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Cooking for just a couple this year? Skip the roast turkey and prepare a pair of Cornish hens with stuffing. I’ve also scaled down the most important side dishes, and you can complete your meal with two mini pumpkin pies. It’s a perfectly proportioned feast for you and your plus one.
Thanksgiving for Two was a big deal during the pandemic, but long before that, cooks were preparing a small Thanksgiving meal. Maybe you work on the holiday (as so many do), or your family isn’t close by, or you’re in a country that doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving at all.
There are so many reasons why a table for two at Thanksgiving makes sense (and it might even be a table for one with ample leftovers). My passion (and my job) is to connect you to your favorite food memories or help you build new ones. And if a 20-pound turkey or a bone-in roast turkey breast isn’t on the menu, perhaps a couple of Cornish hens could be.
Table of Contents
- Cornish Hens with Stuffing
- Mashed Potatoes for Two
- Green Bean Casserole for Two
- Cranberry Sauce for Two
- Mini Pumpkin Pies for Two
- More scaled-down mains
- More Thanksgiving side dishes for two
- Big batch bread-making (freezer friendly!)
- Drinks and cocktails for a small Thanksgiving dinner
- Thanksgiving appetizers for two
Cornish Hens with Stuffing
This recipe was designed for two and features a pair of Cornish hens, a generous amount of stuffing, and a delicious savory apple glaze. And even though the hens and stuffing have different cooking times in the oven, I did all the work to ensure they cook at the same temperature and finish at the same time.
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Cornish Hens with Stuffing
Mashed Potatoes for Two
Creamy mashed potatoes make the perfect moat to hold all that butter and turkey gravy on the plate, plus they taste great with everything. Even cranberries! For some, it’s a canvas to add flavors like fresh herbs, garlic, or rosemary, for others, it’s the best part of the dinner. Of course, there are a million recipes out there, but in case you’re looking for an old-school, classic mashed potato recipe with a creamy texture that really lets the flavor of the potato shine, make this one.
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Mashed Potatoes for Two
Green Bean Casserole for Two
I didn’t grow up eating Green Bean Casserole at Thanksgiving, but based on the recipe I see in Campbell’s magazine ads, I’m not sorry about it. Canned green beans with canned mushroom soup? I’m not a food snob, but that just doesn’t sound like my kind of thing.
So when I made Green Bean Casserole the first time, I kicked the cans. I make Slow Cooker Green Bean Casserole too, but this version with fresh beans is the absolute best.
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Green Bean Casserole for Two
Cranberry Sauce for Two
Tart, sweet, and spiced, my Grandma’s “famous” homemade cranberry sauce brightens up the plate and cleanses your palate in between bites of mashed potatoes and gravy. And it cooks fast! No long simmering is required.
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Cranberry Sauce for Two
Mini Pumpkin Pies for Two
Did you know that one standard 9-inch pie crust can be broken down into two 6-inch smaller pies? How great is that? Eat one pumpkin pie all by yourself for dessert, and give the other to someone you’re thankful for. And keep scrolling for a whole slew of scaled-down Thanksgiving recipes designed just for two.
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Mini Pumpkin Pies
More scaled-down mains
These recipes are smaller than a full-size turkey for cozy gatherings with friends and family.
Chicken and Turkey Recipes
Roasted Turkey Breast
Chicken and Turkey Recipes
Slow Cooker Whole Chicken
Fish and Seafood Recipes
Baked Salmon
Main Dishes
Surf and Turf
More Thanksgiving side dishes for two
These recipes can easily be scaled down for your fun-sized feast (just use the servings slider in each recipe card).
Vegetable Recipes
Harvest Roasted Vegetables
Casserole Recipes
Vegetable Casserole
Casserole Recipes
Sweet Potato Casserole
Casserole Recipes
Baked Mac and Cheese
Side Dish Recipes
Rice Stuffing
Side Dish Recipes
Cornbread Dressing with Sausage
Casserole Recipes
Baked Mac and Cheese
Vegetable Recipes
Roasted Butternut Squash
Vegetable Recipes
Roasted Asparagus Recipe
Vegetable Recipes
Green Beans and Bacon
Vegetable Recipes
Roasted Root Vegetables
Side Dish Recipes
Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Big batch bread-making (freezer friendly!)
From-scratch bread-making is always easier in a full batch (or a double batch). Luckily, the extras can be frozen for future meals.
Bread Recipes
Soft Yeast Dinner Rolls
Bread Recipes
Homemade Crescent Rolls
Bread Recipes
No-Knead Bread
Bread Recipes
3-Ingredient Homemade Biscuits
Drinks and cocktails for a small Thanksgiving dinner
If you’re craving something more labor-intensive than opening a bottle of wine, these delicious cocktails are made by the glass. You and your partner can each toast with your favorite.
Drink Recipes
Apple Cider Recipe
Drink Recipes
Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider
Drink Recipes
Hot Chocolate Recipe
Drink Recipes
Lemon Spezi
Cocktail Recipes
Hot Toddy
Drink Recipes
Mulled Wine Recipe
Drink Recipes
Mulled Cider
Cocktail Recipes
Eggnog
Thanksgiving appetizers for two
Choose appetizers where you’ll enjoy the leftovers, or make a small version of a grazing board like a Charcuterie Board, Cheese Board, Veggie Platter, or Fruit Platter.
Candy Recipes
Candied Pecans
Appetizer Recipes
Baked Brie
Appetizer Recipes
Mushroom and Leek Tart
Appetizer Recipes
Deviled Eggs
How to Set a Table
Whether it’s a quiet supper for one or a dinner party for 12, learning How to Set a Table can make any occasion more noteworthy. Break out your best china and polish the glassware; here’s a breakdown of how to do it.
View RecipeI hope wherever you are and whoever you are with, you have a wonderful, safe, and happy Thanksgiving!
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
Dear Meggan, I have been scooping up your recipes for several years, and they are among the most reliably tasty of all the sources I consult. But. The Thanksgiving for Two vegetable casserole. Velveeta? Seriously? Kraft isn’t even allowed to label it as ‘cheese,’ because it is so heavily processed. The rest of the dish looks so good, can you provide me an alternative using real cheese, as opposed to slabs of ‘cheese food?’ Either a cheese sauce made separately, or a particular type of cheese which would substitute well for the… other stuff? Kids are scattered across three other states, so Thanksgiving for Two will prove a real help this year. Thanks for any help you may have in mind.
Hi John, thank you for the question! I recommend substituting with a homemade cheese sauce. Here’s the link to my recipe: https://www.culinaryhill.com/homemade-cheese-sauce/