Thanksgiving Side Dishes

Make Thanksgiving dinner special with these holiday recipes

Thanksgiving side dishes to add to your holiday dinner menu. Your friends and family will love these creamy mashed potatoes, candied yams and fresh cranberry sauce.

You'll love that you can make these dishes a day ahead of time so you can enjoy eating Thanksgiving dinner at the same time as everyone else.

Creamy Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:
(Serves 12)

Milk 1 tablespoon
Potatoes 10 pounds
Heavy Whipping Cream ½ Cup (4 oz.)
Unsalted Butter 2 sticks (8 oz.)
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions
1. Fill a large pot with cold water, and add the milk.
Cut peeled potatoes into 1 inch pieces. Place cut potatoes into the cold water as you cut them so they don't discolor.

2. Pour off any excess water. The potatoes should be just covered.
Bring water to a boil, lower the heat and simmer until the potatoes are fork-tender.

3. Drain well. Let the potatoes sit for 5 minutes. Warm the cream in a saucepan over medium heat.

4. Mash the potatoes by hand. Do not over mash them. You can use a hand mixer and do small batches at a time.

5. Stir in the butter until it has melted. Then stir in the warm cream. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Thanksgiving Yams

Ingredients:
(Serves 12)

Unsalted Butter 1½ sticks (6 oz.)
Canned Yams, drained 11 pounds
Dark Brown Sugar 2¼ Cups, packed

Directions
1. Preheat the over to 350 degrees.
Grease several 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dishes.

2. Cut the butter into ¼inch pieces.

3. Distribute the yams evenly among the prepared pans to allow for even cooking. Sprinkle yams with the brown sugar. Top the yams with the slices of butter.

4. Cover baking dishes with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes, or until the yams are tender and slightly caramelized.