Let vegetables steal the show with these scrumptious, seasonal, and meat-free Thanksgiving dishes, from hearty sides like soy braised kabocha squash or a sweet potato and kale gratin, to savory main courses like spiced vegetable patties or a multilayered eggplant and goat cheese terrine.
Broccoli Rabe with White Beans and Preserved Lemon
The bitter bite of broccoli rabe is tempered by creamy cannellini beans and brightened by salty preserved lemon. A quick and pretty 1-pan side dish, this is easy to scale up for a crowd; unlike softer, more watery greens, rabe retains plenty of volume after cooking. Look for greens with healthy-looking stems and dark green florets. Get the recipe for Broccoli Rabe with White Beans and Preserved Lemon »
Sherry vinegar balances the richness in the cream sauce for this Thanksgiving staple from Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bistro in Yountville, California. A riff on the American classic, this recipe swaps the green beans for slender French-style haricots verts and the canned mushroom soup for a from-scratch mushroom cream sauce. The whole thing then gets a topping of crispy shallots before baking. Get the recipe for Haricots Verts Casserole »
Kugel—the creamy egg noodle casserole that’s a staple of Jewish holiday cooking&dmash;gets a Midwestern topping of cornflakes in this Thanksgiving side dish.
In Crete, boureki is a rich, layered dish typically consisting of potatoes and squash, often topped with a generous amount of cheese before baking. Boureki may be eaten at room temperature, but it is especially irresistible when the cheese is still warm. Get the recipe for Layered Pumpkin and Cheese Gratin Squares (Boureki) »
In this simple, elegant salad, the spicy flavor of thinly sliced raw kale is offset by creamy Pecorino cheese, bright lemon, and sweet-tart dried currants.
A garnish of fried mushrooms and a drizzle of spiced mint butter adds elegance to a simple pureed vegetable soup.
Tossing crisp-fried brussels sprout leaves in a spicy Thai-flavored dressing spiked with yuzu juice, sesame oil, and Sriracha enlivens the old standby vegetable.
This sophisticated take on cranberry sauce, laced with spices and plenty of fresh ginger, gets a boost from chopped celery and tart apples. Get the recipe for Cranberry-Ginger Chutney »
Don’t limit traditional pie spices—clove, cinnamon, and nutmeg—to the dessert table. In this cheesy, rich gratin, the spices take a savory note alongside kale, sweet potatoes, and sharp white cheddar.
It’s not hard to love North Indian saag paneer—meltingly soft spinach strewn with chunks of mild fresh cheese—especially when scooped up with hot flatbread. Saag Paneer (Spinach with Fresh Indian Cheese) »
It’s rare that we encounter spaghetti squash not shredded into its eponymous noodle-like threads. But kept intact, it reveals a beautifully yielding texture and a savory, subtle flavor that’s perfectly offset by a rich walnut-miso glaze.
Inspired by the briny flavors of veal piccata, this elegant side dish is simplicity itself: blanched green beans tossed in a vinaigrette of capers, bright lemon, and a beautiful olive oil. Get the recipe for Green Beans with Lemons and Capers »
Feta, red onion, and mint are a classic combination; tossed with snappy green beans they make a salad of surprising complexity.
Lime and jalapeño punch up this fresh, no-cook take on cranberry sauce. See the Cranberry Salsa recipe »
These Brussels sprouts, inspired by classic South Indian curry dishes, retain a hint of bite in the center, while the garam masala and onion add a sweetness that offsets the sprouts’ flavor nicely. Get the recipe for Curried Brussels Sprouts »
Wild rice adds a toasted nuttiness to this dish, and breaking it up in a food processor allows the rice to cook at the same rate as the polenta. Cookbook author Amy Thielen advises to scrape the corn cobs with the back of a knife after you grate the kernels to extract as much of the corn liquid as you can. Get the recipe for Polenta with Corn and Wild Rice »
Celery root (along with a bit of grated grana padano cheese) adds a deep, earthy backbone to this potato recipe. It’s a tweak even a diehard traditionalist can love. Get the recipe for Whipped Potatoes with Celery Root »
Fragrant orange flower water, called zhaar in Morocco and made from the blossoms of bergamot orange trees, perfumes this delicate salad, in which sweet citrus is offset by spicy radish. Get the recipe for Orange and Radish Salad »
Nutmeg and savory—two seasonings commonly found in 19th-century stuffing recipes—add subtly sweet and herbal notes to this dish. Get the recipe for Classic Stuffing »
