Thanksgiving Desserts

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Salted-Caramel Six-Layer Chocolate Cake

Johnny Miller
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Whether you're looking for traditional pumpkin, pecan, and apple pies or the unexpected, such as cranberry-port sorbet or pumpkin tiramisu, you'll find something to love in our collection of favorite Thanksgiving desserts. It’s time to buy a candy thermometer. This six-layer cake requires caramel at a precise 238 degrees to hold it together. Your taste buds will thank you later.

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Maple-Walnut Cake with Brown-Sugar Frosting

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Using walnut halves creates a decorative trim on the top of this cake. Refrigerate for up to one day before use to minimize Thanksgiving Day prep time.

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Cranberry Clafouti

Yunhee Kim
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The batter in this dessert is similar to that of pancakes. When you add in the fruit it turns into a rich and creamy custard. It’s also incredibly simple to make.

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Chocolate Cabbage Leaves with Vanilla Ice Cream

Marcus Nilsson
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The unusual combination of green cabbage and chocolate is perfectly delicious. Clear room in your fridge: chocolate bowls can be refrigerated for two days before eating.

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Apple-Brandy Brown Betty

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In this delicious recipe, Granny Smith or Gala apples are combined with maple syrup, nutmeg, prunes, brandy, and orange juice. Balance the citrus flavors by topping with vanilla ice cream or lightly sweetened whipped cream.

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Pumpkin Mousse Cheesecake

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This cheesecake is a great option for mousse lovers, and the graham cracker crumbs crust makes it all the more delicious.

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Three-Tier Candied-Pecan Cake with Brown-Butter Pears

Johnny Miller
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This impressive three-tier cake can be refrigerated it for up to three days before serving. Just top with whipped cream before unveiling it for your guests.

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Apple Crostata with Cheddar Crust

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This rustic free-form take on apple pie gets a savory tang from adding sharp cheddar cheese to the crust. After the crostata comes out of the oven, brush the filling with melted apricot jam to make it glisten.

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Pumpkin Cream Pie

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An easy gingersnap crust sets this pumpkin pie apart. The silky-smooth custard filling is cooked on the stove top.

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Maple Cheesecake with Roasted Pears

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Maple syrup sweetens the no-bake filling of this easy cheesecake. Brush thin slices of pear with more maple syrup and broil until caramelized to make the decorative topping.

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Pumpkin Layer Cake

Marcus Nilsson
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Cinnamon, nutmeg, and fresh ginger spice this moist pumpkin-buttermilk cake. The combination of cream cheese and goat cheese in the frosting gives it a unique, tangy twist.

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Quince Biscuit Pie

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Fresh quince turns aromatic and rosy-pink as it simmers with vanilla bean and maple syrup. Top the filling with cornmeal biscuits and sliced almonds to make this cobblerlike fall dessert.

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Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Dulce de Leche

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Rich, anise-scented pumpkin custard bakes with bread cubes and pecans in this rustic dessert. Drizzle it with homemade or store-bought dulce de leche just before serving.

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Classic Pumpkin Pie

Maria Robledo
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The border of this classic pumpkin pie is decorated with cut-out pastry leaves. This is a fine example of everyone's favorite fall pie.

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Chocolate Black-Bottom Pie

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Melt semisweet chocolate into hot cream and stir in a splash of rum to make the filling for this easy pie. Top it with macadamia nuts and whipped cream just before serving.

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Apple and Cranberry Pandowdy

Con Poulos
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Like a cross between a pie and a cobbler, squares of pastry dough are arranged over lightly sweetened apple-cranberry filling to make this rustic dessert. Serve the pandowdy warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream or cinnamon whipped cream.

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Butterscotch-Pecan Cake

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Butterscotch sauce soaks into brown sugar cake layers before they are spread with caramel-cream cheese frosting. Adorn the cake with toasted pecans.

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Cranberry-Port Sorbet

Marcus Nilsson
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Ruby port adds depth to tangy cranberry sorbet. Serve it as a palate cleanser between courses, or with Black Walnut Shortbread Cookies as a light dessert.

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Pumpkin Flan in a Pastry Shell

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Silky-smooth pumpkin flan spiced with ginger, nutmeg, and cinnamon sits inside a flaky pastry shell. This elegant dessert serves as a more formal version of pumpkin pie.

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Coconut-Key Lime Pie

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Update classic key lime pie with a coconut-milk filling and a sprinkling of toasted shredded coconut atop billowy whipped cream.

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Apple Custard Pie

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The light, crisp crust for this unique pie is made with kataifi (shredded phyllo dough). Layers of caramel-coated apple slices surround the semolina custard filling.

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Pear Pandowdy

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Pears and dried figs replace the usual apples in this fresh new take on the rustic dessert. Ground hazelnuts enrich the crust.

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Pecan Pie

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This is a tartlike version of the Southern specialty. If you don't have a cake ring for this recipe, a springform pan will work as well.

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White Chocolate Sweet Potato Cake

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Creamy sweet potatoes get the luxe treatment in this impressive layer cake. The moist, lightly spiced cake layers are slathered with white chocolate mousse filling and finished with toasted macadamia nuts.

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Pumpkin-Chocolate Tiramisu

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The Italian restaurant standby gets dressed up for Thanksgiving, adding canned pumpkin puree and replacing the espresso syrup with almond liqueur. This is a perfect make-ahead dessert, as it tastes even better after it's been refrigerated overnight.

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Maple-Pumpkin Tart

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Maple syrup and lemon zest give a nuanced sweetness to the filling of this tart. Fold fresh breadcrumbs into the pumpkin custard before baking for a unique texture.

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Pear Upside-Down Cake

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Brandied Bartlett pears caramelize on the bottom of the pan while the cake bakes, and then become the topping when the cake is flipped out of the pan. Ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg lend their warm spiciness to this gingerbread cake.

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Gabrielle's Honey Pie

Marcus Nilsson
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Honey and nutmeg flavor this pie’s custard filling. Use leaf lard for an exquisitely flaky crust.

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Pumpkin Cheesecake

Mikkel Vang
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Two popular favorites -- pumpkin pie and cheesecake -- are rolled into one delightful dessert. This is a good make-ahead dessert, as cheesecake keeps well in the refrigerator for several days.

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Pear-and-Cranberry Sorbet

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Homemade pear-and-cranberry sorbet is served in elegant hollowed-out pears. Serve as a refreshing dessert or as an intermezzo.

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New England Cranberry Duff

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To make this fun interpretation of the old-fashioned upside-down cake, fresh cranberries and toasted pecans are topped with buttery batter, then baked and inverted. The cranberries soften in the oven while the pecans keep their crunch, providing a delightful contrast in textures.

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Chocolate Ganache Tart

Mike Krautter