Ina Garten shared her favorite easy side dishes for a 'micro Thanksgiving'

Anneta Konstantinides
Updated ·4 min read
Ina Garten
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  • Ina Garten shared recipes for side dishes on the menu at her "micro Thanksgiving" dinner this year.

  • "I'm doing the classics, but with a modern twist," she wrote on Instagram. "Balancing dishes that are crunchy, creamy, savory, and sweet to go with my favorite (small!) roast turkey recipe."

  • Garten revealed she's skipping mashed potatoes and stuffing to make her potato fennel gratin and herb and apple bread pudding.

  • The "Barefoot Contessa" star will also be serving chipotle smashed sweet potatoes and haricots verts with hazelnuts and dill.

  • Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Though this year was unlike any we've ever experienced, Ina Garten has always been there for us — whether with a gigantic bright-pink cosmo or some comforting roasted potatoes.

So it's probably no surprise that the "Barefoot Contessa" star would be willing to share her own "micro Thanksgiving" menu as we all prepare to celebrate the holiday very differently this year.

Ina Garten posted recipes for the downsized dishes she plans to make for her small Thanksgiving dinner, including four easy sides

"I'm doing the classics, but with a modern twist," she wrote in an Instagram post. "Balancing dishes that are crunchy, creamy, savory, and sweet to go with my favorite (small!) roast turkey recipe."

"It may be a different Thanksgiving this year," she added. "But it will still be celebratory and delicious!"

The first recipe that Garten shared this week was her haricots verts (also known as French string beans) with hazelnuts and dill. The dish only requires four main ingredients and can be finished in under 20 minutes.

The next dish that Garten posted was her chipotle smashed sweet potatoes, which she called "a classic, but with a chipotle and maple twist."

The recipe combines sweet potatoes with whole milk, heavy cream, chipotle chiles, adobo sauce, and maple syrup for a Thanksgiving side with a delicious kick.

Instead of making a classic stuffing this year, Garten will be whipping up her herb and apple bread pudding.

"Instead of stuffing the turkey, which requires you to cook it for more time — which can dry out a turkey — this savory bread pudding bakes separately but has all the flavor of traditional stuffing," Garten wrote. "Creamy bread and vegetables on the bottom, with lots of crunchy, cheesy bits on top."

"That way, you'll have the best 'stuffing,' and a delicious moist turkey in less time!" she added. "And you can assemble it ahead of time and bake it just before serving!"

Garten also plans to skip the mashed potatoes this year so she can serve her potato fennel gratin instead.

"It's rich and creamy and infused with onions, fennel, and Gruyère cheese," she wrote. "You can assemble it early in the day and bake it before dinner."

And you can't have Thanksgiving without the star. Garten called this recipe the "easiest and most delicious turkey ever!"

"Instead of cooking a massive bird this year, I'm roasting an eight-pound turkey, which is just right for four people," Garten wrote on Instagram. "And the good news is, you season it days ahead, then roast it before dinner in just one-and-a-half hours!"

More of Garten's most popular Thanksgiving recipes, like her balsamic-roasted Brussels sprouts and her apple pie bars, can be found on her "Barefoot Contessa" website.

Garten wants to make the most of the holiday season despite the pandemic

"I've convinced myself to see the brighter side of it," she recently told The New York Times' Sam Sifton at the virtual launch of her new cookbook, "Modern Comfort Food."

The "Barefoot Contessa" star also revealed that she's no stranger to small Thanksgivings. Garten and her husband Jeffrey had many of them when they were both working in Washington, DC, back in the 1970s.

Ina and Jeffrey Garten

"We couldn't go home for Thanksgiving, so we'd get up in the morning and walk all day and explore Washington," she told Sifton. "We'd end it with Thanksgiving dinner in a little tavern in Georgetown and it was special and unique."

"Almost 50 years later, and we still talk about."

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