16 Thanksgiving Recipes With Honey: Making it a sweet holiday
Updated: Nov 21
Thanksgiving is fast approaching but have no fear … from sides to desserts, Fingerlakes Honey Company has got you covered this year! Squash, carrots and stuffing, to rolls, turkey and pie, the sweet flavor of honey shines through in all of these recipes … which means you are sure to make one mouthwatering Thanksgiving dinner!
Beverage:
Get your celebration started with this bee-licious Thanksgiving punch.
Sides:
These Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic Honey will be a yummy side dish this Thanksgiving!
Give our Fingerlakes Honey Company Honey Glazed Squash a try for a simple and delicious side dish. The honey adds the perfect amount of sweetness to this fall comfort food.
Our Fingerlakes Honey Company Gingered Carrots with Honey add a fun twist to classic cooked carrots. The ginger, honey and lemon juice give them a unique flavor that is sure to be a hit.
Stuffing that combines honey and cornbread … what’s not to love about that? This Honey Cornbread Stuffing will be the perfect addition to your Thanksgiving meal.
A Pear Honey Cranberry Sauce makes a refreshingly sweet and tangy addition … and sure to be a hit with your family and friends!
Whip up our Fingerlakes Honey Company Honey Cranberry Relish for a sweet, fruit-filled relish that will taste great with your Thanksgiving turkey!
Bread:
It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without homemade bread to go along with the meal. Give these Honey Potato Rolls a try!
Or how about some classic Honeyed Cornbread to compliment your meal?
Pair your breads with this Honey Butter or spread on any other bread to add some sweetness!
Main Dish:
With all sorts of spices and a honey glaze to top it off, our Fingerlakes Honey Company Honey Glazed Turkey is what you need to be making this Thanksgiving.
Give this flavorful Holiday Honey Baked Ham a try if your family wants something other than turkey this year … or make it in addition to a turkey!
Desserts:
It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without a little pie, and you can’t go wrong with our Fingerlakes Honey Company Honey Pumpkin Pie! Top it off with a dollop of Honey Whipped Cream, sweetened with honey of course, and you’re all set.
Or how about a Honey Pecan Pie that is deliciously sweet. Serve it with a scoop of Honey Ice Cream and you’ve got the ultimate Thanksgiving dessert.
What did we miss? You can find even more bee-licious recipes that use our products on our RECIPE PAGE. Feel free to share your favorite Thanksgiving recipes with us below. We'd love to know the traditional foods you serve at your gathering. We wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.
Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic Honey
Ingredients
8 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
Freshly ground pepper
3/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons Fingerlakes Honey Company honey
1 bay leaf
Shaved pecorino romano or parmesan cheese, for topping
Directions
1) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Combine the garlic and olive oil in a small saucepan over low heat. Gently simmer, stirring occasionally, until the garlic is lightly golden and crisp, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from the heat; transfer the garlic to a paper towel-lined plate using a slotted spoon and season with salt. Reserve the garlic oil.
2)Toss the Brussels sprouts with the reserved garlic oil on a baking sheet and spread in an even layer; season with salt and pepper. Roast until the Brussels sprouts are tender and slightly charred, 30 to 35 minutes.
3) Meanwhile, combine the vinegar, brown sugar, honey and bay leaf in the saucepan and whisk until combined. Simmer over medium-high heat, whisking occasionally, until slightly syrupy, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from the heat; let cool until thick and glossy, about 6 minutes. Remove the bay leaf.
4)Transfer the Brussels sprouts to a platter; spoon the vinegar-honey syrup on top and sprinkle with the fried garlic and shaved cheese just before serving. (The Brussels sprouts can be made up to 2 hours ahead. Serve at room temperature.)
Honey-Glazed Squash
Simple and delicious, our Honey-Glazed Squash is the perfect fall comfort food! With only a few tasty ingredients, it’s the perfect side item for any fall dinner or the perfect addition to your Thanksgiving menu.
Ingredients
1/4 cup Fingerlakes Honey Company Honey
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup raisins
salt and pepper
2 acorn squash
Directions
Cut squash in half and remove seeds.
Place, cut side down, in shallow pan. Add 1/2 inch hot water to pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes until almost tender.
Turn cut side up and season with salt and pepper.
Combine honey, butter, Worcestershire sauce, walnuts and raisins in a bowl.
Spoon into squash.
Return to oven and bake 15 minutes longer until filling is heated and squash is tender.
Serve and enjoy.
Gingered Carrots with Honey
Ingredients
1/3 cup Fingerlakes Honey Company Honey
1 pound carrots
1/3 cup butter
1 pinch ground ginger
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Directions
Bring pot of water to a boil.
Add carrots to boiling water and cook 5-7 minutes, until fork tender but still firm.
Drain the carrots and set aside.
In a large skillet over low heat, melt the butter and add Honey.
Once honey and butter are melted and combined, add the ginger and lemon juice.
Stir the carrots into the honey ginger mixture and simmer until heated through. Serve.
Honey Cornbread Stuffing
YIELD: Makes 4 servings
INGREDIENTS
4 cups - day-old Honey Cornbread, crumbled
1 (4 oz.) - Italian sausage
1 cup - chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup - minced onion
1/2 cup - chopped celery
1 T - minced parsley
1 tsp. - Fingerlakes Honey Company dried thyme leaves, crushed
1 tsp. - salt
1/4 tsp. - ground black pepper
1/3 cup - chicken broth
DIRECTIONS
In large bowl, place crumbled cornbread.
Remove sausage from casing. In medium skillet, crumble and sauté sausage until brown. Using slotted spoon, remove sausage from skillet and add to cornbread. Drain all but 1 T of fat.
Return skillet to medium-high heat; stir in bell pepper, onion and celery. Sauté until vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in parsley, thyme, salt and pepper. Cool slightly, then add to cornbread.
In small bowl, combine broth and honey. Pour over stuffing.
Place stuffing in a greased 9x9-inch baking dish. Cover dish with foil and bake at 350°F for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 10 minutes until stuffing is lightly browned.
TIP
As an alternative, pack you may pack stuffing into poultry cavity before roasting.
Pear Honey Cranberry Sauce
Refreshingly sweet, tart and tangy - this recipe is incredibly easy and it's a great change of pace from the usual boring cranberry sauce. The flavor of the cranberries mingles wonderfully with the pear, honey and lemon. It freezes well too!
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 30 mins
Yield: 10 servings
Ingredients
½ cup water
½ cup white sugar
2 pears - peeled, cored and diced
1 (12 ounce) package fresh or frozen cranberries
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Directions
In a medium saucepan, stir together the water and sugar over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Stir in pears, and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring frequently for 3 minutes, then stir in cranberries and honey. Continue to cook until cranberries pop and the mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice and lemon zest. Cool to room temperature, then store covered in the refrigerator for up to one week.
Honey Cranberry Relish
Prep Time: 2 min
Cook Time: 8 mins
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 2 cups
Ingredients
12 ounces (1 bag) fresh cranberries
½ cup water
Zest of 1 medium orange*, preferably organic (about 1 teaspoon)
Truly optional add-ins: ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon and/or ¼ cup fresh orange juice
Instructions
First, rinse the cranberries well and drain off excess water. Pick through the cranberries and discard any squishy ones.
In a medium saucepan, combine the cranberries, honey and water. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries have popped and the mixture has thickened to your liking, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Remove the pot from heat and stir in the orange zest. If you’d like to add cinnamon or orange juice, add it now. Taste and, if the mixture is too tart (keeping in mind that cranberry sauce is supposed to be a little tart!), add more orange juice, honey to taste.
The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools. It will keep in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 2 weeks.
Honeyed Cornbread
YIELD: Makes 8 servings
INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups - self-rising cornmeal
1/2 tsp. - salt
1/4 cup - vegetable oil
1/2 cup - creamed corn
1 1/3 cup - buttermilk
1/4 cup - Fingerlakes Honey Company honey
1 - egg
1 T - vegetable oil, for skillet
honey and butter, for serving
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Swirl the 1 T vegetable oil in the cast iron skillet and place in the oven to heat, watch that it doesn't start to smoke.
Mix the cornmeal and salt in a large bowl.
In a second bowl combine the next 5 ingredients. Stir the wet ingredients with the dry until just combined, batter will be lumpy, don't over mix.
Open the oven and drop a tsp. of batter into the hot skillet and make sure it is heated enough to sizzle. Carefully pour the batter into the skillet and bake for 20-25 minutes until set and golden brown.
Cut into slices and serve with additional honey and butter.
TIP
Add 4 pieces of chopped bacon to the batter for a special treat!
A would taste amazing topped with one of our Honey Jams
Honey Potato Rolls
Prep Time 30 mins
Cook Time 30 mins
Total Time 1 hour
Soft, golden brown potato rolls with a touch of nutty whole wheat and a subtle hint of honey reliably disappear faster than the other fixings at the feast, but don't save them for Thanksgiving alone. If you're looking for the perfect accompaniment to a bowl of creamy soup, look no farther.
Ingredients
2¼ teaspoons Active Dry Yeast or Instant, or one packet
1½ cups warm water for best flavor, use the water in which you cooked potatoes
2/3 cup Fingerlakes Honey Company honey
1 cup mashed potatoes lukewarm
2/3 cup butter softened to room temperature
2 eggs
1½ teaspoons salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
5 to 5½ cups all purpose flour
Instructions
To Make the Dough:
In a large mixing bowl, the bowl of a stand mixer, add the water and honey, stir gently and sprinkle the yeast over the top. Let stand for 2 minutes. Add everything but the flours and stir well (using a sturdy spoon or dough hook) to combine. Add the whole wheat flour and 2 cups of the all purpose flour and stir well until even. Add the remaining flour and stir it in. If you have a stand mixer, use the dough hook to knead it. Otherwise, turn onto a generously floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about five minutes. Transfer the dough into a large clean mixing bowl or dough bucket, cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours but no longer than 5 days.
To Shape the Rolls:
Grease or butter two 9”x13” rectangular or four 8” round baking pans and set them aside.
Turn the dough onto a floured surface and punch it down. Divide in half, then portion each half into 20 equal sized pieces. Roll each piece into a ball.
Place the dough balls into the prepared pans (5 rows of 4 in each rectangular pan or 10 rolls in each round pan.) Cover with a clean towel and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until puffy in appearance and nearly doubled in size, about 2 hours.
To Bake the Rolls:
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Bake the rolls for 20 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. If desired, brush the finished rolls with melted honey butter.
Honey Butter
yields 8 servings
Ingredients
¾ cup butter, room temperature
Directions
Gather the ingredients.
Mix butter and honey together in a bowl until smooth.
Cover and store in the refrigerator.
Honey-Glazed Turkey
This sweet and savory glaze makes the skin beautifully brown and crispy and will enhance the flavor of your roast turkey.
Ingredients
1/2 cup Fingerlakes Honey Company Honey
15 pound turkey
1/2 cup dijon mustard
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Directions
Tie the turkey’s drumsticks together and tuck the wings underneath. Place turkey in roasting pan breast side up and bake at 325 F for two hours.
Mix honey, dijon mustard, dried rosemary, onion powder, salt, pepper and garlic powder in a bowl and brush over turkey after first two hours of baking. Return to oven and continue to baste turkey with pan drippings until thermometer reads 180 F about two hours.
Remove turkey and cover with tin foil for up to 15 minutes before carving. Serve with stuffing and gravy.
Classic Honey Glazed Ham
This honey-glazed ham is coated with delicious brown sugar and sweet honey glaze! It’s tender and juicy and goes with everything which makes it ideal for any holiday meal!
Prep Time- 20minutes
Cook Time- 2 hours
Ingredients
1 (10-12 pound) bone-in or boneless fully cooked spiral ham
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
Instructions
Take the ham out of the refrigerator and allow it to rest for at least 30 minutes before cooking. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Prepare the glaze by heating the butter, honey, brown sugar, and spices in a medium saucepan on medium-low heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the glaze starts to thicken. Remove from the heat and allow the glaze to slightly cool.
Place the ham in the middle of the baking dish or roasting pan cut side down. Brush half of the glaze on top and get in all the crevices! Cover the ham completely with foil so the ham doesn't dry out.
Bake the ham according to how many pounds you have, about 15 minutes per pound.
Once the ham is warmed through, remove the foil to caramelize the top. Brush additional glaze on top of the ham. Save some for serving if you would like! Adjust the heat to broil and let the glaze caramelize and darken for about 3-5 minutes. Watch it closely!
Remove the ham from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing!
Honey Pumpkin Pie with Honey Whipped Cream
Pumpkin Filling:
2 cups pumpkin puree
3/4 cup Fingerlakes Honey Company honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
3 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 eggs, lightly beaten
Pie Crust: Use a store-bought or homemade all-butter flaky pie crust recipe. Chill the dough in the refrigerator, tightly wrapped, according to the recipe’s instructions.
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
Whisk the pumpkin, honey, vanilla, salt, and spices in a medium bowl until smooth.
Add the heavy cream and whisk until well combined.
Beat in the eggs until the mixture is smooth.
Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust.
Bake for 15 minutes at 375°F (190°C), then reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (175°C) and continue baking for an additional 32-38 minutes, or until a knife inserted comes out clean.
Honey Whip Cream:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons Fingerlakes Honey Company honey
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
Vanilla beans (optional)
Instructions:
In a medium bowl, whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form.
Add the honey and powdered sugar, and whip until stiff peaks form.
Add vanilla beans, if using, and whip until combined.
Assembly and Serving:
Allow the pie to cool completely on a rack.
Top the pie with the honey whip cream.
Serve chilled, garnished with a sprinkle of cinnamon or nutmeg, if desired.
Tips:
Use high-quality honey for the best flavor.
Don’t overmix the pumpkin filling or the whipped cream.
Chill the pie for at least 1 hour before serving to allow the flavors to meld together.
Honey Pecan Pie with Honey Ice Cream
A classic pecan pie recipe with a twist, using honey instead of white sugar for a deeper, richer flavor.
Ingredients:
3 large eggs, beaten
1 cup chopped pecans
3 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1 (9-inch) refrigerated pie pastry
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 325°F (165°C).
Press pastry into a 9-inch pie pan.
Bring honey to a boil in a saucepan.
Remove from heat and quickly whisk in eggs.
Stir in pecans, butter, vanilla, and nutmeg.
Pour into prepared pie pan.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until set.
Honey Ice Cream
A match made in heaven - a warm, gooey honey pecan pie paired with a scoop of creamy honey ice cream.
Ingredients:
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup Fingerlakes Honey Company honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions:
Combine cream, milk, sugar, and honey in a saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves and mixture simmers.
Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Let cool to room temperature.
Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours or overnight.
Churn in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.
Freeze for at least 2 hours before serving.
Tips:
For an extra crunchy pecan topping, toast 1/2 cup of pecans in a 350°F oven for 5-7 minutes or until fragrant and lightly browned.
Consider adding a drizzle of honey or caramel sauce to the pie and ice cream for an extra layer of flavor.
If you don’t have an ice cream maker, you can also freeze the mixture in a shallow metal pan and then blend it in a food processor once frozen solid. This will give you a slightly chunkier texture.
Enjoy your delicious Honey Pecan Pie with Honey Ice Cream
Honey Thanksgiving Punch
This warm and inviting punch combines the flavors of apple cider, cranberry juice, and honey, perfect for a cozy Thanksgiving gathering.
Ingredients:
2 cups apple cider
1 cup cranberry juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Sliced apples and oranges for garnish
Fresh rosemary or thyme for garnish (optional)
Instructions:
Make the Honey Syrup: Combine honey and 1 cup of water in a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring until the honey dissolves. Remove from heat and let cool.
Combine the Punch Ingredients: In a large pitcher or punch bowl, combine the cooled honey syrup, apple cider, cranberry juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
Chill and Serve: Refrigerate the punch for at least 2 hours to allow the flavors to meld. Serve chilled, garnished with sliced apples and oranges. You can also add a sprig of fresh rosemary or thyme for a fragrant and festive touch.
Tips:
Adjust the amount of honey to your taste. If you prefer a stronger honey flavor, use more.
Use a high-quality, pure honey for the best flavor.
Consider adding a splash of sparkling water for a bit of fizz.
This punch makes about 6 servings, so feel free to scale up or down as needed.
Variations:
Add a splash of bourbon or whiskey for a grown-up twist.
Substitute pear juice or grape juice for a different flavor profile.
Omit the spices for a simpler, sweeter punch.
Enjoy your delicious Honey Thanksgiving Punch!
Until Next Time- Stay Sweet!
Tom and Stacie
Our Beekeepers, Tom and Stacie, are co-owners of Fingerlakes Honey Company located in the bee-utiful Fingerlakes region of New York State. When they are not tending to all things bees, they enjoy spending time with their grown children, their dog, and lots of chickens on their homestead. They love learning more about the bees they foster and helping others to learn more about them as well.
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