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Thanksgiving dinner gets all the planning, but the dessert table is where everybody actually lingers. These 35 Thanksgiving desserts are the ones we bake for our own table every November: a sheet pan pumpkin pie that feeds the whole crowd, pecan pie cheesecake and pecan pie brownies, apple cranberry pie under an all butter crust, Southern sweet potato pie, cranberry and maple bars, showstopper cakes, and the old school custard and buttermilk pies our grandmothers made. Nearly everything is from scratch, most of it can be made a day ahead, and every one of them has earned a permanent spot in our holiday rotation. Pick two, because nobody has ever complained about too much pie.
Pumpkin Desserts for the Thanksgiving Table
Easy Pumpkin Slab Pie (Sheet Pan Pumpkin Pie)
Classic pumpkin pie stretched onto a sheet pan, with silky spiced filling, a buttery crimped crust, and enough squares for the whole holiday table. The girls claimed the sugared crust leaves before it even cooled. Get the recipe →
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Silky vanilla cheesecake marbled with spiced pumpkin into one gorgeous swirled slice. I make it every year for our Thanksgiving table and it disappears faster than the pie ever does. Get the recipe →
Mini Pumpkin Pies in a Muffin Tin (Easy Recipe)
The Thanksgiving classic shrunk into adorable two bite cups, with real spiced pumpkin custard in flaky crusts baked in a regular muffin tin. No more half eaten slices abandoned on the kids’ plates. Get the recipe →
Easy Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
Soft, spiced pumpkin cake cut into shareable squares and slathered with the dreamiest cream cheese frosting. A big pan feeds a crowd and travels to the in laws without a single worry. Get the recipe →
Pumpkin Poke Cake with Caramel
A tender pumpkin cake poked and soaked with caramel, then topped with whipped cream and toffee bits, from my friend June over at Practically Homemade. It starts with a cake mix, so it is the make-ahead dessert that looks like you fussed. Get the recipe →
Pumpkin Cake with Bourbon Praline Frosting (Easy Sheet Cake)
A moist spiced sheet cake crowned with a warm, pourable pecan praline topping that sets into pure magic. Maddie asked if we could have it for breakfast, and honestly, I did not say no. Get the recipe →
Pumpkin Crunch Cake
Spiced pumpkin custard baked under a buttery, pecan studded cake crumble, from my friend Melissa over at Persnickety Plates. Serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and nobody will miss the pie. Get the recipe →
Pecan, Caramel and Butterscotch Classics
Pecan Pie Cheesecake
A rich, creamy cheesecake on a buttery pecan graham crust, crowned with a gooey caramel pecan pie topping. It wins the dessert table at our house every single Thanksgiving. Get the recipe →
Pecan Pie Brownies Recipe from Scratch
What happens when the two best desserts on the Thanksgiving table stop competing and join forces, a fudgy from scratch brownie under a gooey maple pecan pie layer. It settled our family pie versus brownie debate for good. Get the recipe →
Caramel Pecan Cheesecake Bars
Creamy cheesecake bars on a buttery crust, finished with caramel and toasted pecans, from my friend Liz over at That Skinny Chick Can Bake. They slice clean, travel well, and taste like pecan pie and cheesecake decided to share a plate. Get the recipe →
Grandma’s Butterscotch Pie Recipe
The old fashioned pie that tastes just like the one my grandma made, with a silky brown sugar custard in a crisp, flaky crust. Everyone fights over the corner piece the second it is sliced. Get the recipe →
Chocolate Pecan Cobbler Recipe (with Brownie Mix)
Pecan pie and a fudgy brownie collide into one gooey, scoopable dessert built from a layer of toasted pecans, a buttery maple filling, and a brownie mix topping. Serve it warm with vanilla ice cream and stand back. Get the recipe →
Pecan Pralines Recipe
The buttery, melt in your mouth Southern candy I make every holiday season, and the smell of brown sugar and pecans bubbling on the stove takes me straight back to my grandmother’s kitchen. Set a plate out and watch them vanish. Get the recipe →
No-Bake Pecan Pie Lasagna
Layers of graham crackers, creamy filling, and gooey candied pecans stacked into a no-bake pecan pie lasagna, from my friend Judy over at Pie Lady Bakes. It sets up in the fridge, so your oven stays free for the turkey. Get the recipe →
Apple Desserts Everybody Reaches For
Apple Cranberry Pie Recipe (From Scratch Double Crust)
The apple pie everyone expects, woken up with two cups of tart fresh cranberries under a flaky all butter double crust. That ruby red filling stands out on a table full of brown desserts. Get the recipe →
Best Apple Crumble Recipe
Warm cinnamon spiced apples tucked under a buttery, crisp pecan topping that bakes up golden and bubbly. The smell alone has Maddie and Lizzie hovering by the oven door. Get the recipe →
Easy Caramel Apple Dump Cake Recipe
Warm, gooey, and completely hands off, just apple pie filling, caramel, and a box of cake mix layered right in the pan. Maddie could not believe I did almost nothing to make it. Get the recipe →
Caramel Apple Pie Shooters
All the apple pie flavor layered into little glasses, from my friend Shannah over at My Suburban Kitchen. No slicing, no serving plates, and everybody gets their own. They are the easiest thing on this list to make ahead when the oven is already full. Get the recipe →
Caramel Apple Cheesecake Butter Cake
A buttery cake with a hidden cheesecake swirl, cinnamon apples tucked inside, and a warm cinnamon caramel sauce soaked into every bite. Maddie declared it the best cake I have ever baked. Get the recipe →
Easy Apple Spice Cake
A soft one bowl cake loaded with grated apples and warm spice under a silky brown sugar frosting that tastes like a caramel apple grew up. It is the easiest cake on this whole list. Get the recipe →
Sweet Potato, Cranberry and Maple Sweets
Easy Southern Sweet Potato Pie Recipe
Creamy, custardy, and warmly spiced, with a silky filling that tastes like the holidays in every bite. This is the pie my family requests every Thanksgiving, no exceptions. Get the recipe →
Sweet Potato Cake
Humble sweet potatoes turned into the most tender, moist spiced sheet cake with a fluffy maple frosting on top. Even the sweet potato skeptics at our table go back for a second square. Get the recipe →
Cranberry Bars (Orange Cranberry Pie Bars)
A jammy, sweet tart fresh cranberry filling tucked between a buttery brown sugar oat crumble that does double duty as crust and topping. The whole house smells like orange and cinnamon while they bake. Get the recipe →
Maple Cheesecake Bars (Easy Fall Dessert)
Real maple syrup and brown sugar baked into a creamy filling over a buttery graham crust, cut into bars that taste like a stack of pancakes went to pastry school. Make them the day before and they only get better. Get the recipe →
White Chocolate Cranberry Cheesecake Bars
Creamy white chocolate cheesecake on a golden cookie crust, crowned with sparkly sugared cranberries. Maddie called those cranberries the prettiest thing I have ever baked, and they make the whole dessert table look festive. Get the recipe →
Cheesecakes and Showstopper Cakes
Basque Cheesecake
The crustless, burnt on top cheesecake that is somehow rustic and elegant at once, with a deeply caramelized top and the creamiest custardy center. It looks like a bakery splurge and could not be easier to make. Get the recipe →
Perfect Creamy No-Bake Cheesecake Recipe
Unbelievably creamy, perfectly tangy, and you never have to turn on the oven, which matters when the turkey has it booked all day. Make it the night before and top it however your family likes. Get the recipe →
Spice Layer Cake (Easy Spice Cake)
A soft, moist crumb packed with cinnamon, nutmeg, molasses, and a whole pantry of warm spices, frosted with a dreamy eggnog buttercream. This is the cake I make when the house needs to smell like a holiday. Get the recipe →
Chocolate Caramel Cake (from Scratch Recipe)
Moist chocolate layers, silky caramel buttercream, a glossy ganache drip, and a caramel drizzle, all from scratch. It stole the show at a birthday and it will steal the show after turkey too. Get the recipe →
Easy Fudgy Turtle Brownie Pie
A fudgy brownie filling loaded with pecans and chocolate chips baked into a thick, crunchy Oreo crust, then drizzled with caramel and chocolate like a giant candy turtle. My girls ask for it every time we need a showstopper. Get the recipe →
Old School Pies and Cozy Puddings
Custard Pie
Old fashioned, silky smooth, and it tastes like a hug from grandma, a flaky crust filled with creamy vanilla custard and a dusting of nutmeg. Simple, sweet, and not chocolate for once. Get the recipe →
Classic Southern Buttermilk Pie Recipe
The Southern dessert my grandma always had waiting on the counter, with a silky custard center and a golden, slightly crackly top. Five minutes of mixing and the whole house smells like a bakery. Get the recipe →
Best Easy Banana Cream Pie Recipe
A flaky crust, fresh banana slices, silky homemade vanilla pudding, and a cloud of sweetened whipped cream. It disappears the second it hits the table, and Lizzie always goes back for a second slice. Get the recipe →
Red Wine Poached Pears
Whole pears simmered in spiced red wine until they turn tender and ruby red, the dessert that looks impressive but could not be easier. This is the elegant finish for a holiday dinner when everyone is too full for pie. Get the recipe →
Fireball Apple Bread Pudding
Buttery brioche soaked in cinnamon custard, studded with Granny Smith apples, and finished with a warm Fireball whiskey caramel sauce. The whole house smells like a cinnamon roll shop while it bakes. Get the recipe →
Save This Thanksgiving Dessert Lineup
Pin this roundup so the whole dessert table is one tap away when you start planning Thanksgiving week, and if you bake one of these, leave a comment on the recipe and tell us which one got claimed first. From our kitchen to your table!
