Healthy Thanksgiving Sides and Dessert Recipes

Featured Recipes

Sweet Potato Casserole

This scrumptious sweet potato casserole gets fabulous flavor from honey and freshly grated orange zest rather than the traditional stick of butter. To complete the healthy makeover we sprinkle a crunchy pecan streusel spiked with orange juice concentrate over the top. You can save the marshmallows for s'mores.

» Sweet Potato Casserole

Gingered Cranberry-Raspberry Relish

Unlike cranberry sauce, a relish involves no cooking. Here, plump raspberries add a juicy freshness, while crystallized ginger provides sweetness and warmth. It is best served cold. Hold the mayo on your post-holiday sandwiches—use this relish instead for a real treat.

» Gingered Cranberry-Raspberry Relish

Glazed Chocolate-Pumpkin Bundt Cake

You don't have to have pumpkin pie to still enjoy pumpkin and spice in a Thanksgiving dessert. This tender, moist cake uses pureed pumpkin to replace much of the fat and is delicately seasoned with classic Thanksgiving flavors.

» Glazed Chocolate-Pumpkin Bundt Cake

Oatmeal-Nut Crunch Apple Pie

This decadent pie is loaded with juicy apples and adorned with a streusel-lover's crunchy topping. The pie is best served the day it's made. If you're short on time, look for a ready-made whole-wheat pie crust in the freezer section of the store.

» Oatmeal-Nut Crunch Apple Pie

Green Bean Casserole

This healthy revision of green bean casserole skips the canned soup and all the fat and sodium that come with it. Our white sauce with sliced fresh mushrooms, sweet onions and low-fat milk makes a creamy, rich casserole.

» Green Bean Casserole

Sautéed Brussels Sprouts with Bacon & Onions

Fresh herbs, onion and bacon pair beautifully with Brussels sprouts. This vegetable loves the cool weather of fall and early winter. If you can find them still attached to the stalk, don’t be intimidated—buy them, as they’re likely more fresh. All you need to do is slice off each sprout with a paring knife. However you find them at the market, this is a delicious way to prepare them. (Recipe adapted from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters.)

» Sautéed Brussels Sprouts with Bacon & Onions

Double Nut & Date Tassies

The two-bite pecan tarts satisfy the sweet tooth with far less guilt than pecan pie.

» Double Nut & Date Tassies


Wow everyone at Thanksgiving dinner by bringing a healthy, flavorful side dish or dessert to share with friends or family. These nutrient-rich salads, side dishes and desserts are delicious twists on the rich, heavy choices traditionally offered. High-impact flavors like fresh herbs, prosciutto, ginger and seasonal fruit eliminate the need for gobs of butter, cream and salt. With these healthy recipes you can eat well and enjoy all of the wonderful flavors of Thanksgiving.

Healthy Thanksgiving Side Recipes

For this cousin of the Caesar salad use a combination of winter greens, such as...
Cornbread stuffing, a Southern favorite, is a nice change from more traditional...
It is a holiday tradition to fry latkes in hot oil, but here shredded potato-and-...
No holiday dinner would be complete without a relish or chutney, and this one made...
The early American yeast bread, anadama bread, made with molasses and cornmeal,...
Unlike cranberry sauce, a relish involves no cooking. Here, plump raspberries add a...
This healthy revision of green bean casserole skips the canned soup and all the fat...
Fancy up regular mashed potatoes with a layer of mushroom duxelle—a sauté of finely...
Roasting sweet potatoes is even easier than boiling and mashing them. Maple syrup...
Plain mashed potatoes may seem a bit tame after you've tried this flavorful...
Grapefruit juice is the base for the tangy vinaigrette on this salad studded with...
Winter squash becomes tender and sweeter when roasted—a delicious side for a holiday...
Fresh herbs, onion and bacon pair beautifully with Brussels sprouts. This vegetable...
This scrumptious sweet potato casserole gets fabulous flavor from honey and freshly...
Extra-sharp Cheddar and buttermilk add a tangy punch to these mashed potatoes. And,...

Healthy Thanksgiving Dessert Recipes

A sublime silky chocolate custard fills this simple hazelnut shortbread crust. Serve...
The flavor of this spiced orange compote improves with time so make it a day ahead...
With all that delicious fruit an apple pie should be healthy, but the truth is a...
The two-bite pecan tarts satisfy the sweet tooth with far less guilt than pecan pie.
You don't have to have pumpkin pie to still enjoy pumpkin and spice in a...
This tangy yogurt cheesecake is topped with ouzo-poached figs inspired by sikomaida...
This decadent pie is loaded with juicy apples and adorned with a streusel-lover...
This easy, comforting pear crumble is sure to please. Serve it as is or with low-fat...
Dark molasses and dark rum put this pumpkin pie a cut above the rest. Nonfat...
Pureed winter squash gives most of the body to these leaner cheesecake bars.

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