5 Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipes

These 5 Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipes will help you pull off the perfect Thanksgiving feast. Simple and relatively quick, these dishes will turn your Thanksgiving meal into a memorable occasion. All the staples are here with a few twists to set these Thanksgiving side dish recipes apart from the mundane.

1. Cranberry Salad

Cranberries are a favorite side dish at Thanksgiving celebrations. This Cranberry Salad recipe puts a different spin on an old standby.

To make Cranberry Salad for Thanksgiving, you will need:

• 1 12 oz package cranberries, finely chopped
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 ½ cups chopped apples
• 1 cup miniature marshmallows
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• ½ cup vanilla yogurt
• 1 cup whipped cream

1. Mix cranberries and sugar in a bowl. Refrigerate for three hours.
2. Add marshmallows, pecans and apples to cranberries.
3. Blend yogurt and whipped cream. Add to cranberries and gently stir.

 2. Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes are a Thanksgiving side dish staple but with a pinch of garlic and a little cheese, this recipe is out of this world.

To make Garlic Mashed Potatoes, you will need:

• 5 lbs yellow potatoes, peeled
• ½ cup butter
• 2 cups parmesan cheese
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 cup fresh chives, chopped
• 1 ½ cups cream cheese
• Dash of salt and pepper

1. Bring large pot of water to a boil. Add potatoes and boil until tender; drain.
2. Add remaining six ingredients. Use a potato masher to mash until smooth.

 3. Candied Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are a customary Thanksgiving side dish. This recipe will help you master the art of candied sweet potatoes.

To make Candied Sweet Potatoes, you will need:

• 8 medium sweet potatoes
• salt
• 1 1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2/3 cup water
• 4 tablespoons butter

1. Cook sweet potatoes until tender. Peel, cut in half and sprinkle with a dash of salt.
2.  Mix sugar, water and butter in a skillet. Bring to a boil.
3. Add potatoes. Cook over a low heat for fifteen minutes.

 4. Green Beans with Mushrooms and Almonds

Green beans are another common course served at Thanksgiving. Turn this side dish into something uncommon with this recipe.

To make Green Beans with Mushrooms and Almonds, you will need:

• 1 lb fresh or frozen green beans
• ½ lb mushrooms sliced
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds
• 1 tbsp butter

1. Boil green beans until tender. Drain beans.
2. Sauté mushrooms until tender in buttered skillet. Add almonds and sauté for one minute.
3. Add drained green beans. Toss green beans, mushrooms and almonds together to blend.

5. Gravy on the Go

Making the perfect gravy is an art that you can master when you use this recipe to complete your round of Thanksgiving side dishes.

• 4 cups water
• 4 chicken bouillon cubes
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 8 tbsp butter
• 8 tbsp flour

1. Bring water to a boil. Drop bouillon into water. Stir to dissolve.
2. Add bay leaf. Simmer stock for ten minutes
3. Melt butter in pan used to cook turkey with all but ½ cup of meat juices removed. Add flour and stir to form paste.
4. Add stock to paste. Stir over low heat until gravy thickens.