Thanksgiving Food Recipe Ideas

By Maria Sanchez, Contributing writer

Thanksgiving is coming up and it kickstarts the holiday season. It finally gives us the chance to take a small but well-deserved break and eat as much food as we possibly can. Many students will be going back home to celebrate this lovely holiday with their friends and family.

If you don’t know what to prepare this Thanksgiving, don’t worry. We’ve got you! It doesn’t matter if you have any dietary restrictions because you can still enjoy Thanksgiving food with these 5 delicious and inclusive recipes, including a vegan, gluten free, and dorm friendly option. 

Pumpkin Cheesecake – https://spoonuniversity.com/recipe/chai-spiced-cookies-just-in-time-for-fall

Let’s start off with dessert because, why not? This easy and dorm friendly recipe will take you 30 minutes to prepare and one hour to cook, giving you a total of 4 servings. You can use mugs, cups, or glass to serve it in.

Ingredients:

• • ¼ cup of melted butter
• • 2 cups of heavy cream
• • 1 cup of pumpkin pie filling
• • 8 oz of cream cheese
• • ½ cup of sugar
• • 6 TBL of brown sugar
• • Gingersnaps

Instructions:

1. Cream the cream cheese.
2. Add the pumpkin pie filling and brown sugar and mix it together. Let it chill for at least an hour.
3. When you are ready to assemble the cups, whip the sugar and heavy cream until it forms stiff peaks and add one cup of the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture.
4. Crush around 15 gingersnaps in a Ziploc. Add the melted butter and evenly coat the cookie crumbs.
5. Start layering the cups. Start by pushing a handful of cookie crumbs in the bottom of the cup. 
6. Add the pumpkin filling on top of the cookie crumbs
7. Finish off by adding whipped cream on top and serve. 

Baked Vegan Mac & Cheese – https://www.karissasvegankitchen.com/baked-vegan-mac-and-cheese/

Here is  cheesy, creamy, and easy vegan baked mac & cheese recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. box of Macaroni
• 2 cans of full-fat coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon of flour
• 1 cup of nutritional yeast
• 1 cup of shredded cheddar vegan cheese
• 1 cup of Breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup of melted vegan butter
• Seasoning to taste

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 °F.
2. Cook macaroni as instructed on the package.
3. While the pasta is cooking add the coconut milk to a saucepan. Whisk the flour, nutritional yeast, and seasonings.
4. On medium heat, bring to a simmer. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the shredded vegan cheese until it melts.
5. Mix together the cheese sauce and macaroni in a casserole dish.
6. Mix the bread crumps and melted butter together. Sprinkle on top of the mac and cheese.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top. 
8. Let sit for 5 – 10 minutes and serve. 

Gluten Free Butternut Squash Soup – https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/77981/butternut-squash-soup-ii/

Ingredients:

• Seasoning to taste
• 1 chopped medium carrot
• 2 cubed medium potatoes
• 1 chopped stalk celery
• 1 chopped small onion
• 1 peeled, seeded, and cubeb medium butternut squash
• 2 tablespoons of butter
• 32 oz of chicken stock

Instructions:

1. In a large pot, melt the butter and cook the onion, celery, carrot, potatoes, and squash for 5 minutes, or until lightly brown.
2. Pour in enough chicken stock to completely cover the vegetables and boil.  Reduce to a low heat, cover, and cook for 40 minutes, or until all veggies are tender.
3. Blend the soup in a blender until it is completely smooth. 
4. Return to the pot and stir in any residual stock until the desired consistency is achieved. 
5. Add salt & pepper to taste and serve.

Sausage Stuffing – https:/ /www.allrecipes.com/recipe/268545/easiest-sausage-stuffing/

This Sausage Stuffing is an extremely easy recipe that only takes 25 minutes to make for 8 servings.

Ingredients:

• 16 oz of ground breakfast sausage.
• 1 cup of chopped onion
• 1 cup of chopped celery
• ½ cup of butter
• 6 oz of dry bread stuffing mix
• 3 cups of water

Instructions:

1. In a skillet over medium heat, combine the sausage, celery, and onion. Cook, turning regularly, for 5 to 7 minutes.
2. To absorb excess oil, transfer the cooked mixture to a plate lined with paper towels.
3. Fill a big saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Stir in the butter until it is completely melted. Add stuffing mix, cover, and remove from heat.
4. Let it rest for 5 minutes. Stir in the cooked sausage mixture until everything is well combined.

Pumpkin Hummus is ideal to serve with sliced pears, apples, and pita chips.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of canned pumpkin
• 1 can of drained and rinsed can of garbanzo beans
• ¼ cup of olive oil or pumpkin seed oil
• 1/3 cup of tahini
• 3 tablespoons of orange juice
• 1 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon of toasted sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon of minced garlic
• ¼ teaspoon of salt
• ¼ cup of pumpkin seeds
• ¼ cup of pomegranate seeds

Instructions:

1. Combine the first 9 ingredients in a food processor and pulse until smooth.
2. Serve on a serving platter or in a bowl. If desired, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with pumpkin and pomegranate seeds.

Creamy pumpkin hummus topped with pumpkin seeds and pomegranate seeds.

Now you have 5 very easy recipes you can share with your friends and family this upcoming holiday season. Even if you don’t have any dietary restrictions, you can still give these recipes a try. You won’t regret it!