Air fryer recipes for Thanksgiving sides, dessert and extras (2024)

With less than two weeks until Thanksgiving, it's time to get menu planning.

Dan Souza, editor in chief of Cooks Illustrated and host of America's Test Kitchen, joined "Good Morning America" Friday to share some simple and classic Thanksgiving dishes that benefit from the swirling convection-style heat of an air fryer.

MORE: Make these easy veggie sides the star of friendsgiving and Thanksgiving

Check out his recipes below.

Air-Fried Brussels Sprouts

"This recipe lowers the heat to 350 degrees to give the sprouts time to soften on the inside while the outside crisps. The results mimicked the deep-fried sprouts so well that we were inspired to create a version with another beloved fried vegetable: crispy shallots."

Serves 4

Cook time: 20 minutes

Total time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper

Lemon wedges

Directions

Toss brussels sprouts with oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in bowl; transfer to air fryer basket. Place basket in air fryer and set temperature to 350 F. Cook Brussels sprouts until tender, well browned, and crispy, 20 to 25 minutes, tossing halfway through cooking. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with lemon wedges.

Variation

Air-Fried Brussels Sprouts with Crispy Shallots: Add 3 thinly sliced shallots to bowl with brussels sprouts along with oil, salt, and pepper.

Lemon-Chive Dipping Sauce: Whisk 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon minced fresh chives, 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest plus 2 teaspoons juice, 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard, and 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder together in bowl.

Roasted Green Beans with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Sunflower Seeds

Opt out of sad looking army-green, bland, overly soft green beans in lieu of this vibrant version of the legume.

"The air fryer made the job easy: Just 12 minutes at a high temperature gave us bright, crisp-tender green beans that retained all of their grassy, sweet flavor," Souza said of the recipe. "Now we had to do them justice with additions. Umami-rich sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil gave the salad contrasting flavors: briny, sweet, and herbal. Goat cheese added creamy richness. In lieu of the almonds often paired with green beans, we turned to earthy sunflower seeds to finish the dish with a nutty crunch. Lemon juice brought clean acidity, and olive oil rounded out the punch for a simple dressing. With little work we had a green bean salad overflowing with flavors and redolent of a summer garden, a perfect match for all kinds of main dishes. You can use the air fryer to roast sunflower seeds."

Serves 4

Cook time: 12 minutes

Total time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound green beans, trimmed and halved

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper

1/2 cup torn fresh basil

1/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed, patted dry, and chopped

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled (1/2 cup)

1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds

Directions

Toss green beans with 1 teaspoon oil, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in bowl; transfer to air fryer basket.

Place basket in air fryer and set temperature to 400 F. Cook green beans until crisp-tender, 12 to 15 minutes, tossing halfway through cooking.

Toss green beans with remaining 1 teaspoon oil, basil, sun-dried tomatoes, and lemon juice in large bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer to serving dish and sprinkle with goat cheese and sunflower seeds. Serve.

Apple Crisp

Serves 2

Total time: 1 hour

"You will need a 3-cup oven-safe bowl for this recipe. Before starting, confirm your air fryer allows enough space for the dish. This recipe can be easily doubled; use a 1 1/2-quart soufflé dish and bake for the same amount of time."

Ingredients

2 Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 3/4-inch pieces

5 teaspoons packed brown sugar, divided

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/8 teaspoon plus pinch table salt, divided

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon old-fashioned rolled oats

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Directions

Toss apples with 2 teaspoons sugar, lemon juice, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and cinnamon in large bowl. Transfer to 3-cup ovensafe bowl and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Place bowl in air-fryer basket. Place basket into air fryer; set temperature to 400 F and bake until apples are tender and begin to collapse, 30 to 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix flour, oats, remaining 3 teaspoons sugar, and remaining pinch salt together in second bowl. Using your fingers, rub butter into flour mixture until mixture has texture of coarse crumbs. Remove basket from air fryer. Discard foil and scatter topping evenly over apples. Return basket to air fryer and bake until topping is evenly browned and filling is just bubbling at edges, 5 to 7 minutes. Let crisp cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Air Fryer-Friendly Ingredients and Recipes

Roast Garlic

Remove outer papery skins from 1 large bulb garlic. Cut off top third of head to expose cloves and discard. Place garlic head cut side up in center of large piece of aluminum foil, drizzle with 1/2 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, and season with salt. Gather foil tightly around garlic to form packet and place packet in air-fryer basket. Set temperature to 400 F, place basket in air fryer, and cook until garlic is soft and golden, about 20 minutes. Carefully open packet to let garlic cool slightly. When cool enough to handle, squeeze cloves from skins; discard skins. Makes about 2 tablespoons.

Roast Peppers

Cut 1/2 inch from top and bottom of up to 3 bell peppers; discard or save for another use. Using paring knife, remove ribs from peppers and discard along with core and seeds. Arrange peppers in air-fryer basket on their sides. (Peppers will fit snugly, but shouldn’t come in contact with heating element.) Place basket in air-fryer and set temperature to 400 F. Cook until peppers have collapsed and skins are browned and wrinkled, about 25 minutes, flipping and rotating peppers halfway through cooking. Transfer peppers to bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and let steam for 10 minutes. Uncover bowl and let peppers cool slightly. When cool enough to handle, peel skin from flesh and discard.

Make croutons

Cut 3 ounces baguette into 3/4-inch pieces (you should have 3 cups). Toss bread with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in bowl until evenly coated; transfer to air fryer basket. Place basket in air fryer and set temperature to 350 F. Cook, returning croutons to now-empty bowl and tossing to redistribute every 2 minutes until golden and crisp, 6 to 10 minutes. Let croutons cool completely.

Toast chiles, spices, and nuts and seeds

Chiles: Clean chiles with damp paper towel, then arrange in air-fryer basket. Place basket into air fryer and set temperature to 350 F. Cook until fragrant and puffed, 1 to 3 minutes. Immediately remove from air-fryer to stop toasting. Let chiles cool before stemming and seeding.

Nuts and seeds: Arrange nuts or seeds in 6-inch round nonstick or silicone cake pan. Place pan in air-fryer basket and place basket into air fryer. Set temperature to 350 F. Cook, shaking basket occasionally, until nuts or seeds are fragrant, 1 to 3 minutes. Immediately remove from pan.

Recipes reprinted courtesy of America's Test Kitchen.