If you’re dreading Thanksgiving because you know you’ll eat like there’s no tomorrow, I have a solution for you! I’ve put together a list of 21 of the healthiest and best Thanksgiving dishes I could find. Now you can enjoy Thanksgiving a little more!
Every time Thanksgiving comes around, I take it as an opportunity to make a traditional dish a little healthier. Or, if I’m feeling daring, I’ll make a new dish with common Thanksgiving ingredients.
Last year I made a Cranberry Brie Tart. It was really tasty and a big hit with my family. This year, I’m going to make Cranberry sauce. Don’t tell my family this, but I’m going to ferment the cranberries before turning it into a sauce.
I’m also planning on brewing some Kombucha (with my homemade SCOBY) to offer as well. Hopefully, it goes well with the fam! If not, thank the good Lord there’s Christmas to try again!
The Recipes Below…
Below you will find healthy Thanksgiving recipes from turkey to pie. Most of the recipes are to help you make common dishes a little bit healthier. That way your family will be more inclined to eat them.
But, you will also find a few unique healthy dishes if you want to challenge your family or friends to try something new. It’s up to you to decide, so here’s to letting your inner culinary genius come out!
By the way, I looked through the ingredients of each recipe and checked the reviews before selecting recipes. I believe that recipes that use more natural sources of sugar (i.e. honey, maple syrup) and avoids heavy ingredients (i.e. heavy cream) are ways to make a dish a little bit healthier.
Also, most of these dishes are gluten-free because so many people now have trouble with gluten. By picking many gluten-free recipes, I hope to make your life a little easier and your gluten-free family members a little happier.
Main Dish: Turkey
Here is a site that has different ways to cook a turkey. Not all of them are super healthy, but the goal is to flavor the turkey well so that you don’t have to add a bunch of condiments later.
If you want to go the healthy route, cook your turkey with vegetables. You can never go wrong with vegetables like onions, garlic, and carrots!
One more thing… If you scroll to the bottom of this site, you’ll find a helpful graphic on how long to cook your turkey.
https://chiefhealth.us/2018/09/19/13-thanksgiving-turkey-recipes/
Side Dishes
Sweet Potato Casserole with Maple Pecan Topping
If you’re looking for an inexpensive dish, check this one out! Since sweet potatoes are often on sale during this time of year, you can save money with this dish. The common sweet potato casserole dish has tons of sugar, so here’s how to make the dish a little healthier.
Also, this dish is gluten-free and vegan.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour
Jessica in the Kitchen’s Skinny Sweet Potato Casserole
Healthy Green Bean Casserole
Probably one of the most common Thanksgiving dishes, this green bean casserole is a great way to make the dish a lot healthier. The typical dish has a lot of calories in it, but Alexis substituted some of the heavier ingredients for lighter ones.
By the way, this is a more expensive dish to make. It has some ingredients you may have to buy at a health store. Alexis provided substitutes to make it gluten-free, too.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Hummusapien’s Healthy Green Bean Casserole
Low-Calorie Thanksgiving Stuffing
If you’re watching your calories, stuffing is something you should probably avoid. Unless you modify the recipe to substitute high-calorie ingredients with lower-calorie ones. This recipe helps you do just that.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Laa Loosh’s Thanksgiving Stuffing
Sweet Potato Unstuffing
Now here is a unique spin on stuffing that’s gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and grain-free. For those of you with family members with food intolerances, this dish is for you. Don’t worry, though it is free of a lot of things, flavor-free is not one of them!
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
The Real Food RDs’ Sweet Potato Unstuffing
Butternut Squash And Wild Mushroom Stuffing
Another unique spin on stuffing, this one complements turkey well. It’s simple to put together and will not disappoint! Plus it can be made gluten-free if you cut out the sourdough bread.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Half Baked Harvest’s Butternut Squash and Wild Mushroom Stuffing
Herbed Wild Rice and Quinoa Stuffing
For Christmas, my mom makes Cornish hens with a wild rice stuffing that is sooo good! So I know this dish will not disappoint. It is a really great stuffing that is flavorful and gluten-free.
You’ve got to try this one!
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Kitchen Treaty’s Herbed Wild Rice and Quinoa Stuffing
Homemade Cranberry Sauce
Cranberry sauce is one of my personal favorites! I love the canned sauce but it has been processed a lot and has a ton of sugar in it. Here’s a great way to make cranberry sauce a lot healthier!
Total Prep and Cook Time: 40 minutes
Eat the Gains’s Homemade Cranberry Sauce
Low-Sugar Apple Cranberry Sauce
Here’s another healthy version of cranberry sauce. This one uses apples and a little bit of sugar to sweeten the bitterness of the cranberries. If you don’t want to use raw sugar, you can substitute the 5 tablespoons of sugar with ¼ cup of honey.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 20-30 minutes
The Foodie and the Fix’s Low Sugar Apple Cranberry Sauce
Roasted Potatoes with Parmesan Garlic and Herbs
There are always potatoes at Thanksgiving, right? Well here’s a recipe you can replace mashed potatoes with. This one will surely be well-liked by your friends and family!
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour
Cooking Classy’s Parmesan Herb Roasted Potatoes
Honey Maple Roasted Carrots
Since fall is a great season for carrots, this dish is really inexpensive to make. The maple syrup caramelizes the carrots, while the pomegranate seeds balance the sweetness of this dish. If you’re not a pomegranate fan, you can substitute the seeds with apples.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 40 minutes
The Cafe Sucre Farine’s Honey Maple Roasted Carrots
Roasted Mushrooms with Garlic and Thyme
Mushrooms are a great way to add more nutrients to your Thanksgiving meal. Here’s a simple yet flavorful dish that will be a hit with any mushroom sympathizer. Just make sure you don’t eat all of them before they make it to the table!
Total Prep and Cook Time: 35 minutes
Cakes Cottage’s Roasted Mushrooms with Garlic & Thyme
Dessert Time
Clean Eating Pecan Pie
There is a lot of fat in pecan pie. But, there’s nothing wrong with enjoying some good ol’ pecan pie once (or twice) a year. To make this dish just a little bit healthier, check out this recipe.
What’s the difference between this recipe and a traditional recipe? Tiffany substitutes canned and processed ingredients with real, whole foods. You can also make her whole wheat pie crusts, or if that’s too much of a change then use your own.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes + 30 minutes to make homemade crust
The Gracious Pantry’s Clean-Eating Pecan Pie
Salted Caramel Pecan Pie Tarts
A great way to make your desserts a little bit healthier is to make individual portions of them. These pecan pie tarts are a great example. That way you limit the size of one piece of pie versus the pecan-pie-eater having free reign with how they slice the pie.
Also, these tarts are gluten-free, grain-free, and dairy-free. They look very delicious!
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Liz Moody’s Healthy Pecan Pie Tart
Healthy Pumpkin Pie
This recipe uses homemade pumpkin puree and homemade whole wheat pie crust. Heavy cream is used to thicken the puree. If you love baking, try this recipe out!
Total Prep and Cook Time: 3 hours (mostly cook time)
https://www.kitchenstewardship.com/healthy-pumpkin-pie-recipe/
Healthy Crustless Pumpkin Pie
For those who need a gluten-free pie, this recipe is for you. I do recommend making your own pumpkin puree (if you have time). You can use the pumpkin puree recipe from the recipe right above this one.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour 25 minutes + 60 minutes if you make your own puree
Kitchen Stewardship’s Healthy Pumpkin Pie
Mini Apple Pies
You’ve got to check out this creative spin on apple pie! What makes this healthier than regular apple pie is the apple-to-crust ratio. There are a lot more apples to crust in this recipe, which is great!
If you want to make it even healthier, substitute the 1/3 cup of brown sugar with ¼ cup of honey. To make it gluten-free, try this gluten-free pie crust.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 42 minutes + 30 minutes to prep crust
It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken’s Mini Apple Pies
Healthy Apple Pie
Here’s another spin on apple pie: apple pie with granola topping. By replacing the crust topping with granola not only improves the apple-to-crust ratio, but it also adds more nutrients. If you need to make it gluten-free, use gluten-free flour in place of spelt or white flour.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour
Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Healthy Apple Pie
Clean Eating Peanut Butter Pie
Another clean eating pie recipe, this one is for all the peanut butter lovers out there. This pie can be made using 5 or 7 ingredients (depending on what crust you make). Be sure to make the grain-free crust if you need it to be gluten-free!
Total Prep and Cook Time: 30-50 minutes (depending on what crust you make)
The Gracious Pantry’s Winter Fruit Salad with Maple Lime Dressing
Winter Fruit Salad with Maple-Lime Dressing
Fruit salad is a great dish for pretty much every occasion. This recipe uses winter fruit and is full of great nutrients. Also, this dish is a healthier version of typical sugar-loaded fruit salads.
Total Prep Time: 30 minutes
Julia’s Winter Fruit Salad with Maple Lime Dressing
Cranberry Blueberry Crisp
If you love fruit and granola, you’re going to love this recipe. It’s simple and quick to make, so if you need a dish that is tasty but fast, try this one. It’s also gluten-free.
Total Prep and Cook Time: 45 minutes
The Pretty Bee’s Cranberry Blueberry Crisp
No-Bake Pumpkin Balls
Pumpkin lovers, this one is for you! It’s not only gluten-free, but you don’t even have to bake them! I recommend using homemade pumpkin puree (like from this pumpkin pie recipe) instead of using canned puree.
Total Prep Time: 10 minutes
Turning the Clock Back’s No Bake Pumpkin Balls
Do you have a favorite recipe that I’ve listed here? Or, do you have other healthy Thanksgiving recipes that I missed? Let me know in the comments below 👇