Best Thanksgiving Dinner Desserts 

It is not always easy to prepare a dessert for your Thanksgiving dinner – most of the time, your guests are so filled with all the other goodies you have prepared for your holiday feast and sometimes desserts get left behind.

I have put together some desserts that will make your dinner guests wanting to take a little break and then come back for a special treat.

Pear Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

• 6  cups of cored peeled pears
• 2 cups of chopped cored peeled apples
• 2 tablespoons of flour
• 2 tablespoons of packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

Topping:

• 1 cup of quick cooking oats (not instant)
• 1/2 cup of packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup of flour
• Pinch of ground nutmeg
• 1/3 cup of butter, melted

Directions:

1. In a bowl, toss together pears, apples, flour, sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon until combined.
2. Spread in 8-inch square glass baking dish and set aside.
3. Topping: In a small bowl, whisk together oats, sugar, flour and nutmeg; drizzle with butter, tossing with a fork until crumbly.
4. Sprinkle over pear mixture.
5. Bake at 350F until pears are tender and topping is golden and crisp – about 1 hour.
6. Try serving this warm with vanilla ice cream!

Old Fashioned Lemon Squares

Ingredients:

Crust:

• 1/2 cup of flour
• 6 oz. of chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup of icing sugar
• 3 tablespoons of cornstarch
• Pinch of salt
• 1/3 cup of cold unsalted butter, cubed

Custard:

• 4 Large eggs
• 1 cup of sugar
• 2/3 cup of lemon juice
• 1/4 cup of flour
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• Icing Sugar for dusting

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan and line with two rectangles of parchment paper. The paper should hang over edges of the pan to create handles.
3. Combine flour, walnuts, icing sugar, cornstarch and salt in food processor and pulse until blended.
4. Add cubes of butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
5. Press evenly into prepared pan and bake on a middle rack for 25 minutes – until golden brown.
6. Remove and reduce oven temperature to 325F
7. Meanwhile, lightly beat eggs, sugar, lemon juice, flour, vanilla and salt in a mixing bowl.
8. Carefully pour custard over the warm crust and bake until set – about 25 minutes.
9. Let cool to room temperature and then refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
10. Lift square out of the pan using the parchment paper handles, dust with icing sugar and cut into 16 squares.

Chocolate Crumble Cake

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of butter, softened
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 1-1/3 cup of flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 cup of sour cream
• 3 oz. of bittersweet chocolate, melted

Topping:

• 1/2 cup of packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup of granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup of unsalted butter, melted and warm
• 1-1/3 cup of flour
• 1/3 cup of ground almonds

Directions:

1. In a bowl stir together brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon and salt
2. Stir in butter
3. Stir in flour and ground almonds, using hands to press the mixture together.
4. Let cool
5. In a large bowl, beat butter with sugar until combined.
6. Bear in egg and egg yolk
7. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt.
8. Stir into butter mixture alternately with sour cream, making 3 additions of flour mixture and 2 of sour cream.
9. Stir in chocolate
10. Spread in parchment paper-lined 8 inch square metal cake pan.
11. Crumble topping evenly over batter
12. Bake in 350F oven until tester inserted in centre comes out clean – 35 – 40 minutes
13. Let cool on rack before cutting

Hope you have enjoyed these delicious recipes – please send in your comments, suggestions and experiences, your input is always welcomed and very much appreciated. And have a wonderful Thanksgiving!