Best Thanksgiving Sides From Bloggers

I've always thought it funny that Thanksgiving is served in two courses: everything, then pie. It's a brumotactillophobia's (fear of food touching other food) nightmare!

It just goes to show how important the side dishes really are during the holiday: A turkey at the table is the shining star, sure, but what would Thanksgiving be without all the side dishes piled up a mile high on your plate?

It is for this reason that for this week's SWAT (Sharing With A Theme) we asked our Culinary Content Network of food bloggers to submit their absolutely favorite Thanksgiving side dish recipes.

This following roundup features amazing recipes for what to do with your sweet potatoes, how you can sneak some sort of green vegetable onto your plate, and we also include a few soft rolls recipes to soak up the gravy, too. As we are just a few short days away from Thanksgiving, find some inspiration for how to make the classics a little better, or maybe you'll be moved to bring something entirely new to table this year.  

My Sweet Mission says her rolls are "flaky, soft and buttery with a touch of sweetness, which in our opinion is everything an amazing pull-apart roll should be!" Find this awesome Thanksgiving roll recipe here.

Oat and Sesame suggests this crazy-good bacon Brussels sprouts with garlic Parmesan cream is a recipe for special occasions — aka Thanksgiving Dinner — or just for "when you're just feeling a little more indulgent." Check it out here.

Baking in a Tornado blogger brings this carrot cauliflower casserole to her Thanksgiving table — it has a little heat, a little acid, and a little cheese. What could be better? Find the recipe here.

This cranberry sauce gets an upgrade with a generous splash of boozy brandy. Homemakers Habitat writes of her creation: "After the big meal, I love to slather this sauce on whole wheat waffles, blitz it with butter for an awesome topping for toast and, of course, add a healthy dollop on turkey sandwiches. With these delights in mind, I always make a double batch of my signature sauce." Click here for the recipe.

Another twist on Thanksgiving's favorite vegetable, this Brussels sprout recipe tosses the green gems in a honey mustard dressing then adds toasted, chopped walnuts and grated Parmesan. Click here for the recipe.

"It was the one dish that I looked forward to more than any of the others. It just isn't a holiday dinner without them," writes Catz in the Kitchen of her sweet candied yams. Check it out here.

"This gratin is almost like an optical illusion," notes blogger Coley Cooks. "From its appearance alone, it looks just like a potato gratin. But as soon as you bite in, your mouth is overtaken with the unique flavors and you instantly know that it's not potato you're eating."

It's a touch sweeter than a potato gratin — thanks to the celery root — but it also has a more complex flavor and a creamier texture. Try it out this Thanksgiving; click here for the recipe.  

When you're craving sweet potato pie and pecan pie, and you can't decide which one you want, dig into this cinnamon and sugar sweet potato dish for a taste of both. Check out this recipe from Home Maid Simple here.

Sweet and Spicy Monkey adds brown sugar, coconut milk, a little butter, cinnamon, and shredded coconut flakes to her mashed sweet potatoes; as she puts it: "The result is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!" Check it out here.

This collard gratin from My Everyday Champagne combines frozen collard greens (too bad Neiman Marcus sold out!), an onion béchamel, gruyère, and crispy panko breadcrumbs. Check out the recipe here.

"Recipes have to work hard and wow me to earn a place on my Thanksgiving menu. Normally, poor sauerkraut would be laughed out of the room. I've just taught my sauerkraut snobby self a lesson as I would happily serve this as a side dish at Thanksgiving. It's. That. Good. The bonus is you can make it a day in advance," explains Diary of a Mad Hausfrau. Find here special Thanksgiving Creamy Pumpkin Caraway Sauerkraut recipe here.

"The secret to making these roasted vegetables irresistible is to add bacon," notes Eat, Drink, and Save Money. "Believe me, I've tried to omit it and I'm always sad when I do. Bacon makes everything better. Trust me on this one." For this irresistible roasted vegetable recipe, click here.

This one is a crowd-pleaser, suggests Coley Cooks. She combines sliced fennel, sliced onion, cream, plenty of pecorino, and crunchy panko breadcrumbs to make this elegant side dish. For this recipe, click here.

Fresh cranberries, cream cheese, chopped pecans, crushed pineapple, and a big container of Cool Whip are just some of the ingredients that make up this strange yet legendary Thanksgiving dish. As This Is How I Cook notes, "Yeah, it is hard to change a good thing, and this is GOOD." Check out her recipe here.

Chick Who Cooks is a mashed potato aficionado and her recipe here makes mashed potatoes that are oh so creamy and buttery with a delectable hint of garlic. "You will want seconds and no one will try to stop you," she writes. Click here for the recipe.

Honestly, what is better than tender sliced potatoes layered with good butter, luxurious cream, and melted Gruyère? Find out just how good this recipe from Mon Petit Four is for yourself; click here for the recipe.

This spin on the classic green bean casserole adds fresh mushrooms and sharp white cheddar cheese. Foody Schmoody thinks you'll want to cook this again and again; check out the recipe here.  

Bring a little sophistication to this down-home side dish. Savory Experiments simply steams her green beans and then drizzles a lightly sweet and impossibly creamy mascarpone sauce over them. She finishes this dish with sliced almonds for textures and dried cranberries for a small burst of tartness. For the recipe, click here.

For this recipe, Moore or Less Cooking takes fresh spinach, parsley, and basil (from her garden!) and mixes the bright green mixture into a béchamel sauce that then envelops the pasta. To complete, she adds lots of shredded sharp Cheddar. Check it all out here.

Food blogger Snacking in Sneakers uses one cup of juicy canned pear halves, fresh cranberries, and maple syrup to make her version of cranberry sauce. For this recipe, click here.

With just 20 minutes of prep time, a quick rise, and just 15 minutes of cook time, these rolls go from dough to table in just an hour. For this recipe, click here.

Platter Talk shares his "irrefutable truths" about mashed potatoes: One, mashed potatoes are among the consummate foods of comfort. Two, mashed potatoes are not just for holidays. And three, mashed potatoes are as easy to make as they are to enjoy. Find out how he makes these classic parsley and garlic mashed potatoes here. 

This bright and seasonal pomegranate salad combines roasted persimmons and earthy Brussels sprouts then tosses it all in a sweet maple syrup dressing. Check it out here.

If you are looking for something a bit non-traditional, look no further. This recipe roasts cauliflower, bringing out a gentle sweetness, and pairs it will crunchy breadcrumbs for texture, capers for a burst of acid, and toasted almonds and raisins to add another layer of flavor and depth. Check it out here.

"This mouth-watering Roasted Cauliflower and Cranberry With Sage Butter and Black Truffle Oil is slowly roasted to bring out nutty wholesome flavors and then is drizzled with balsamic reduction dressing," writes Delightful Mom Food; find her recipe here.

Creamed corn is a classic Thanksgiving dish that doesn't get enough credit these days. But here, but food blogger Coley Cooks makes hers with potent rosemary: "It's creamy without being heavy, sweet but still savory, and has the slightest scent of rosemary without being overpowering." For this recipe, click here.

The Hungary Buddha says she "basically took the flavors of paella and mixed it into homemade croutons rather than rice. The result [was] amazing because paella is delicious in itself, and throw in bread? My heaven." Check out her Spanish-inspired recipe here.

This Is How I Cook makes it easy for us: She writes, "Buy some cornbread, buy some tamales, buy some chorizo, chop some onions. Not much more than that is required." Check out here recipe here.

How to make cranberry sauce according to The Hungry Hutch:

Add all of the ingredients to a saucepan and simmer until the berries burst and the sauce thickens, about 30 minutes. *Drops Mic.*

For the recipe, click here.

"So not only is this a healthier version of mashed potatoes because of the addition of the celeriac, but there's also no milk, cream, butter, cheese, or even bacon!" explains The Hungry Hutch. That said, she also adds, "So maybe you don't need cheese or bacon to make traditional mashed potatoes, but those additions never hurt." For this recipe, click here.

"This dish is incontestably a winner with all," writes The Primlani Kitchen. "Even people who shy away from wild rice will fall in love with this dish with just one bite." She also adds that sautéed diced chorizo is a lovely addition. For this recipe, click here.