Thanksgiving Staple Recipes

Friends, Thanksgiving is SO CLOSE. I can’t believe the holiday season is finally here. This year is especially exciting because it’s Oaklyn’s first big holidays! It’s so exciting, and I’m just itching to start decorating for Christmas already. 

I love to cook and bake, so the holidays are the perfect excuse to hibernate inside and fill my house with sweet scents of cookies, pies, and casseroles.

This year we get to go to a Friendsgiving party, so I’m prepping this week to make a few of my favorite dishesI I thought I’d just compile a list of all my Thanksgiving favorites here, and I hope some of you can use and love them too! 

I tried to include a few recipes that were easily adapted for different diets and tastes. The Vegan Pumpkin Pie recipe was definitely my favorite, and it was a big hit with my family last year too! 

First up: Apple Cider. I love a good cider to sip on, but sometimes at the store it can be up to $8 per gallon (and can be full of ingredients I can't even pronounce.) This one is easy, and I love to use freshly picked apples in it! And the spices are all great to keep on hand for the holiday season. 

I also love a good homemade cranberry sauce. It's one of those recipes that's stupidly easy, but a lot of people don't spend the time making it. Now that I've had homemade cranberry sauce, I'll never go back to canned! This recipe is easily adaptable if you want to add orange juice or other flavors- but I prefer it in all its plain cranberry goodness. 

Next, something I've made for the last few years in a row is Sweet Potato Casserole. Around where we live, potatoes are abundant, and they're easy to find at a roadside stand or the market. Since I have such easy access to it all, it's been a no-brainer that I'd make it a yearly tradition! I LOVE sweet potatoes, but found that not everyone has them at their Thanksgiving table, so I've made it my civic duty to make sure I supply my friends and family with it. So far, no one has complained about it. 

Finally, the recipe I've REALLY been waiting to share with you all. This Pumpkin Pie is the best pie recipe I've ever made. My sister in law is vegan, so I made it last year as an experiment to make sure she had something to eat at dessert. My family SCARFED it and asked me to bring it for Christmas too! It is so creamy and delicious! 

If you're not a big fan of coconut milk, Cashew cream would work well also. 

Quick tip: Full fat Coconut Milk is the kind you get in a can, so if you're looking in the milk aisle, you probably won't find it! I usually have the best luck finding it in the Hispanic food section of our grocery store. 

Also note that there isn't anything raw in this. It might be a little bouncy and seem like it isn't done yet when it first comes out of the oven, but it isn't undercooked! It'll set as it cools.