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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Brown chapter.

There’s something about the cozy feeling we get when we snuggle up in front of the fireplace, cover ourselves with layers of blankets, and decorate our houses with pumpkins. What is the spark that brings us all together? Of course, you know the answer: it’s the food we cook, share, and enjoy all together during a time of gratuity and love. Here is the ultimate guide to elicit the coziest Thanksgiving spirit!

Main dish

You can never go wrong with a simple herb-roasted turkey; don’t be shy with the butter. This will certainly enrich your turkey while keeping it moist with just the perfect balance of fresh herbs and spices. Everyone will dig in!

Side dishes

We all know you can’t host a thanksgiving dinner without brussel sprouts. Create a cool twist to your salad by mixing and matching it with brussel sprouts, sweet apples, almonds, and baby lettuce. These seemingly contradictory ingredients will be perfectly combined into a magical salad that none of your guests would have tasted before; trust the process!

Don’t want to do the classic buttered baby potatoes? Amaze your guests with the best Hasselback potatoes with a fan-like shape. Don’t only focus on the taste of your potatoes but also their aesthetic appearance. By finding the correct middle ground between fried and roasted potatoes, Hasselback potatoes can house the most impeccable immersion of butter while keeping them fluffy. But remember, the trick is to cut the slices evenly and ensure not to cut through the entire potato!

You’re in for a surprise with the final side dish: skillet cornbread with honey butter. Yes, you heard right: honey butter. Of course, you can’t just serve plain old average cornbread! With a crispy bottom and tender crumbs, honey butter provides the best pairing.

Dessert

Your thanksgiving menu should certainly have more than one dessert, even though it is obvious that people will already be full until dessert time. Start with an apple-caramel slab pie with a perfectly crispy crust that will ease its way into your guests’ mouths. Smoothly progress into a ginger pumpkin pie filled with cinnamon. The rich spices in this one-of-a-kind pie will warm your guests’ mouths and their hearts. Lastly, top it all off with a light fruit and nut trifle to steal the spotlight of your thanksgiving dinner.

Hi my name is Sofia and I am a junior from Greece concentrating in Behavioral Decision Science with the Entrepreneurship path. Outside class I love cooking while listening to music, spending quality time with friends and family, and taking my dog to the beach. Coming from Greece, I love being immersed in water and enjoy kite surfing, wake surfing and swimming (especially with my dog of course, I don't go anywhere without her). I also enjoy playing tennis with friends and spontaneously composing piano pieces.