Pumpkin pie is not up for debate around here, it has earned its slot and it is staying. But we would gently argue it should not have to carry the entire dessert table on its own. Pecan, apple, a custard pie, something chocolate for the people who quietly do not like pie at all… there is room. One classic pie covers the traditionalists at the table, and a second dessert that is not pumpkin at all tends to disappear just as fast, sometimes faster. A fully cooled custard pie also holds overnight better than you would think, which frees up oven time on the day itself for whatever actually needs it fresh. So bake the pie a day ahead, and save the oven for whatever has to be fresh. Here is what we would put next to the pumpkin.
Jump to: Pies · Alternatives
Pies
1 · Coconut Pumpkin Pie
Coconut milk replaces the usual evaporated milk in the custard, setting the filling slightly softer with a tropical note under the cinnamon and nutmeg. Bake it the morning of if you can, the pie holds fine overnight, but that coconut flavor is brightest within the first day, then quietly fades.
Get the recipe: Coconut Pumpkin Pie
2 · Pumpkin Pie with Oats Crust
An oat crust, pressed rather than rolled, skips the usual pie-dough anxiety entirely and holds up to a wet custard filling better than pastry does. It’s the pie to make for someone avoiding gluten who still wants an actual slice of pumpkin pie, not a substitute dessert.
Get the recipe: Pumpkin Pie with Oats Crust
3 · Pumpkin Pie with Pecan-Chocolate Topping
A layer of chopped pecans and melted chocolate goes over a standard pumpkin custard once it’s fully set, turning one pie into what’s essentially two desserts stacked together. Let the base cool completely before adding the topping, or it slides right off, patience here is the whole recipe.
Get the recipe: Pumpkin Pie with Pecan-Chocolate Topping
4 · Classic Shoofly Pie: A Pennsylvania Dutch Pick for Thanksgiving
Molasses and brown sugar make up most of the filling, with a crumb topping baked directly into the custard rather than added after, which gives shoofly pie its wet-bottom texture. It’s a Pennsylvania Dutch dessert more than a Thanksgiving standard, but that deep molasses flavor earns it a spot next to the pumpkin anyway.
Get the recipe: Classic Shoofly Pie
5 · Fig and Pecan Tart: A Thanksgiving Alternative to Pecan Pie
Fresh or dried figs layer with toasted pecans over a frangipane-style filling, giving the tart a texture closer to a nut pie than a fruit one. It bakes and holds a day ahead, wrapped and left at room temperature, the one pie on this list that actually prefers not to be refrigerated.
Get the recipe: Fig and Pecan Tart
Alternatives
6 · Homemade Orange Sorbet: A Thanksgiving Palate Cleanser
No dairy, no oven, just orange juice, zest, and sugar churned until it lands somewhere between a sorbet and a granita. Put it out after a heavy dinner as the palate cleanser nobody at the table actually wanted until they tasted it.
Get the recipe: How to Make Homemade Orange Sorbet
7 · Pumpkin Spice Fruit Leather Rolls
Pumpkin puree gets spiced and dehydrated into a chewy, rollable sheet, making this one of the only desserts on the list that travels in a bag rather than a dish. Kids at the table reach for these before anything else, which says something the pie never quite manages.
Get the recipe: Pumpkin Spice Fruit Leather Rolls
8 · Pumpkin Pie Granola
All the pumpkin pie spice with none of the crust, baked into clusters you scatter over vanilla ice cream instead of serving as a slice. It keeps sealed in a jar for weeks, so it’s worth making well ahead of the holiday rather than the night before like everything else.
Get the recipe: Pumpkin Pie Granola
9 · Einkorn and Honey Pumpkin Cake
Einkorn flour carries an older, nuttier grain flavor than standard all-purpose, and honey replaces most of the refined sugar in the batter. It keeps well wrapped at room temperature for a couple of days, which makes it the make-ahead cake for a host who’d rather bake on Tuesday than Wednesday night.
Get the recipe: Einkorn and Honey Pumpkin Cake
10 · Creamy Cherry and Mascarpone Trifle: A Thanksgiving Make-Ahead
Mascarpone whips lighter than cream cheese, so it layers into the trifle without weighing down the cake and cherries underneath it. Build it the night before in a clear glass bowl so the layers set and actually look distinct once you serve it, half the appeal here is visual.
Get the recipe: Creamy Cherry and Mascarpone Trifle
11 · Pecan Streusel-Topped Banana Bread: A Thanksgiving Dessert Crossover
Overripe bananas and a pecan streusel turn a basic quick bread into something that earns a spot at the dessert end of the table instead of the breakfast one. It genuinely improves by the next day, wrapped tight on the counter, which makes it a good one to bake early on purpose.
Get the recipe: Pecan Streusel-Topped Banana Bread
12 · Easy German Chocolate Dump Cake: The Oven-Free Thanksgiving Pick
Everything goes into the pan in layers rather than a mixed batter, coconut and pecans included, which is what makes it a dump cake instead of a standard German chocolate one. It bakes while the oven is otherwise free, which on Thanksgiving counts as a genuine scheduling win, not a minor convenience.
Get the recipe: Easy German Chocolate Dump Cake
13 · Apple Mousse: A Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Dessert
Apples cook down and puree, then fold with whipped cream into something lighter than a mousse usually implies, more air than dairy. Make it the day before since it needs several hours in the fridge to set, and it’s the dessert that quietly outlasts the richer ones on the table.
Get the recipe: Apple Mousse
14 · Chocolate Cake Truffles: Make Weeks Ahead of Thanksgiving
Leftover or store-bought cake gets crumbled, bound with frosting, rolled into balls, and dipped in melted chocolate, a very good use for a cake that didn’t turn out picture-perfect. They freeze well, making them one of the few desserts here you can knock out weeks ahead of the holiday itself.
Get the recipe: Chocolate Cake Truffles
15 · Nut Free Macarons: The Allergy-Safe Thanksgiving Dessert Pick
A sunflower-seed-based batter replaces almond flour, making this one of the rare macaron recipes actually safe for a table with a nut allergy at it. The shells still need to rest at room temperature before baking regardless of which flour you use, so don’t skip that step to save time.
Get the recipe: How to Make Nut Free Macarons
16 · Gluten Free Pumpkin Pudding
Cornstarch does the thickening work flour usually would, so this sets into a proper pudding rather than a loose custard, and it’s naturally gluten-free without any substitution guesswork. Chill it in individual cups instead of one large dish so it sets faster and serves without a fight over portions.
Get the recipe: Gluten Free Pumpkin Pudding