Our Best Thanksgiving Desserts
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie [1]
A spiced filling, made from whipped cream, creates a lighter-tasting version of traditional pumpkin pie, while the gingersnap crust adds more kick than classic crusts. "This is a fantastic recipe," writes one of our website reviewers. "You get the wonderful pumpkin in a light chiffon pie! A holiday must!"
Pumpkin pie variations [5]
Mommy's Pumpkin Pie: "This recipe is adapted from my mother's classic pumpkin pie," says Linda Hundt, owner of Sweetielicious Bakery Cafe in DeWitt, Michigan. "I added cream to make it a bit richer and orange zest for flavor." The result is a dark, mahogany pumpkin pie with ginger-cinnamon-clove spiciness (bottom pie in photo).
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie: Cream cheese strudel inspired Peter Sterk, owner of Just Pies in Westerville, Ohio, to build a pumpkin pie with a surprise cream cheese layer (top pie in photo). For the creamiest pumpkin pie, don't overbake.
Crumb-Topped Apple Trio Pie [10]
Crisp on top, sweetly tender inside, this quintessential Thanksgiving dessert blends tart and sweet apples -- Granny Smith, Jonagold and Braeburn -- with sugar and cinnamon under a brown-sugar and walnut crumb topping.
Pumpkin Trifle [14]
Pumpkin Trifle makes a spectacular ending to a Thanksgiving meal, with layers of cranberries, cake and pumpkin. Packaged ingredients such as canned pumpkin, frozen pound cake, canned cranberry sauce, candy bars and instant pudding mix speed prep time.
Pumpkin Trifle [15]
Caramel-Pecan French Silk Pie [18]
Caramel and pecans form a gooey base for this chocolate dream pie. Make this decadent pie at least a day ahead so it has plenty of time to chill before guests arrive. Leaf-shape pastry bits create a festive finishing touch.
Pumpkin-Praline Layer Cake [22]
This nutty layer cake has a whipped cream topping over a moist filling of pumpkin, brown sugar, pecans, butter and more whipping cream. "What a beauty! Very impressive and pretty easy, too," writes a website reviewer. "The praline layer is awesome!"
Gooey Pecan Pie Bars [26]
Pecan pie in a bite-size bar? Say no more. We got the recipe for these rich, buttery, thick cookies from Liberty Gathering Place restaurant in West Liberty, Ohio.
Gooey Pecan Pie Bars [27]
Red Velvet Cheesecake [30]
We took the red velvet cake that we love and gave it a creamy twist. Don't let the red color fool you: The flavor is all chocolate.
Paradise Pumpkin Pie [34]
A cheesecake layer and nut topping help this pumpkin pie stand out from its peers. This recipe -- a winner at the Morton, Illinois, Pumpkin Festival baking competition -- made our list of the 20 top recipes published in Midwest Living's® first two decades.
Paradise Pumpkin Pie [35]
Pumpkin-Chocolate Cheesecake Bars [38]
This make-ahead bar cookie offers an irresistible stack of holiday flavors: sweet graham cracker crust, rich chocolaty cheesecake, spicy pumpkin cheesecake, and a topping of sour cream.
Chocolate Chess Pie [42]
Fort Wayne, Indiana, cookbook author Marcia Adams loves this standout treat. "It's so easy to prepare," she says. This is Marcia's rendition of the Southern classic chess pie: a basic dessert made with eggs, sugar, butter and a little flour.
Chocolate Chess Pie [43]
Danish Pastry Apple Bars [46]
This recipe for Danish Pastry Apple Bars comes from an Indiana teacher. "Excellent recipe!" says a website reviewer. "It's just like apple pie in a cake pan."
Fantasy Chocolate Pie [50]
Dream about all the ingredients you'd like to see in a dessert, and you'll see why we named this Fantasy Chocolate Pie. It's made with three kinds of chocolate pieces (milk chocolate, semisweet, and semisweet-and-white- chocolate swirled) -- plus coconut, pecans and almonds. For extra indulgence, top with whipped cream and chocolate curls.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Sandwich Cake [54]
A cream cheese layer and rich chocolate frosting make this pumpkin cake a crowd-pleaser.
Melt-in-Your-Mouth Pumpkin Cookies [58]
Top cake-like pumpkin cookies with a smooth brown sugar and butter frosting, then dust with cinnamon for a bite-size Thanksgiving treat.
Caramel Heavenlies [62]
Graham crackers form the base for this bar cookie with layers of marshmallows, brown sugar, almonds and coconut. It's a holiday favorite from Georgine Simmonds of Genesee, Michigan. "I've made these cookies since 1984," Georgine says.
Caramel Heavenlies [63]
Pumpkin Cheesecake [66]
This creamy, cool cheesecake is lightly flavored with pumpkin and spices, perfect with a cup of coffee after your Thanksgiving meal. The recipe comes from a Seeley, Wisconsin, restaurant.
Pumpkin Cheesecake [67]
Fantasy Chocolate-Caramel Delights [70]
"I love caramel, nuts and chocolate," says the Mandan, North Dakota, reader who sent this recipe to a Midwest Living cookie contest. Fantasy Chocolate-Caramel Delights were one of the highest-rated cookies in the contest.
Apple Butter Pumpkin Pie [74]
Apple butter lends extra sweetness and a slightly softer texture to classic pumpkin pie. The streusel topping adds crunch.
Pumpkin Spice Creme Brulee [78]
This creamy, rich dessert comes from Courtright's Restaurant in Willow Springs, Illinois. Although the restaurant puts a solid crust of caramelized sugar on its creme brulee, we made it easier for you and drizzled it on.
Cider-Spiked Apple and Pecan Tart [82]
In this unusual fruit tart, apples are cooked in butter then arranged in a prebaked crust and brushed with jelly. The result is an edible work of art. Boiled cider enhances the distinct apply flavor. You can make your own using our recipe or buy it in specialty food stores or online.
Ginger-Cinnamon Apple Crisp [86]
"This is a twist on a popular dish and is one of my personal favorites," says April Osburn from the Clabber Girl Bake Shop in Terre Haute, Indiana. Thinly slice the apples so they get done in the allotted baking time.
Double Chocolate-Espresso Truffle Pie [90]
Do you have a chocoholic in your family? Give them something to love with this über-rich pie. For pretty chocolate curls, warm a bar of milk chocolate in your pocket or hand, then shave with a sharp vegetable peeler.
Fresh Apple Cake [94]
This nutty comfort cake from Sharon Buckner of Rhineland, Missouri, gets a sugary top and caramelized gooey bottom as it cooks. Don't be surprised by the thick batter; it will bake into a moist, dense cake.
Fresh Apple Cake [95]
Almond Toffee [98]
Milk chocolate and toasted almonds coat a crunchy toffee base. Be sure to use real butter in the toffee; with margarine, the fat separates out onto the candy's surface.
Almond Toffee [99]
Cherry-berry pies [102]
Red raspberries and blueberries join ruby-red cherries in Cherry Berry Berry Pie (left), a favorite from Sweetielicious Bakery Cafe in DeWitt, Michigan (just north of Lansing). The trio yields a dark, rich filling crowned with a crunchy streusel topping.
For another twist, try Cherry Apple Crumb Pie. At Grand Traverse Pie Company in Traverse City, Michigan, cooks use tart Michigan Northern Spy Apples with the local tart Montmorency cherries for this pie to satisfy both apple and cherry lovers.
Cherry Berry Berry Pie [103]
Cherry Apple Crumb Pie [104]
Autumn Cutouts [107]
A hint of pumpkin adds flavor to festive Autumn Cutouts, a sugar cookie dough we tinted with orange and green paste food coloring. Our instructions show how to create marbled leaves, patchwork pumpkins and polka-dot pumpkins.
Autumn Cutouts [108]
More decadent dessert ideas [111]
Favorite Fall Pie Recipes [112]
Irresistible Apple Dessert Recipes [113]
Fabulous Fall Cookie Recipes [114]
Our Best Bar Cookies [115]
35 Best Holiday Desserts [116]