10 Fun Thanksgiving Desserts

Pumpkin pie is going to be on the table either way, so these are the desserts that sit next to it.

Most of them are pie flavors in another shape, which means they can be made the day before and nobody has to roll out a crust on Thursday morning.

Each one below has a pin so you can see what you’re aiming for, and a link to a recipe that has actually been made.

Ten of them.

1. Pumpkin Spice Tiramisu

This version has no raw eggs, because the cream is mascarpone beaten with sugar and pumpkin, then folded into whipped heavy cream.

Take the mascarpone straight from the fridge and don’t overbeat it, since warm or overmixed mascarpone turns grainy and splits.

Cool the coffee before dipping, and dip each ladyfinger for a second per side, because a soaked ladyfinger falls apart and leaves a puddle at the bottom.

Two teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice in the cream is enough, and cocoa goes on top only right before serving.

It needs at least four hours in the fridge to set, and overnight is better, which is what makes it a good Thanksgiving dessert.

Keep it cold until it’s served, since it’s mostly dairy.

The pin is Rich and Delish’s creamy pumpkin tiramisu, which uses about 16 ounces of mascarpone, half a cup of pumpkin puree, two cups of heavy cream and 28 ladyfingers soaked in two cups of espresso, chilled four hours and cut into ten slices.

2. Maple Pecan Cheesecake Bars

Cheesecake bars are a cheesecake you don’t have to worry about cracking, because the pecan topping covers the surface anyway.

Press the graham cracker crust hard into the corners of the pan with the bottom of a measuring cup, so it holds when the bars are cut.

Line the pan with parchment with the ends hanging over, so you can lift the whole slab out before cutting.

For the maple version, replace half the corn syrup in the pecan layer with pure maple syrup, since all maple makes the topping runnier.

Chill them overnight before cutting and wipe the knife between every cut, which is the only way to get clean squares.

They stay in the fridge until serving and keep about four days.

The pin is Olive and Mango’s pecan pie cheesecake bars, which put a graham cracker crust under a cream cheese and sour cream filling and finish with a brown sugar and corn syrup pecan pie layer.

3. Cranberry Orange Trifle

Individual trifles in glasses are easier to serve than one big bowl, and they look better on a dessert table.

The cranberry layer is a quick sauce, cooked only a few minutes so it stays syrupy instead of setting like jam.

Use freshly squeezed orange juice in it, since bottled juice makes the sauce taste flat.

The custard needs to be fully cold before it goes in, or it melts the whipped cream.

Clear dessert glasses show the layers, which is the whole point of a trifle.

Assemble the morning of, keep them in the fridge, and add the dried orange slices just before serving.

The pin is Under A Tin Roof’s cranberry orange custard and spiced cake trifles, which layer a homemade spice cake, a vanilla custard, an orange cranberry sauce made with fresh cranberries and orange juice, and whipped cream, topped with dried orange slices.

4. Sweet Potato Marshmallow Mousse

This is sweet potato casserole turned into a dessert cup, and the kids’ table will eat it first.

Roast the sweet potatoes instead of boiling them, because boiled ones are watery and the mousse won’t hold its shape.

Blend the flesh completely smooth before folding in the whipped cream, since any lumps show up in a glass.

Crushed gingersnaps on the bottom give it a crust, and a marshmallow fluff layer on top stands in for the toasted marshmallows.

A kitchen torch browns the top of the fluff in a few seconds if you want it to look like the casserole.

Make the cups the day before and keep them in the fridge, adding the gingersnap crumbs on top just before serving so they stay crisp.

The pin is Campfire Marshmallows’ gingersnap sweet potato mousse with marshmallow fluff, which layers crushed gingersnaps, a spiced sweet potato mousse and marshmallow fluff in small glasses.

5. Apple Cider Donut Bread Pudding

Day-old apple cider donuts are the bread here, and they work better than fresh ones because they soak up the custard without collapsing.

Cut them into chunks and leave them out on a tray for a few hours if they’re still soft.

Let the donuts soak in the custard for at least twenty minutes before baking, or the bottom stays dry and the top floats.

The center has to reach 160°F on an instant-read thermometer, since the custard is raw egg until it does.

The caramel is apple cider reduced and cooked into a caramel sauce, poured over warm portions.

Assemble it the night before, refrigerate, and bake it in the morning with a few extra minutes.

The pin is I am a Honey Bee’s apple cider donut bread pudding with apple cider caramel, which bakes cubed cider donuts in a custard and serves it warm under the cider caramel.

6. Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars

Bars are pecan pie for a crowd, with a shortbread crust instead of pastry and no worrying about a soggy bottom.

Bake the shortbread crust on its own first, so it stays crisp under the wet filling.

Toast the pecans for eight minutes before they go in, because raw pecans taste soft under the syrup.

Cocoa in the filling and chopped chocolate on top is what makes it chocolate pecan pie rather than pecan pie with chips.

Let them cool at least three hours before cutting, or the filling runs; an 8×8 metal pan lined with parchment makes lifting them out easy.

They keep at room temperature for a day and in the fridge for about five.

The pin is The Cozy Plum’s chocolate pecan pie bars, which use a brown sugar shortbread crust and a filling with cocoa powder, bake about 45 minutes in an 8×8 pan, cool three hours, and cut into 16.

7. Caramel Apple Crisp Cups

Individual apple crisps bake faster than a big pan and come out of the oven already portioned.

Use ramekins or oven-safe cups that hold about a cup each; a set of 8-ounce ramekins is the right size.

Granny Smith or Honeycrisp, cut small, because big apple pieces are still hard when the topping is done.

A spoonful of caramel goes under the apples, not on top, so it bubbles up through the fruit instead of burning on the oats.

Set the ramekins on a sheet pan, since the caramel bubbles over.

Make the topping ahead and keep it in the fridge, then assemble and bake while the turkey rests.

The pin is EatingWell’s caramel apple crisp for two, which bakes two individual crisps in small dishes and scales up by the number of ramekins you have.

8. Spiced Pear Galette

A galette is pie without the parts that go wrong, since the crust just folds up around the fruit.

Bosc pears are the ones to use, firm-ripe, because soft pears release too much juice and the base goes soggy.

Ginger, cinnamon, cardamom and nutmeg together are what make it taste like a holiday dessert instead of a plain fruit tart.

Keep the dough cold until it goes in the oven, and brush the folded edges with egg yolk and sprinkle with turbinado sugar for the crunchy top.

Bake it on parchment on a sheet pan, since the juice always finds a gap.

It’s best warm on the day, and it doesn’t need the hours of cooling a pie does.

The pin is Olive and Mango’s spiced pear galette, which uses four large Bosc pears with ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, honey and lemon, an all-butter crust, and pecans with turbinado sugar on top.

9. Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes

Mini cheesecakes baked in a muffin pan skip the water bath and the springform, and they’re done in half an hour.

Bake them low, at 300°F, which is what keeps the tops from cracking.

Cream cheese has to be soft at room temperature, or you’ll beat air in trying to get the lumps out and they’ll puff and sink.

Swirl the pumpkin layer in with a toothpick, not a spoon, so you get ribbons instead of a muddy orange.

Foil cupcake liners peel away cleaner than paper from a cold cheesecake.

They need a few hours in the fridge to set, stay refrigerated, and keep four days.

The pin is OMG Chocolate Desserts’ mini pumpkin swirled cheesecakes, which use a graham cracker crust, 16 ounces of cream cheese, powdered sugar and two egg whites, with a spiced pumpkin swirl, baked at 300°F for about 30 minutes to make 12.

10. Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding

Store-bought cinnamon rolls, baked and a day old, are the bread, and the icing gets saved for the top.

Tear them into pieces rather than cutting, so the edges crisp up in the oven.

Pour the custard over and press the rolls down so every piece is wet, then let it sit twenty minutes.

Bake until the center is set and reaches 160°F, because the edges brown well before the middle is done.

A cream cheese glaze goes on while it’s still warm so it melts into the top; a 9×13 ceramic baking dish goes straight from oven to table.

This is the one to make for the morning after Thanksgiving if the dessert table is already full.

The pin is Mr. Make It Happen’s cinnamon roll bread pudding, which bakes the rolls in a cinnamon sugar custard until it’s soft in the middle and crisp at the edges, then finishes it with a cream cheese glaze.

For a bigger table, the Thanksgiving desserts for a crowd post has ten that scale up.

And if the trifle was the one that went, the fall trifle recipes post has nine more.