Each year, families gather around the kitchen stove to cook mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and green bean casseroles, but maybe you’re looking to add something unique to the dinner table. You don’t have to mess with the classics, like stuffing and mashed potatoes swimming in gravy. However, including something different this year may quickly become a crowd favorite and a staple for your family. The holidays are about creating your own traditions with those you love, so why not start with a new side dish?
Let our team at Huffines CJDR Lewisville help plan your family holiday meals by providing you with different Thanksgiving dishes to try this year.
Pumpkin and Cheddar Scalloped Potatoes
It’s not the holidays if you’re not devouring something creamy and cheesy. Add a twist to your routine potato lineup by creating pumpkin and cheddar scalloped potatoes. The unique pumpkin flavor in the potatoes can make for a fun fall flavor, which is splendid for the holiday. When making these potatoes, rather than the classic creamy cheese sauce of regular scalloped potatoes, the pumpkin puree brings more cream and fun to the flavor.
Additionally, you’ll want to get some sweet garlic, extra sharp cheddar, butter, and flour. The flour thickens up the sauce for the dish’s signature creamy base. Your family will fall in love with these potatoes and want them every year.
Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie
If you have vegetarians coming to your holiday dinner, having vegetarian options for them to enjoy outside of endless mashed potatoes can show you care. Try creating the vegetarian shepherd’s pie this Thanksgiving because it’s a cozy fall dish. When shopping for dinner this year, pick up a bag of green lentils to give the pie a hearty base. Although this pie lacks the meat of the original recipe, it retains the same flavor everyone knows and loves. When choosing the cheese to include, it’s important to note that Parmigiano-Reggiano contains animal rennet, making it not a vegetarian option.
The vegetarians in your life are sure to appreciate the gesture and taste.
Autumn Glow Salad with Lemon Dressing
Perhaps you’re not looking to add something entirely new to the dinner table but rather a twist on the classics, like salad. For the appetizer salad, prepare an “autumn glow” salad with lemon dressing. This is a simple salad for the season because it has ingredients like sweet potatoes, apples, roasted cauliflower, and fall spices. Try preparing this salad after you have everything else for dinner in the oven or on the stove because you can use the leftover pieces of sweet potatoes and apples to throw into the dish, making it a cost-effective appetizer this holiday season.
Twice-Baked Acorn Squash With Maple Butter and Pecans
Enjoy mouth-watering, fall-inspired twice-baked acorn squash with maple butter and pecans this Thanksgiving. Maybe your mother, grandfather, or other beloved relative makes twice-baked potatoes a staple for their holiday dinners, but now it’s your turn to add a unique twist to the dish. The halved acorn squash creates a pleasing presentation during the meal, with its scrumptious taste and fewer carbs than regular twice-baked potatoes. In this dish, there’s only one large russet potato and more sweetener with maple syrup and the salty complement of pecans. The creme fraiche also comes with a nutty flavor and sweeter undertones.
This is also a great side dish for vegetarians at the table.
Cheese and Garlic Pull-Apart Bread
Keep the crowd at bay while the dinner finishes cooking with delectable cheese and garlic pull-apart bread. Your guests will clear the plate in less than 10 minutes with its enticing warmth as the elastic cheese pulls apart with spicy but subtly sweet garlic flavors. When you make this dish, use fresh or store-bought herbs and choose whatever cheese you prefer. Additionally, any crispy or sourdough bread will work great for this recipe.
Slow-Cooker Corn Pudding
Get the slow cooker out from the cupboard and make slow-cooker corn pudding for dinner. Often, corn is a staple for this holiday, and it’s everywhere. But you’re not going to want to pass this recipe up. This dish offers everything that your comfort food does with its warm, creamy base. In the pudding, you’ll add ingredients like some sweet corn, sour cream, and cream cheese. Plus, what’s great about this dish is you can throw it together in the slow cooker, set it aside, and continue working on other sides without taking up stovetop or oven space.
Cranberry and Pecan Tamales
It’s not a Texas Thanksgiving if there aren’t tamales on the table, but spice up your regular tamale recipe this year. Try making cranberry and pecan tamales for a twist on the classic dish with autumn-inspired flavors. These tamales can add the perfect sweet element to the meal with brown sugar and cranberries mixed with the salty taste of pecans, all combined with the classic tamale elements. There will be plenty of this dish to go around because it can make about four dozen for everyone to enjoy.
Butternut Squash and Apple Cider Soup
Warm up your dinner guests with a soup appetizer. Making a butternut squash and cider soup is a cozy choice for your holiday meal and is cost-effective due to squash being in season during November. In addition, this soup is quite quick to make, so if you’re making the entire dinner or bringing a side dish that you forgot about until the morning of, you can make it in about 30 minutes. You can also make rosemary and sage flatbread to dip in the soup.
Additionally, you’ll find this soup is quicker to make than the ordinary butternut squash soup because the steps are simplified and you use more water than butter or oil to simmer.
Did we forget the ultimate unique yet delicious Thanksgiving dish? Contact us, and we’ll be sure to add it to our list in time for the holidays. It’s important to us we take care of you and your car year-round. Visit our dealership in Lewisville, Texas, to get your vehicle serviced before heading out on the road this holiday season. Our sales experts at Huffines CJDR Lewisville want to help ensure we answer all your questions about our new and pre-owned vehicles.