It’s just hours before your big Thanksgiving meal. You’ve been hustling to finish up your responsibilities for work or school before the big day, and time is running out to figure out the side dishes for your turkey or the dessert you’re supposed to bring to your family potluck. Panicking yet?
It’s tempting to just pick up a bag of rolls or a frozen pie from the grocery store, but Thanksgiving without home-cooked touches just doesn’t feel quite right to us. To help you survive the final Thanksgiving crunch, we’ve compiled a list of easy recipes with short ingredient lists and a cooking time of less than an hour to save your last-minute Thanksgiving. Just because you’re busy doesn’t mean you can’t still dish up something impressive.
Baton Rouge-owned grocery store Thanksgiving hours
Matherne’s Supermarket: 7 a.m.-2 p.m.
|
|
|
Calandro’s Supermarket: Closed Thanksgiving day (open 8 a.m.-9 p.m. Wednesday)
Calvin’s Bocage Market: 7 a.m.-noon
Alexander’s Highland Market: 7 a.m.-2 p.m.
Bet-R Grocery: 7 a.m.-2 p.m.
Red Stick Spice Company: Closed Thanksgiving day (open 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Wednesday)
Southside Produce Market: Closed Thanksgiving day (open 6:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Wednesday)
Side dishes
One Pot Saucy Creamy Mac & Cheese: Look, you just don’t have time to wait for a mac and cheese casserole to set in the oven. This one-pot mac and cheese comes together in less than half an hour, finishes with a quick broil and can be made with whichever cheeses you want.
Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes: I’ve been swearing by this simple mashed potatoes recipe for years—it’s the poached garlic that makes it perfect. The potatoes will take about half an hour to boil to the right consistency, but it’s so much better than making them from a box. Spend those 30 minutes going over all the political topics to avoid with your family.
Basic Cranberry Sauce: If can-shaped jelly isn’t your speed, a homemade cranberry sauce can make all the difference. This recipe requires only four ingredients and barely takes longer than you’d spend opening the can and breaking the suction seal on store-bought sauce.
Asparagus with Lemon Butter: Five ingredients and less than 10 minutes make this one painless veggie side. For an alternative to the heavier (and much more time-consuming) green bean casserole, this dish can be made minutes before the meal is served—and there’s no need to fight anyone for the oven.
Rustic Rosemary Cheddar Bacon Biscuits: For something a bit more exciting than the typical dinner rolls, these biscuits are sure to impress any picky cousins or judgmental in-laws at your Thanksgiving meal. They’re ready to serve in just 25 minutes.
Cranberry Pecan Salad With Feta Cheese: It doesn’t get much easier than a salad with just four main ingredients. You can opt for a simple oil/vinegar combo or make your own vinaigrette, but it would also be great with Hanley’s Sensation salad dressing.
Sauteed Brussels Sprouts With Pancetta: Using a website called SkinnyTaste for a Thanksgiving dish may seem like sacrilege, but these sprouts are as surprisingly delicious as they are good for you. Toss in some diced shallots for extra flavor, and shred the sprouts in your food processor to shave off prep time.
Desserts
No-Bake Chocolate Pumpkin Pie: In times of crisis, the no-bake dessert is your best friend. With only half a dozen ingredients, this pumpkin chocolate pie can be thrown together in minutes. Let it chill in the fridge while you catch Mariah Carey belting her way through the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Easy Apple Crisp: Making the perfect apple pie from scratch can be tough, and there’s no guarantee you’ll find a frozen one at the store in the last-minute rush. The good news: you can pull off this simple, classic apple crisp recipe in less than an hour.
|
|
|
Harvest Pear-Blackberry Pie: Scrap the crust directions in this recipe and use store-bought pie crust to make this pie in under an hour. With a little egg wash and sugar sprinkled on top of the crust, nobody will know.
Praline Brownies: An alternative to pecan pie, which takes hours to set, these brownies are just as decadent and full of holiday flavors. Less ambitious bakers could throw the praline topping onto a box brownie mix for a similar result.
Pumpkin Mousse Parfaits: This recipe is slightly more advanced, but these little beauties are still whipped up in just over 30 minutes. If you don’t have parfait glasses, a whiskey tumbler or tall shot glass could get the job done.