If there’s one day of the year to create a show-stopping table, it’s Thanksgiving. Ideally, the meal itself should stir cozy food memories like apple pie, warm mashed potatoes with melty butter, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and more. But have you ever been to a Thanksgiving potluck and your food hasn’t traveled well? It can be disheartening to make a dish that looks stunning at home, only for it to look not so great once it’s on the table at your destination. Deciding on the dish can inspire some mental gymnastics in the first place: what travels well, looks beautiful, and tastes just as good hours later?
15 Thanksgiving Potluck Ideas That Are 100% Foolproof
If you’re like me, you want your food to look as good as it tastes, especially on Thanksgiving. In an effort to take some stress off your probably very busy plate, I’ve rounded up a few Thanksgiving potluck ideas that travel well, look beautiful, and are total crowd pleasers. Scroll on for the recipes, and forward this as a PSA to all your friends!
The Best Thanksgiving Side Dishes
More often than not, the host will have the bird handled. A whole turkey isn’t exactly travel-friendly anyway. But the sides? Now we’re talking. The following side dishes are the ultimate crowd pleasers that will add much-needed color and vibrancy to the table. Also, full transparency: the sides are my favorite part!
Pesto Parmesan Potatoes
Five-ingredient, flavor-packed potatoes? Music to my ears. Select a variety of small potatoes (Yukon, fingerling, and baby potatoes) and toss them in pesto, fruity olive oil, and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Add roasted garlic and parmesan for good measure. Also, I love a good homemade pesto, but in the words of Ina Garten, “store-bought is fine.”
Travel tip: These potatoes are best served warm, so check in with your host about the oven. Let them know they’ll need to be reheated if you’re not eating right away! I promise it’s worth it—warm, crispy potatoes always are.
Fall Harvest Salad
I love a simple, swoon-worthy salad. Entertaining extraordinaire Sophie Collins created this recipe that adds fresh flavor and stunning color to all of your fall gatherings. Hardy greens and crunchy seeds combine to create a salad that proves: it’s not just about the nutrients—salads can be delicious, too.
Travel tip: Pack up your brie and sliced pears. When it’s time to serve, slice the wheel of brie in half, then tear up and toss in bite-sized pieces, followed by the pears. You’ll be so happy you did.
Butternut squash might be a crowd-favorite (and I certainly love it, too), but for me, acorn squash reigns victorious. In this recipe, half moons are tossed with olive oil, brown sugar, rosemary, and red pepper flakes and roasted until they’re golden and tender. Also, for the record, brown butter makes everything better.
Travel tip: Garnish your squash with sage leaves! A garnish really takes a dish to the next level as far as presentation, and you want to pull out all the stops for Thanksgiving.
Simple Roasted Vegetables
This recipe comes courtesy of our resident wellness expert, Edie Horstman. Not only is this dish full of nutrient-packed goodness (a major win for any Thanksgiving table), but it’s also filled to the brim with flavor. Wild rice lends a nice chew to the base while a rainbow of heirloom carrots brings a little much-needed color to the table. The crumbled goat cheese over top? *Chef’s kiss*
Travel tip: The real show-stopper of this holiday side is the tahini sauce. Pack it up in a small container and drizzle it on, along with the goat cheese and pepitas, once you plate at your host’s home.
Cauliflower Tabbouleh
For your gluten-free friends, this salad manages to be simultaneously light and hearty. It harnesses all the color and flavor of the holiday season and is the perfect accompaniment to any festive main dish. In other words, it’s exactly what you need to bring to every potluck this season.
Travel tip: Make this in a beautiful serving bowl and cover it with plastic wrap when it’s time to leave. It will travel just fine—just put it in the fridge once you arrive at your destination. And be sure you have extra pomegranate seeds and pistachios for garnish!
Holiday Jewels Chopped Kale Salad
Think you’re not a kale salad fan? Think again. When you add pear slices, crumbled gorgonzola, pomegranate, and a mustard-shallot vinaigrette, it’ll go from bland to the best thing you’ve ever eaten. It’s perfect for Thanksgiving—and good news: if you go home with leftovers, it’s delicious for lunch the next day.
Travel tip: Add your cheese, nuts, and dressing just a few minutes before the meal is served. Candied walnuts are even better than actual candy if you ask me, but if it’s intimidating to make them yourself, you can buy them at the grocery store.
Apple Walnut Salad
This salad is an ode to all of our favorite fall flavors. It makes an excellent case for why we should be eating apples by the bushel. It’s fruity, peppery, crunchy, and salty, with a mix of ingredients that combine for a perfect balance of flavor and color. Plus, it’s just the refreshing bite you’ll need when you’re halfway through your annual turkey consumption quota. Who doesn’t love a burst of color amidst an array of beige-colored food?
Travel Tip: Wait to add goat cheese, walnuts, and the dressing until it’s almost time to eat. Adding them too soon will make your salad soggy!
Salt & Vinegar Pan-Roasted Potatoes
Let me introduce you to the most crave-worthy spuds around. Just five simple ingredients and 40 minutes of combined prep and cook time, and you’ll have these delights ready to go. (Bonus: They’re easy to transfer and even easier to reheat.) You might just rename them crack potatoes…
Travel tip: A quarter-cup drizzle of apple cider vinegar sends the classic salt and vinegar flavor home—just do it right before serving! Sprinkle some flaky salt and chopped chives to make it even more gorgeous.
The Best Thanksgiving Desserts
OK, I know I said side dishes were my favorite part of Thanksgiving, but I might change my mind and swap for dessert. I love dessert and will always offer to bake instead of cook. Thanksgiving potluck ideas wouldn’t be complete without something sweet! The following dessert recipes are of course delicious, but are also beautiful and ideal for traveling.
Buttermilk Pie
This is Camille’s mother’s recipe, so you already know it’s going to be good. Buttermilk pie is a southern staple that—as Camille agrees—definitely doesn’t get the attention it deserves. It boasts a creamy, custard-like filling that’s light, airy, and a little tangy thanks to the buttermilk. And with a tablespoon of vanilla mixed in, it’s beautifully, wonderfully sweet.
Travel tip: Just like cake carriers—you can invest in pie carriers as well! It can also be a fun DIY project if you’re up for a little sewing!
Spiced Sweet Potato Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting
During a season when it’s all about pumpkin, it’s a welcome move to throw a sweet potato dessert into the mix. This cake is more than deserving of its spot on your Thanksgiving buffet. It’s also made gluten-free, so everyone can enjoy a slice. Mixing the sweet potato, a neutral-tasting oil, and eggs makes for a moist crumb, and pairing almond flour with sorghum flour keeps every forkful light and laced with cinnamon-ginger goodness.
Travel tip: If the top of your travel container squishes the cream cheese frosting, don’t freak out. You can slather it back on with a butter knife once it’s time to serve. This is also the time to top it with candied ginger!
Chewy Pumpkin Spice Cookies
If you’re headed to a more casual Thanksgiving potluck, these pumpkin spice cookies are required. The cinnamon glaze may seem optional, but trust me—it’s not. They perfectly capture the sweet and spicy deliciousness of the season, and if you prefer a cookie that leans on the chewier side, then these are exactly what you’re craving.
Travel tip: Cookies might be the most transportable dessert of all time, and if you’re feeling extra, bring them in a cake dome. They’ll feel even more special and inviting on your Thanksgiving dessert table—like a bakery display!
Pumpkin Snack Cake
Snack cakes, by our definition, are casual, comforting confections that don’t require too much thought or effort on your part. That being said, they’re still infused with love and care and should be eaten with joy. This pumpkin version benefits from a coffee cake-like crumble and a moist, spice-laced crumb. All that’s to say, it’s perfectly acceptable to enjoy your leftovers for breakfast the next morning.
Travel tip: Be sure your cake is cooled completely before packing it away to travel. If you don’t have a cake carrier, line a Tupperware container with parchment instead.
Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie Bars
I’m all for taking a classic, crowd-favorite recipe and switching things up—and these pecan pie bars do exactly that. While it’s hard to improve upon the original, adding chocolate and bourbon to the mix makes it happen. The result is a bar that’s thick, chewy, nutty, and exactly what you want when you think you can’t eat anything more.
Travel tip: Bars are notoriously excellent travelers, so don’t be afraid to toss them in a storage container for the drive. But when it’s time for dessert, consider serving them on a large, wooden cutting board. It’s simple—but stunning.
Healthy Pumpkin Bread
Just because the recipe includes “healthy” in the name doesn’t mean that this pumpkin bread isn’t full-on dessert-worthy. Bonus: the ingredients that make it healthier are the same components that lend tons of flavor and moist texture to each bite. Applesauce, Greek yogurt, coconut oil, and maple syrup naturally sweeten your bread while making clear that you’re still indulging. Could this be the perfect Thanksgiving potluck dessert? You decide.
Travel tip: Invest in a cake carrier! This makes packing up your cake incredibly easy, and they even make ones specifically for bundt cakes.
Dairy- and Gluten-Free Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin pie’s a classic—and it’s a holiday dessert that everyone should get to enjoy. That’s why we adapted our favorite recipe so our gluten-free friends can join in, too. And don’t worry, those fluted edges are wayyy easier to create than they seem. Get our step-by-step tips in the post.
Travel tip: Pies in general travel pretty well, just wait to add your cashew whipped cream until serving time!
This post was last updated on November 9, 2025, to include new insights.
