14 Best Thanksgiving Desserts to End Your Feast

Saving room for dessert is a Thanksgiving tradition all its own, so why not make it count? Here are 14 of our best Thanksgiving desserts, from a maple pecan pie with no corn syrup and a Southern sweet potato pie to an apple crackle cake and a pumpkin roll that slices up pretty as a picture.

We mixed in a few no-bake and slow cooker options too, so you can get dessert done before the big day and keep the oven free for the turkey. Need the rest of the menu? Our Thanksgiving side dishes and Thanksgiving menu ideas have you covered.

Thanksgiving Pies and Cobblers

A Thanksgiving table just isn’t complete without at least one pie, and a warm cobbler or crisp never hurts either.

1Maple Pecan Pie

1
Maple Pecan Pie sliced
Maple Pecan Pie
This Maple Pecan Pie skips the corn syrup and gets its rich, gooey filling from butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, and honey. It’s like soft caramel meets toasted pecans, all tucked into a graham cracker crust.
Check out this recipe

This pecan pie skips the corn syrup and gets its gooey filling from butter, brown sugar and real maple syrup. Bake it the day before so it has plenty of time to set.

2Southern Sweet Potato Pie

2
Slice of Southern sweet potato pie.
Southern Sweet Potato Pie
This Southern sweet potato pie has a creamy filling of baked sweet potatoes, sweetened condensed milk and warm spices in a deep dish crust, topped with a crunchy brown sugar pecan streusel.
Check out this recipe

A creamy, warmly spiced sweet potato filling in a flaky crust. Plenty of Southern families serve it right alongside the pumpkin pie, or instead of it.

3Apple Pecan Cobbler

3
A bowl of apple pecan cobbler with whipped cream
Warm, Buttery Apple Pecan Cobbler
This Apple Pecan Cobbler is a warm, comforting fall dessert packed with tender spiced apples, sweet raisins, and crunchy pecans baked beneath a golden, buttery crust. It’s simple to make and brings that homemade flavor everyone loves!
Check out this recipe

Tender spiced apples, pecans and raisins bake under a buttery biscuit-style topping. Serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

4Slow Cooker Apple Crisp

4
Slow Cooker Apple Crisp with ice cream
Cozy Slow Cooker Apple Crisp
This Slow Cooker Apple Crisp packs in tart Honeycrisp apples, cinnamon sugar, and a buttery walnut crumble that crisps up beautifully without even turning on the oven. It’s an easy, lazy dessert you can throw together and forget.
Check out this recipe

Honeycrisp apples and a buttery walnut crumble cook low and slow in the crockpot, which frees up your oven for everything else.

5Fried Apple Hand Pies

5
Fried apple hand pies on a serving board
Golden and Flaky Fried Apple Hand Pies
These fried apple hand pies are the best of both worlds: crispy, golden crust on the outside and warm, gooey apple filling on the inside. They’re easy to make with a simple homemade dough and a can of apple pie filling, then finished with a sweet cinnamon sugar coating.
Check out this recipe

All the flavor of apple pie tucked into crispy, golden hand pies. One batch makes a dozen, and they’re easy to pass around when folks want just a little something sweet.

Thanksgiving Cakes and Sweet Breads

For the cake lovers at the table, these bake in one pan and feed a crowd.

6Apple Crackle Cake

6
One serving of Apple Crackle Cake on a plate
Soft, Buttery Apple Crackle Cake
This Apple Crackle Cake layers a buttery pecan base, moist spiced apple cake, and sweet cream cheese swirls that bake into a crackly, golden top. Every bite is warm, sweet, and perfectly balanced.
Check out this recipe

A buttery pecan base, moist spiced apple cake and a sweet cream cheese swirl, all baked in one pan that serves about 15.

7Pumpkin Roll

7
A sliced Pumpkin Roll
Soft & Spiced Pumpkin Roll
This soft and spiced pumpkin roll is a fall favorite! A tender pumpkin cake is wrapped around a luscious cream cheese filling and finished with a dusting of powdered sugar. Perfect for cozy gatherings or as an easy make-ahead dessert.
Check out this recipe

Tender pumpkin cake rolled around a creamy cream cheese filling. It looks fancy, but it slices into pretty swirls with no decorating skills needed.

8Rustic Apple Pound Cake

8
Rustic apple pound cake on a serving tray with apples under it
Rustic Apple Pound Cake
This old-fashioned apple pound cake recipe is tender and just bursting with that sweet, fresh apple and cinnamon flavor.
Check out this recipe

An old-fashioned pound cake loaded with fresh apples and cinnamon, and a slice with coffee the next morning is a treat all its own.

9Apple Cinnamon Rolls with Brown Butter Maple Icing

9
Apple Cinnamon Rolls in a baking pan
Soft & Gooey Apple Cinnamon Rolls with Brown Butter Maple Icing
If there’s one thing that’ll make your kitchen smell like fall in the South, it’s a pan of warm apple cinnamon rolls fresh out of the oven. These beauties are soft, fluffy, and layered with a cozy apple filling, then topped with a rich brown butter maple icing.
Check out this recipe

Soft cinnamon rolls with apple pie filling tucked inside and a brown butter maple icing on top. Serve them for Thanksgiving breakfast or dessert.

10Pumpkin Spice Cake Donuts

10
Pumpkin spice cake donuts in a row leaning on a glass jug of milk.
Pumpkin Spice Cake Donuts
These Pumpkin Spice Cake Donuts have that moist, fluffy texture of cake but that irresistible crispy exterior of a donut. It's fall flavor at its best!
Check out this recipe

Fluffy cake donuts with a crisp outside and plenty of pumpkin spice, ready in about 20 minutes.

Easy No-Fuss Thanksgiving Sweets

These are the easy ones to make ahead or hand off to a helper.

11Cranberry Fluff Salad

11
A bowl of cranberry fluff salad with fresh cranberries
Colorful Cranberry Fluff Salad
This Cranberry Fluff Salad is a creamy, fruity classic that brings a pop of color to any holiday table. Tart cranberries are sweetened and blended with pineapple, marshmallows, and whipped cream for a light, fluffy treat that tastes like dessert but pairs perfectly with your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner.
Check out this recipe

Tart cranberries, marshmallows and whipped cream make a fluffy salad that’s half side dish and half dessert. Make it ahead so it has time to chill.

12Pumpkin Pie Dip

12
Top down view of a bowl of pumpkin pie dip
Creamy, Delicious Pumpkin Pie Dip
Pumpkin Pie Dip is a sweet, creamy blend of pumpkin, cream cheese, powdered sugar, cinnamon, and ginger that tastes just like pumpkin pie filling. It’s fast, festive, and perfect for dipping everything from gingersnaps to apple slices.
Check out this recipe

Pumpkin, cream cheese and warm spices whipped into a sweet dip for gingersnaps, graham crackers or apple slices. No baking required.

13Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal Cookies

13
a plate of pumpkin spice oatmeal cookies
Easy, Soft, & Chewy Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal Cookies
Made with pumpkin puree, warm spices, and hearty oats, these easy pumpkin spice oatmeal cookies are soft, chewy, and come together in no time. Perfect with a mug of coffee or straight off the cooling rack!
Check out this recipe

Soft, chewy oatmeal cookies made with real pumpkin and warm spices, ready in about 20 minutes.

14Sweet and Salty Fall Snack Mix

14
A plate of fall snack mix.
Sweet and Salty Fall Snack Mix
This sweet and salty fall snack mix bakes Chex, pretzels and peanuts in a cinnamon brown sugar glaze, then gets tossed with candy corn, Reese’s Pieces, marshmallows and chocolate chips.
Check out this recipe

A sweet and salty mix that can sit out all afternoon for grazing while the turkey finishes.

Tips for Planning Thanksgiving Desserts

  • Bake pies and pound cakes a day ahead, then cover them loosely so the crusts stay crisp.
  • Plan a mix of one pie, one cake and one easy no-bake treat so there’s something for everyone.
  • Use your slow cooker for a warm dessert like apple crisp so the oven stays free for the turkey and sides.
  • Set out a sweet snack mix early in the day to keep hungry folks out of the kitchen.

Thanksgiving Desserts FAQs

What Thanksgiving desserts can I make ahead?

Pies, pound cakes, the pumpkin roll and the cranberry fluff salad all hold well when made a day ahead. Keep the cream-based ones in the fridge until serving.

What’s an easy Thanksgiving dessert for beginners?

The pumpkin pie dip and the slow cooker apple crisp are hard to mess up, and both feed a crowd.

What can I serve besides pumpkin pie?

Southern sweet potato pie, maple pecan pie and apple pecan cobbler are all classic choices that still feel like Thanksgiving.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *