Thanksgiving is one of our fave holidays. After all, food is how you get us to go anywhere. The focus is on time spent with family, and getting to show off your culinary prowess for your loved ones. It’s a win win. But about 6 years ago, everyone was traveling out of town and with our respective families spread out across the country for the week, we decided to stay in and host ourselves (and our little bunny rabbit Ozzie) and make some new traditions! (like carrot ‘steaks’ for bunnies). Here’s a quick roundup of the thanksgiving recipes that grace our table every year. . .before Kali goes off the rails and starts adding random ingredients and leaving the onions out of everything.

With the blank slate of our own Thanksgiving dinner and the flexibility to do anything we wanted, and make some new traditions, we froze. What were were going to do with a whole ass giant turkey?! Neither of us really knew where to begin, there were only two of us eating, and there was no way we were fitting much in the way of leftovers in the fridge. So we turned to the Queen of the Hamptons. The Barefoot Contessa herself: Ina Garten

Queen Ina’s alternative to a traditional whole-bird Thanksgiving dinner.

Ina Garten’s Roasted Turkey Roulade

Queen Ina’s alternative to a traditional whole-bird Thanksgiving dinner.

Check out this recipe

If you’re looking for a slightly simpler stuffing recipe to roll into your roulade, check out Giada Giada De Laurentiis family recipe.

Giada’s Family Stuffing Recipe

Giada’s Family Stuffing Recipe Only Takes 20 Minutes to Prep—and Fans Say “It’s the Best You Will Ever Have”

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Mashed potatoes aren’t exactly groundbreaking, but they are a thanksgiving staple. We’re all about make-ahead options. More prep means less work on turkey day and more time for parade watching and cocoa!

Make Ahead Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes.

Make Ahead Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes: Perfectly flavored creamy mashed potatoes…each bite is smooth, creamy, and so delicious!

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Green beans are a no-brainer. They kind of handle themselves if you just apply a little heat and some butter or salt, but with a little more effort you can put some wow factor on the table.

Blistered Green Beans With Fried Shallots

It’s impossible to stop eating these green beans.

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I start the cranberry sauce vs cran in a can argument on Facebook every year. We’re an actual cranberries IN the sauce household. Are you?

Fresh Cranberry Sauce – Once Upon a Chef

Flavored with orange juice and orange zest, this cranberry sauce is a must on your holiday table.

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Spice up your thanksgiving table with unique and amazingly delicious new classics

Aarti’s Thanksgiving take on a traditional Indian filled savory pastry is a little labor intensive, but worth every second! (just try to eat them slowly and savor each bite)

Aarti Sequeira’s Thanksgiving Samosas

Aarti’s Thanksgiving take on a traditional Indian filled savory pastry.

Check out this recipe

Chef Dale Talde puts an incredibly unique (and delicious!) spin on everything he touches. Check out this Thanksgiving meal reinvented as a ramen bowl!

Dale Talde’s Thanksgiving Ramen Recipe

New York City chef Dale Talde is a former Top Chef star and co-owner of a growing mini-empire of Brooklyn restaurants.

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For extra credit, if you’re looking for a warm cocktail to greet your guests (or to have all to yourself) check out our spiced (or spiked) cider recipe that simmers while you cook.

So what thanksgiving recipes are on your table this turkey day? Do you prefer cranberry or can-berry sauce? Let us know below 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽