20 Quick and Easy Thanksgiving Sides the Whole Table Will Love

With cheddar cheese, cream cheese, and creamed corn, these baked delights are basically soft squares of cheesy corn casserole. They come together with eight ingredients and less than 30 minutes in the oven — and their addictive richness may make them a bigger showstopper than the turkey.

Get the recipe: creamy cheesy cornbread

Want a gussied-up version of green bean casserole with zero extra work? Try this creamy and crunchy version, which adds indulgent texture and flavor with bacon, half and half, cheddar cheese, and fried onions. It's one-pan recipes like these that will save your Thanksgiving.

Get the recipe: green bean casserole with bacon and fried onions

This dish looks like something you'd see at a restaurant, but it will be the easiest thing you make all month. Carrots are left whole, drizzled with a fragrant and simple mixture of butter and cinnamon, and baked until perfectly tender. They're sure to disappear — even at the kids' table.

Get the recipe: cinnamon butter baked carrots

This five-ingredient dish takes care of the vegetable portion of dinner in no time. Snowflake-like bites of cauliflower are oiled, salted, peppered, and roasted with panko breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese until they're melt-in-your-mouth crispy.

Get the recipe: roasted cauliflower snowflakes

These wholesome, cinnamony cornbread biscuits satisfy a savory craving for pumpkin before dessert even makes it to the table. They're also perfect for mini Thanksgiving sandwiches the next day (on the off chance that there are any leftovers!).

Get the recipe: pumpkin cornbread drop biscuits

You've seen — and may love — sweet potato casseroles with marshmallow topping. But give this deliciously easy, irresistibly crumbly, buttery and brown sugary pecan topping a chance, and your Thanksgiving just might change for the better. After all, it's basically a primer for the pie course.

Get the recipe: sweet potato casserole with butter pecan crumble topping

This pectin-free, two-ingredient cranberry jam abides by the wise if-it-ain't-broke-don't-fix-it philosophy. Sugar balances out the tartness of cranberries, and the mixture is blended for a jam so smooth, you'll want to spread it on every forkful of turkey.

Get the recipe: quick cranberry jam

It couldn't be easier to make these crazy good brussels sprouts, as the only steps involved are spreading ingredients on a pan and sticking it in the oven. Have a sprouts hater in the family? See how they feel after trying these sweet and savory bits of goodness.

Get the recipe: bacon and brown sugar roasted brussels sprouts with shallots and dried figs

Chrissy Teigen said these scalloped spuds would be her last meal on death row, and it's not hard to see why; potatoes, ham, and onion are layered with a creamy, bacon-rich sauce, then baked until the mixture is bubbling and the bacon is perfectly crispy. This dish does take a bit longer than the other sides on this list, but cooking to the smell of bacon and potatoes will hardly feel like work.

Get the recipe: Chrissy Teigen's scalloped potatoes

A few hours in the slow cooker brings out unbelievable depth of flavor from rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, and, of course, juicy sausage in this make-ahead stuffing. While it hangs out in the slow cooker and makes your kitchen smell dreamy, you can prepare the rest of your feast in bliss.

Get the recipe: slow-cooker sausage stuffing

If we didn't have you at "goat cheese" and "mashed potatoes," get this: these rich and velvety spuds are made with just a few staple ingredients and can be prepped up to three days ahead of time. Also, it's an Ina Garten recipe. So, enough said.

Get the recipe: make-ahead goat cheese mashed potatoes

This seven-ingredient stuffing materializes in what seems like minutes with boxed cornbread mix and ingredients you likely already have on hand. If you're in charge of dressing for the first time this year, this foolproof recipe is an excellent place to start.

Get the recipe: cornbread and bacon dressing

Caramelized onions, sautéed mushrooms, a splash of sherry vinegar, and a toasted almond topping give unexpected flavor and texture to these simple blistered green beans. Make these for an easy, dairy-free green you can feel good about eating.

Get the recipe: blistered green beans with mushrooms and caramelized onions

This salad's sweet and tangy apple cider dressing balances out the contrasting flavors of sweet apples, pears, and candied pecans with savory bacon and feta cheese. Just a few minutes of easy chopping yields a healthy side that anyone will love.

Get the recipe: chopped Autumn salad with apple cider dressing

Whether or not macaroni and cheese is essential at your Thanksgiving table, this simple skillet version will change your comfort-food world. It begins with a roux, gains flavor from five different cheeses, and is finished with a toasty topping of breadcrumbs.

Get the recipe: skillet mac and cheese

There are few things more satisfying than breaking through a golden brown crust to reveal sweet and creamy corn pudding — except maybe the casserole's insanely easy 10 minutes of prep time. A hint of red pepper flakes, fresh herbs, and optional bacon bits add complexity to this comforting classic.

Get the recipe: classic corn pudding

Carrots glisten like multicolored jewels in this quick and easy roasted vegetable dish, bedazzled further with fresh rosemary, thyme, and plenty of parsley.

Get the recipe: herb-roasted tri-color carrots

Two cups of gouda and gruyère cheeses complete these crispy morsels of roasted cauliflower and broccoli, seasoned with chili flakes and made extracrispy with buttery toasted breadcrumbs. The whole dish is done in about 25 minutes.

Get the recipe: broccoli and cauliflower "gratin"

This refreshing salad's crispy veggies and juicy fruits will be a welcome change between bites of richer foods like mashed potatoes and gravy. Make it with precooked lentils for an even breezier tossing sesh.

Get the recipe: brussels sprout, lentil, and cranberry holiday salad

If you're looking for something more flavorful than classic mashed potatoes, Ayesha Curry's squash mash is just the dish for you. The supersmooth side gets its deliciously surprising flavor from cashew butter, brown sugar, curry powder, nutmeg, and more — and it's on the table in less than half an hour.

Get the recipe: spiced butternut squash mash