When you think Thanksgiving dessert, your mind naturally goes to things like apple pie and pumpkin pie. While these desserts are delicious and quintessentially fall, this year why not broaden your horizons! Here are 15 Thanksgiving dessert ideas that you might not have thought of before.
Mini Desserts
Everyone is always SO full after the main Thanksgiving meal, why not make some mini desserts for when you think you have no room left, but really do. Some of my favorites were apple crisp cookie cups, mini pumpkin cheesecakes, bite sized carrot cakes, apple cutie pies, caramel apple trifles, and mini cranberry apple pies.
Pumpkin Cupcakes
Kind of going along with the mini dessert idea, these pumpkin spice cupcakes are the perfect size for after the big turkey dinner.
Bourbon Pecan Pie
Bourbon + pecans + pie = yes please. Or if you’d rather not use bourbon, try this version that incorporates maple and granola.
Frozen Maple Mousse Pie with Candied Cranberries
I made this maple mousse pie last year for Thanksgiving and it was a huge hit! Plus it’s super easy and you can assemble it days ahead of time, saving yourself precious time as the big meal gets closer.
Cheesecake
You can never go wrong with a cheesecake – whether you buy one from us (we sell a delicious pumpkin cheesecake) or make one yourself, it will be a crowd pleaser. Try making this one that has a cranberry swirl and chocolate crust – it screams Thanksgiving!
No-Bake Cheesecake Trifles
After all the prep you have to do, maybe it’s best not to bake anything at all! Your guests will love these beautiful individual pumpkin cheesecake trifles and you’ll love how easy they are to put together; you can customize it too and add a layer of sweetened cranberry sauce. If you’d prefer to make it in a large trifle dish, try my recipe for Pear Cheesecake Trifle with homemade vanilla bean salted caramel sauce. Yum!
Cranberry Upside Down Cake
Pineapples don’t have to have all the fun, especially not at Thanksgiving. Give this cranberry version a try this year!