Thanksgiving favorites

My family has eclectic taste! We love to mix things up for the Thanksgiving holiday meal, incorporating fun new appetizers, healthy side dishes, and not-overly-indulgent desserts with the traditional roast turkey. Here are some of the best-loved dishes from our holiday table.

Apple or pear tart, quick and easy

Apple spice cake

Armenian red lentils and bulgur

Baked cherry tomatoes

Barley and lentil pilaf with mushrooms and spinach (vegan)

Beet and fennel salad

Broccoli and cauliflower sformatino

Broccoli raab with honey and grapes

Broccoli slaw salad with cranberries, almonds, and yogurt dressing

Brown rice and almond pilaf

Brussels and broccoli with maple mustard vinaigrette

Butternut squash and chickpea stew (vegan)

Butternut squash, apple and vadouvan soup

Caribbean gingerbread

Cranberry sauce (sugar-free, slow cooker)

Curried apple and pecan broccoli slaw

Dried cranberry and pear chutney

Fennel, apple and walnut salad with pomegranate-orange dressing

Fennel, avocado and grapefruit salad with orange vinaigrette

Fennel, pear and olive salad

Ginger spice mixed nuts

Greek hummus with white beans and feta

Green beans with lemon-dill yogurt sauce

Herbed cheese spread

Honey-roasted beets with orange and thyme

Kale salad with mushrooms and mustard vinaigrette

Mashed garlic sweet potatoes

Muhammara (pomegranate, pepper and nut spread)

Oven-roasted carrots

Pear and parsnip soup

Polenta with wild mushroom ragout

"Poor little eggplants"

Puff pastry tartlets with zucchini and slow-roasted tomato filling

Pumpkin chocolate chip biscotti

Pumpkin "hummus"

Pumpkin-pecan mini muffins

Raw beet, butternut and pecan slaw

Red quinoa, beet and pecan salad

Red rice salad with roasted beets, sun-dried tomatoes, cherries and nuts

Roasted winter squash with cranberries, pepitas and honey-lime vinaigrette

Rum raisin pear pie

Salmon and quinoa patties with lemon-yogurt sauce

Slow cooker chai-spiced pear sauce

Slow cooker poached pears in caramel sauce

Slow cooker ratatouille

Spinach, golden raisin and parmesan tart

Spinach salad with glazed beets and blue cheese

Squash walnut wheat muffins

Sweet potato, lentil and raisin stew

Tangarine and feta salad

Thyme roasted new potatoes

Warm salad of kamut, cranberries and feta

White bean dip with goat cheese and herbes de Provence

Yam, apple and carrot soup with ginger and honey

Zanzibar tandoori grilled turkey breast

Zucchini with golden raisins, pine nuts and lemon