Best Thanksgiving recipes: Our 3 most popular chef-created Southern dishes

Thanksgiving somehow is right around the corner. If you're like many of us, you're still putting away Halloween decorations.

Need to pivot and consider what you're serving for Thanksgiving dinner? Need a dish to bring? We've got you, with three of the most popular recipes we published this month as part of Southern Kitchen's absolute bounty of holiday recipes. The best part? You don't have to serve these dishes only on Thanksgiving.

How to win Thanksgiving: The best 2023 Thanksgiving recipes by Southern chefs, from turkey to pie to leftovers

Best-ever mac and cheese

Made with five types of cheese and plenty of spices, this ultimate mac and cheese packs a flavor wallop.

This isn't a recipe in which you want to cut corners, by the way. Buy whole blocks of cheese and hand-grate them for optimal flavor and texture.

Make ahead tip: This recipe can be prepped in advance and then warmed back to room temperature before baking.

Recipe reprinted with permission from "Everyday Grand: Soulful Recipes for Celebrating Life's Big and Small Moments: A Cookbook."

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

• 1 chicken bouillon cube, such as Knorr

• 1 pound large elbow pasta

• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

• 1 cup shredded mild cheddar cheese

• 1 cup shredded colby jack or pepper jack cheese (for a kick)

• 1 cup shredded Gruyère cheese

• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

• ¼ cup all purpose flour

• 2 teaspoons garlic powder

• 1 teaspoon onion powder

• 2 teaspoons kosher salt

• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• ¾ teaspoon smoked paprika

• ½ teaspoon mustard powder

• ½ teaspoon granulated sugar

• ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

• ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper

• 2 cups heavy cream

• 2 cups whole milk

• 1 cup sour cream

• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

• 1 teaspoon hot sauce

• 3 tablespoons minced fresh chives, for serving

Instructions

Fill a large, heavy-bottomed pot with 5 quarts of water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the bouillon cube and stir to dissolve. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, according to the package instructions. Drain the pasta and slide to the side.

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the cheddar, colby jack, Gruyère and mozzarella.

In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook, whisking continuously, to form a roux, about 1 minute. Whisk in the garlic powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper, paprika, mustard powder, sugar, nutmeg and cayenne until incorporated. Whisk in the heavy cream, milk, sour cream, Worcestershire and hot sauce until combined, and let the sour cream completely melt into the sauce. Whisk in half the shredded cheese mixture and let it melt completely into creamy deliciousness, whisking all the while. Whisk until the sauce thickens a bit, about 3 minutes, then add the drained pasta and stir to evenly coat it in the sauce.

Transfer a third of the pasta mixture to a 9x13x2-inch baking pan and top with a third of the remaining cheese mixture, then repeat two more times, finishing with the cheese. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the pasta is golden brown in places and the sauce is bubbling. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes, then garnish with chives and serve hot.

Southern sweet potato casserole

An oaty crumble topping adds extra texture to this Southern sweet potato casserole.

As with the macaroni and cheese recipe, don't cut corners. Boil the sweet potatoes. Do not throw them in the microwave.

Notes:

• You can omit marshmallows if you would like, but it's more fun with them.

• If you want a thicker potato consistency, use ½ cup heavy whipping cream rather than ¾.

• Layer it the way you like. The ratio of sweet potato, crumble and marshmallow is yours to play with.

The following recipe was reprinted with permission from Jocelyn Delk Adams.

Servings: 8

Ingredients

For the potatoes

• 3½ pounds sweet potatoes

• ⅓ cup salted butter

• ⅔ cup light brown sugar packed

• ¾ cup heavy whipping cream

• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

For the crumble topping

• ½ cup all purpose flour

• 6 tablespoons light brown sugar packed

• ¼ cup old fashioned oats

• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

• ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 4 tablespoons salted butter, melted

• Marshmallows to cover the whole pan of sweet potatoes

Instructions

Fill a large 8-quart pot with sweet potatoes and add water to cover the potatoes by an inch. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cook until fork tender, about 20-30 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes.

While the potatoes are boiling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13-inch casserole dish.

Completely drain the potatoes and place them back into the pot to rest until fully dry and cooled enough to handle. Peel the potatoes and add them to a large mixing bowl.

Using a hand mixer (or a masher), blend potatoes until mostly smooth. Add butter, sugar, cream, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg, and mix until well combined and smooth.

Whisk together flour, sugar, oats, cinnamon and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Melt butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Add melted butter to dry ingredients and mix with a fork until well combined to create crumbs. Sprinkle the potatoes with the topping.

Add marshmallows to the top of crumble-topped potatoes. Create six rows of four regular-sized marshmallows to cover the whole pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the crumble is crisp and marshmallows are golden brown. You can also broil marshmallows if you want them to have a more torched look.

Make this crispy cornbread; turn it into Thanksgiving dressing

This cornbread dressing (that's what we call stuffing in the South) has a secret: It's made with the best cornbread ever.

Make your cornbread at least a day in advance if you're planning to use it for the dressing. Leave all of your dressing bread out on the counter to dry. Don't forget dry bread soaks up more moisture, of course. The dryer your bread, the more stock you'll need for your stuffing.

"It's better to err on the side of too much (moisture) than not enough," said Anne Byrn, who created the recipes here. "We've all had cornbread dressing that's too dry and clumps on the plate and everyone is scrambling for the gravy."

Black skillet cornbread

The goal is to create a crisp, delicious crust on the top, bottom and sides, so that when you slice this cornbread into wedges, you will enjoy cornbread the way it was intended to be.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or bacon grease) for greasing the skillet

• 2 cups finely ground white cornmeal

• 1 tablespoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon salt

• ¼ cup vegetable oil

• 2 cups whole fat buttermilk

Instructions

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Place the oil in a 12-inch, cast-iron skillet, and place the pan in the oven while it preheats.

Place the cornmeal, baking powder and salt in a large bowl, and stir to combine. Stir in the ¼ cup oil and the buttermilk until smooth. If the batter seems too thick, thin it with a little water or milk. Remove the skillet from the oven when it is quite hot and nearly smoking, and pour in the batter. It should sizzle. Place the pan in the oven and bake until it is deeply browned, about 12 to 17 minutes.

Run a knife around the edges of the pan. Immediately turn it out onto a wooden cutting board, bottom side up. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut it into wedges.

Anne Byrn's best turkey dressing

When the turkey is out of the oven and resting before being carved, you can pop the dressing in the oven.

Serves: 10-12

Ingredients

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pan

• 2 cups chopped onion (2 medium onions)

• 2 cups chopped unpeeled apple (2 medium apples)

• 1 cup chopped celery

• 1 pound Italian or breakfast sausage, or 1 pound mushrooms, chopped

• 4 cups crumbled cornbread

• 3 cups crumbled soft bread, such as challah, potato bread, sandwich bread or hamburger buns

• 2 cups crumbled French bread

• 1½ teaspoons dried thyme leaves (or 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves)

• 1 cup chopped fresh parsley

• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

• About 2 cups turkey or chicken broth

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the onion to a large mixing bowl, and place the skillet back over the heat.

Add 2 more tablespoons of butter to the skillet and when it melts, add the apple and cook, stirring, until lightly colored but not mushy, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer the apple to the mixing bowl with the onion.

Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon butter in the skillet. Add the celery and cook, stirring, until it softens, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer the celery to the mixing bowl.

Place the skillet back over the heat and crumble the sausage into it, or add the mushrooms. Cook, stirring to break up the sausage, until it is lightly browned and has cooked through, 7 to 8 minutes, and half that time for the mushrooms. Drain the sausage on paper towels, then add it or the mushrooms to the mixing bowl with the other ingredients and stir to combine.

Add the cornbread, soft bread, French bread, thyme, parsley and eggs to the bowl, and stir just to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour in enough broth to really moisten the dressing. If you need more than 2 cups, add it! Spoon the dressing into a greased 13x9-inch glass baking dish. (If desired, spoon a big ladleful of the roasted turkey’s pan juices from the cooked turkey on top.)

Bake the dressing, uncovered, until it browns lightly on top and is firm to the touch, about 45 minutes. Let the dressing cool 5 minutes, then cover with foil to keep warm.

Questions? Email mlunsford@tennessean.com.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Thanksgiving recipes: How to make the Thanksgiving dressing, casserole