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20 Best AIP Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipes (and desserts!) provides 20 tried and true amazing side dishes for Thanksgiving and Christmas + any other holidays you celebrate. You won’t miss your old favorites with these new and compliant recipes that are utterly delicious.
Sometimes it’s nice to have 50 recipes to choose from, but my goal with this post is to really help you by only providing really well-selected great recipes!
They’re all AIP, autoimmune protocol, that’s the point! So they’re going to be exciting, rich and delicious, but they’re all free of eggs, dairy, nuts and seeds, and they’re obviously Paleo first, so no grains or refined sugars.
AIP Holiday Recipe notes
Two of the AIP Holiday Side Dish Recipes below are Paleo and have black pepper, so just leave it out (I note which ones below).
Happy Holidays, friends!
Top AIP Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipes
Roasted Caramelized Delicata Squash Slices — Everyone’s favorite sweet veggie, this treat turns out crispy like French fries, with a gorgeous flavor. So tempting, these will be gone first! Or, if you need a beautiful green, make Fall and Winter Salad with Roasted Delicata Squash, the best of both worlds!
Mashed Parsnips with Crispy Parsnips on Top — Better than mashed potatoes, plus gentler!: nightshade-free and dairy-free. I love this mash and the tempting topping!
Herb-Roasted Cauliflower — Really the best cauliflower recipe anywhere, in my opinion. These pieces are excellent for nibbling off the sheet pan, just roasted, like warm popcorn! But, obviously a beautiful side dish on the table or buffet.
Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Crispy Onions — Hands down, my favorite way to make Brussels sprouts. I share how to cook them evenly to get a perfectly cooked veggie, always with those caramelized browned edges!
Best AIP Gravy — This is a wonderful, rich, classic and sure-to-please gravy recipe! Made with bacon and no flours or other thickeners … 🙂
Simple Bone Broth Gravy — The newest recipe to this collection, gravy just got healthier and easier! Delicious!
Onion Gravy — A great, easy, classic recipe for a thick, flavorful onion gravy.
Mashed Cauliflower with Garlic and Herbs — Lovely! She gives some great tips on how to make this classic successfully. And she adds garlic and herbs, sooo yummy.
AIP Biscuits — One of the most popular recipes on my blog, these AIP Biscuits are traditional, classic, delicious biscuits, sure to delight!
Paleo AIP Bread Rolls — This dough is easy to make and easy to work with. It yields tender doughy rolls that are fully cooked and risen in the middle, not too wet or dense. You’ll love them! I get great feedback from readers on these.
AIP Stuffing! — Yes, with AIP bread!!! This recipe is incredibly delicious, tastes traditional and is super satisfying. One of the most popular recipes on the blog that readers make each year.
Fermented Cranberry Sauce — This is my favorite cranberry sauce yet. If you haven’t fermented before this is a great and fun recipe to get you started. The recipe shares two tools to help you succeed with ease. You still have plenty of time to make this sauce before Thanksgiving.
OPTIONAL — Reintroduction only ~ Roasted Green Beans — This recipe is not elimination-phase compliant; it is re-intro. If you’ve never used fish sauce before (it’s an ingredient in this recipe) just know that it isn’t fishy in recipes. It adds umami, which is a meaty depth that’s delicious. It’s one of my favorite pantry staples, so you can use it in lots of basic cooking to add more flavor and je ne sais quoi. (Find it HERE.) I love this roasted green beans recipe, by the way, a great classic. How to cook a vegetable simply and well is sometimes the most valuable recipe.
13. Best Sweet Potato recipe
This was my favorite Thanksgiving side dish growing up!
Ingredients
- 4 sweet potatoes, about 2.5 pounds (I prefer the white ones, but whatever you find or like works well.)
- 1/4 cup coconut oil or bacon fat
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon each: cinnamon and/or ginger, optional
- 1/2 cup coconut cream and 2 Tablespoons coconut sugar, if you want your sweet potatoes extra indulgent, optional
- fried sage for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place sweet potatoes on a cookie sheet. Bake until tender when poked with a knife, about 1 hour or a bit more if they’re big.
- Allow them to cool slightly; then peel, (and discard/compost the peel).
- Place them in a large mixing bowl. Smash with fork or potato masher.
- Add coconut oil or bacon fat, sea salt, and optional spices like cinnamon and ginger. Add coconut sugar and coconut cream if you want them extra indulgent. Taste.
- Pack into a deep greased casserole dish with lid. Return to warm (325 degree Fahrenheit) oven to reheat before serving.
- Optional: Serve topped with lots of fresh fried sage.
You can Pin Best AIP Holiday Recipes here:
Best AIP Thanksgiving & Christmas Desserts
Yes, don’t forget dessert; because these are tried and true reader favorites, reliable, easy and awesome desserts, I’ll share them too!:
14. Cranberry Upside Down Cake — My new favorite dessert, this cake is so festive and pretty and incredible with Paleo Vanilla Ice Cream on top. Also Low FODMAP.
15. Pumpkin Cake! — At our holiday gatherings we always have lots of pies. But the quality of the dessert I choose is the most important thing to me. And because this pumpkin cake with frosting is SO good, you’ll be happy to have it as your AIP tempting dessert choice when that moment comes.
16. Carrot “Pumpkin” Pie — Awesome if you can’t have pumpkin! So good, creamy and the perfect spiced flavor, Carrot “Pumpkin” Pie is also Low FODMAP.
17. Viral Caramel Apple Pie — This decadent dessert is Paleo & AIP, with two crust options. It’s perfect to make this treat the day before your holiday. Serve with Paleo Cinnamon Ice Cream, Paleo Vanilla Ice Cream or on its own. So special and delicious looking.
18. AIP Cookie Recipes Round-up — Everyone loves cookies, and they’re easy + no-fuss to make. So choose your favorite one, or more, cookie recipe, and everyone will love them, especially if served with homemade classic Paleo Vanilla Ice Cream or now-famous Paleo Cinnamon Ice Cream!
19. Paleo Pie Crust — Another very busy recipe post come holiday time each year, this is a reader favorite and the top Paleo Pie Crust on the internet. 🙂 For good reason — the dough is easy to work with and turns into a crispy delicious crust!
20. Tiger Nut Pie Crust — I love this shortbread-like crust, delicious and easy to make, great for filling with no-bake fillings.
21. Newest recipe!: Paleo Cranberry Mixed Berry Pie does not disappoint. With lovely heightened tart flavor from the cranberries, it’s the perfect holiday dessert — pretty and festive.
linda spiker says
I love that you make AIP eating so delicious and celebratory! When people are on restricted diets I think that is so important!
Megan Stevens says
Me too! Thanks, Linda! SO many whole foods are still available on AIP. 🙂
Lindsey Dietz says
Megan! This is going to be life-changing for so many people on AIP who can’t enjoy typical holiday sides! I’m swooning over those bacon-fat cooked brussels sprouts!
Megan Stevens says
Yay, I hope so; thanks, Lindsey! 🙂 We LOVED the Brussels sprouts!! Can’t wait to make them again!
Renee Kohley says
This is so freeing for those sticking AIP while healing. I remember when I recieved my initial leaky gut dx when I was 24 so many years ago, and I literally had 50+ food items on my list I couldn’t have – it was 4 weeks before Thanksgiving. I was so proud to stick to my plan and avoid my trouble foods because I felt SO good, but this type of recipe help is so important for those wanting to stick to their guns so to speak during the holidsys – I for one found it so worth it!
Megan Stevens says
Me too, Renee, so true– so worth it!! Thank you for your comment! When we started GAPS ALL those years ago there were NO resources at all, except Dr. Natasha’s cookbook; it’s weird to think back to that now. I’m so thankful that those on GAPS and AIP now have lots of support and recipes that are actually great. We had some pretty funny trial and errors our first year, and it was tough on the kids especially.
Joni Jessica says
Woah all of these look divine!
Megan Stevens says
Thanks, Joni!
Jean says
Thanks for this collection! My mom’s AIP so I’m always scrambling for compliant dishes for her and this is a great resource.
Megan Stevens says
Great, Jean, good to hear. You’re welcome! 🙂
Monique Cormack says
This is such a lovely handy list! A friend of mine has just started AIP so this is great, not too overwhelming 🙂
Megan Stevens says
Great, Monique! Thank you; I like what you said, not too overwhelming- yay!
endofthefork.com says
What a great selection of recipes here! I was particularly interested in your fermented cranberry sauce as I am new to fermenting. I really need to get hold of those tools!
Megan Stevens says
Great, so glad to hear it. I hope you love fermenting!! xo 🙂
Hope says
What a great selection of recipes Megan! I know several people following AIP that find the holidays tricky, so will pass this on to them 🙂
Megan Stevens says
Great, Hope, thank you!
Emily @ Recipes to Nourish says
Oh Megan, this all looks so lovely! I am swooning over your pumpkin cake. It’s just beautiful. I would happily devour it … well maybe not all of it, but at least a few slices 😉 And all of those yummy sides, so perfect for everyone. Thank you for including the Brussels sprouts xo
Megan Stevens says
Yay, thank you!! SO happy to have the beautiful Brussels sprouts recipe included!! xo
Katie Stanley says
It’s hard to decide which I want to make first! They all look so yummy! I’m going to have to pass this on to a friend who’s hubby has to eat AIP right now. Thank you!!
Megan Stevens says
So glad, Katie; I hope the list is helpful!
dailyciabatta says
That pumpkin cake sounds incredible! This list is going to be incredibly helpful for so many families!
Megan Stevens says
Thank you! I hope so. What a special holiday it is, and no one needs to feel deprived!
Callie Goode says
These look so tasty and divine! Thanks for sharing the AIP love!
Megan Stevens says
You’re welcome, Callie; thank you!
Brooke says
Great list, but you don’t specify here that your green bean recipe is for re-intro, so new people might not realize without reading the recipe. This is why my SIL made a meal with green beans that she thought was compliant, but the AIP-ers couldn’t eat. (I expected this to be a list of elimination-phase compliant recipes, rather than having to check each one to see if there are re-intro ingredients..)
Megan says
Thanks for the concern and caution, Brooke. I’ll update the article accordingly.
Cindy Cole says
Hi Megan, my family has a favorite cranberry sauce that is requested every Thanksgiving. I have been asked to make it again this year. Is there a way to make it more healthy without altering the the taste too much? Here is the recipe:
Killer Cranberry Sauce
This is the best cranberry sauce I have ever had…
1½ C. sugar
1 navel orange
½ teas. grated ginger
4 C. cranberries
½ C. (2 oz.) toasted pecans
Grate the orange peel and add to a pot with the sugar and ginger. Add the juice from the orange into the pot and simmer over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Add cranberries and cook until they pop – about 5 minutes. Add pecans and cool sauce.
Megan says
Hi Cindy, It looks amazing. The easiest sub would be to use coconut sugar in place of the white sugar. Or you could use half coconut sugar, half maple syrup. For those who may read this comment, the pecans are not AIP, but assuming you can all eat them, everything else could stay the same.