
- Get your serving dishes and utensils organized ahead of time. Find your gravy boat, make sure you have a large platter for serving the turkey, and make sure you have enough plates and silverware for your guests.
- Set the table the day before Thanksgiving so you won’t have to do it on the holiday.
- Keep the appetizers simple. A charcuterie board is always fun, with meats, cheeses, crackers, pears/apples/grapes, candied pecans, etc.
- Bake the side dishes while the turkey rests and while you carve it. When planning your menu, check that all the dishes requiring oven space can actually fit in your oven at the same time.
I hope after reading this you feel like planning Thanksgiving dinner is much more do-able! Which of these recipes do you plan to make for Thanksgiving this year? Leave a comment below and let me know!
