Canadian Thanksgiving Meals To Wow The Family

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What's filling, flavourful, and six weeks ahead in Canada? That's right – it's Thanksgiving, the time of year when Canadians get to tuck in ahead of their neighbours to the south.

When Is Canadian Thanksgiving?

North of the 49th, Canadian Thanksgiving arrives on the second Monday in October. In the US, it lands on the fourth Thursday in November. Whenever you celebrate it, one thing's for sure: The recipes we're about to share with you will make your fall feast a memorable one.

When Was The First Canadian Thanksgiving?

Some historians credit the first Canadian Thanksgiving to European settlers in Frobisher Bay during the late 1500s. It was followed by a strong tradition of elaborate Thanksgiving feasts in what was New France, where French settlers and the local Mi'kmaq broke bread together. Cranberries were a big part of the meal even then.

Regions in both countries continued to celebrate their own fall festivals on dates of their choosing for hundreds of years. It didn't become a formal national holiday on either side of the border until the late nineteenth century, to the dismay of turkeys everywhere.

Cooking Thanksgiving Turkey

We won't dwell too much on turkey roasting times here – our turkey cooking guide and Easy Roast Turkey have you covered – but if you're short on time you can still nail your poultry centrepiece with this Instant Pot® Turkey Breast and Potatoes recipe.

Whichever way you cook your bird, be sure to set it off with the appropriate accompaniments. No Thanksgiving should be without cranberry sauce! Be sure to include this Slow Cooker Cranberry Sauce Recipe in your Thanksgiving dinner menu. Complement it with this Classic Herb Stuffing for a traditional fall feast.

Thanksgiving Dinner Sides

Canadian Thanksgiving side dishes are where creativity really shines. Often, families have their traditional bring-alongs when they get together. Try these Thanksgiving Dinner Cupcakes for bite-sized sides that demand your best gravy (this Roast Gravy for Poultry will do nicely). For an alternative side, these Sausage Stuffing Muffins will add some spicy sage and apple flavours to your table.

Vegetarian thanksgiving Recipes

Poultry may be a traditional part of the Canadian Thanksgiving dinner menu, but it certainly isn't mandatory. Everything from your main to your sides can be plant-based for your holiday meal. In place of a bird, try a Slow Cooker Vegan Portobello Pot Roast. If you substitute vegetable stock for chicken stock, this Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Stuffing Recipe will also be the basis for a vegetarian Thanksgiving dinner.

Grilled Corn with Spicy Honey Butter will bring some sweet and spicy flavour to your Canadian Thanksgiving dinner menu, and for a pasta-based dish that's sure to delight try our Butternut Squash Vegan Mac and “Cheese”. For a final vegetarian Thanksgiving treat, these Thanksgiving Cranberry Deviled Eggs will delight your friends and family with a holiday flavour that will go perfectly with the Thanksgiving theme.

Thanksgiving Desserts

Got a sweet tooth? We've taken time to find some of the best Thanksgiving desserts to round out your meal – if you've any room left. Try these Pumpkin Pie Cookies for a light bite, or for something more substantial, impress everyone with this Pumpkin Pie Layered Cheesecake.

Thanksgiving Leftovers

After people eat their fill of turkey at Thanksgiving, there's often so much left that people are eating it for days. That doesn't mean it has to be boring, though. These recipes that will bring new life to your leftovers. What better way to see out a few chilly days in October than with a Slow Cooker Turkey Noodle Soup to warm you from the inside out? If you've got a hunger on, rustle up some of these Day After Thanksgiving Paninis for a soup 'n salad kind of lunch. You'll polish off that poultry in no time.

Canadian Thanksgiving is the perfect time to kick back and reflect on what you have to be grateful for throughout the year. After sampling all these recipes, we're pretty sure that good food will rank up there.