Top 16 Vegan Thanksgiving Desserts To Serve This Holiday

Thanksgiving is the time of year where we gather over a wide variety of dishes with friends and family to celebrate togetherness, but when someone at the table is vegan, the traditional pumpkin pie isn’t gonna cut it. 

Luckily, there are plenty of delicious vegan desserts available to serve your thanksgiving guests that even non-vegans will enjoy. These 16 best vegan Thanksgiving dessert options and our top tips on how to find them will allow you to have your (dessert) and eat it too.

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How to choose vegan Thanksgiving desserts

• Added sugar. Most store-bought desserts use some form of sweetener, and pre-packaged desserts, especially vegan ones, can contain a lot more added sugar than your body needs to make up for taste. Too much can be harmful if not consumed in moderation, so be mindful of ingredients like maple syrup, honey, malt syrup, dextrose, and keep in mind the recommended daily intake of added sugar is only 10% of total calories per day (1).
• Artificial flavors and additives. Vegan desserts often require a lot of processing to emulate the flavors of their non-vegan counterparts and usually also contain additives to preserve and enhance the flavor of their finished product. If you’re looking to reduce your intake of either or both of these components, make sure the ingredients are up to your standards by reading the nutritional label, purchasing items with fewer processed ingredients and consuming in moderation. 
• Hidden animal-based products. While there are plenty of food ingredients that are not vegan, there are products that contain sneaky animal-based ingredients. Ingredients like gelatin, tallow, whey, and some food dyes like natural red 4/carmine are made from animal products. Inspect the ingredient label for these and like ingredients carefully to ensure you’re not accidentally consuming something that goes against your needs or values (2). 

GreenChoice Top Picks

1. Claim Jumper Blueberry Pie Frozen Dessert

It’s rare to find store-bought pies that are vegan-friendly, but this “accidentally” vegan ready-to-eat dessert is a great addition to your plant-based holiday spread. This pastry crust is made with soybean oil instead of butter and it’s combined with blueberry filling. It contains 15g of added sugars – 30% of DV – and 8g of saturated fat – 40% of DV – per serving.

Allergen info: Contains wheat.

2. Claim Jumper Razzleberry Pie Frozen Dessert

If plain blueberry isn’t your jam, the vegan-friendly Claim Jumper pie comes in another flavor – Razzleberry. Its flaky pastry crust is filled with sweet raspberries and blueberries. This vegan pie includes 16g of added sugars – 32% of DV – and 10g of saturated fat – 50% of DV – per serving.

Allergen info: Contains wheat.

3. Abe’s Muffins Vegan Cranberry Orange Zest Minimuffins

These vegan mini muffins are made with plant-based ingredients like organic rice milk, enriched flour, and canola oil; and they are flavored with sweet cranberries and zesty orange peels. Plus, they are low in saturated fat offering only 3% of the daily value per serving; and they contain 16g of added sugars – 32% of DV – per two muffins per serving.

Allergen info: Contains wheat.

4. So Delicious Oatmilk Caramel Apple Crumble

This vegan frozen dessert is made with oat milk, apple, cinnamon, brown sugar and combined with a caramel swirl. It can work great both as a topping of your thanksgiving pie and by itself. Aside from being vegan, it’s also certified gluten-free. It contains 8g of saturated fat – 40% of DV – and 23g of added sugars – 46% of DV – per serving.

Allergen info: Ingredients that contain a major allergen are segregated from other ingredients to avoid allergen cross-contact.

5. Abe’s Muffins Vegan Apple Cider

These vegan mini muffins contain apple sauce, apple puree, apple cider and are flavored with cinnamon and allspice. They contain 23g of added sugars – 46% of DV – and only 1g of saturated fat – 5% of DV – per serving.

Allergen info: Contains wheat

6. General Mills – Betty Crocker Limited Edition Pumpkin Spice Cookie Mix

This cookie mix includes flour, sugar, palm oil, and dried pumpkin leavening. You just need to add your choice of vegan egg and butter alternative to bake and pumpkin spice cookies will be ready in 10 minutes. The mix contains 12g of added sugars – 25% of DV – per serving.

Allergen info: Contains wheat; may contain egg, milk, and soy ingredients.

7. Bobo’s Stuff’d Bites

Bobo’s Stuff’d Oat Bites are made with rolled oats, apple filling, and cinnamon which make them a great ready-to-eat Thanksgiving dessert. These vegan apple pie bites contain 3g of saturated fat – 15% of DV – and 10g of added sugar – 20% of DV – per serving.

8. Double Chocolate Flavored Hot Cocoa Mix Good & Gather

There’s nothing like a hot cup of cocoa on a chilly fall evening, but most pre-made hot chocolate mixes contain powdered milk or another dairy-based additive. This one is not only free from dairy but also from artificial flavors or sweeteners. This vegan hot cocoa will be ready in minutes; you just need to add your favorite plant-based milk. The mix contains 0g of saturated fat and 21g of added sugars – 42% of DV – per serving.

Allergen info: Does not contain any of the 8 major allergens.

9. Bakeology Cookies Vanilla Chai Shortbread Gluten Free

Bakeology Vanilla Chai Cookie Bites contain organic vanilla beans, coconut oil, and flaxseed and blended with Thanksgiving-inspired spices like cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and cardamom. Aside from being vegan, these cookie bites are certified gluten-free and free from preservatives. They contain only 5g of added sugars and 6g of saturated fat – 30% of DV – per five cookies.

Allergen info: Contains almonds.

10. Sillycow Farms Hot Chocolate

Sillycow Farms Hot Chocolate mix has only two ingredients: cane sugar and cocoa. Mix it with your choice of milk alternative and it’ll be ready to enjoy. The mix is gluten-free certified and contains 20g of added sugars – 39% of DV – per two tablespoons of serving.

Allergen info: Sillycow Farms’ hot chocolate is blended and filled in an allergen free facility free of dairy, wheat, eggs, soy, shellfish, fish, and nuts. 

11. Go Raw Ginger Snaps Super Cookies

Go Raw ginger snap cookies are made with dates, sprouted sesame seeds, coconut, and ginger powder. They are organic, gluten-free, vegan, and a good source of fiber. They offer 3g of fiber – 12% of DV -, 0g of added sugars, and 5g of saturated fat – 25% of DV – per serving.

Allergen info: Contains coconut and sesame seeds.

12. Laird Superfood Functional Mushrooms Hot Chocolate

This cocoa blend is made with coconut milk powder, coconut sugar, cacao powder, coconut oil, and functional mushroom extracts such as reishi, chaga, and maitake. This vegan cocoa mix is free from soy, dairy, or gluten and provides 15% of the daily value for calcium. Also, it contains 9g of added sugars – 18% of DV – and 8g of saturated fat – 40% of DV – per serving.

Allergen info: Contains coconuts.

13. Skinnypop Popcorn Cinnamon Mini Cakes

These popcorn cakes contain cinnamon for a festive flavor. They are a good source of fiber offering 4g of fiber per serving which equals 14% of the daily value. Also, they contain only 3g of added sugars – 6% of DV – and 0g of saturated fat per serving.

Allergen info: SkinnyPop products are free of peanuts, tree nuts, soy, wheat, eggs.

14. Nothin But Cherry Cranberry Almond Granola Cookie Bites

Nothing But Granola Cookie Bites are a more nutritious thanksgiving dessert alternative. Filled with cranberries, almonds, oats, pumpkin seeds, and cherries, these vegan cookie bites are a good source of fiber providing 11% of the daily value of fiber. They contain 2.5g of saturated fat – 13% of DV – and only 4.5g of added sugars – 9% of DV – per two cookies of serving.

Allergen info: Contains tree nuts.

15. Hail Merry Cups Sweet Potato

Hail Merry sweet potato pie cups are made with shredded coconut, almonds, cashews, maple syrup, and coconut sugar. These cups are certified vegan and gluten-free. They offer 5g of added sugars – 10% of DV – and 13g of saturated fat – 65% of DV – per two cups serving.

Allergen info: Contains almonds, cashews, and coconut.

16. Twinings Of London Chai Pumpkin Spice Tea Bags

This pumpkin spice chai is the perfect option to indulge during thanksgiving. This black tea is flavored with festive pumpkin spice and a variety of rich spices like cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice.

17-23. Baking substitutes to make your own vegan Thanksgiving desserts

If you want to try your hand at an extra dish this Thanksgiving and make a vegan dessert yourself, here are a few vegan cooking substitutes to help you whip up your customizable dessert in no time:

• Flax egg/chia egg. Flax and chia eggs are made by soaking ground chia or flax seeds in water until they create a “gluey” substance similar to egg whites, which helps bind ingredients together in baked goods. 
• Applesauce. Replace one egg with ¼ cup of applesauce* to act as your binding agent, but keep in mind that this method is usually most successful in smaller batches because the applesauce can compromise the structural integrity of the baked goods. 
• Aquafaba. Aquafaba is the liquid that often comes in canned chickpeas. When whipped, it creates a fluffy egg-white-like texture that can act as the perfect substitute for eggs when baking. 
• Banana. In general, one mashed banana is the equivalent to one egg when using it in a baking recipe. 
• Coconut oil. Coconut oil is a great sub-in for butter in baking to recreate the texture and moistness of a non-vegan baked good, but do note that coconut oil can sometimes change the end product’s texture. 
• Dairy-free yogurt. You can also opt to replace butter with a scoop of dairy-free yogurt. The yogurt, again, acts as a moistening agent and improves texture. 
• Plant-based milk. When baking, any dairy-containing milk is easily replaceable with plant-based milk. Any nut milk, soy milk, or oat milk will do just the same in a baking recipe as regular milk. 

Beyond this list there are even more vegan baking replacements to bake with, so don’t be afraid to do some additional research and have fun with it!

Key takeaways for buying vegan Thanksgiving desserts

Thanksgiving is a holiday that shouldn’t leave you bogged down by the stress of finding a dessert suitable for everyone at the table. Luckily, finding vegan Thanksgiving desserts that will please all of your family and friends doesn’t have to be difficult.

To find the best vegan Thanksgiving dessert for your holiday, look out for unnecessary added sugars, artificial additives, and artificial flavors. Make sure to check the ingredient and nutrition label for added sugar content and unwanted additives to buy the best option for your needs. 

While there are plenty of food ingredients that are vegan, shopping for vegan food items can mean paying extra attention to products that contain sneaky animal-based ingredients. Check ingredient labels for ingredients like gelatin, tallow, whey, and more to be a conscious consumer and make decisions that match your needs and values. 

We hope our list of the top 16 vegan Thanksgiving desserts and tips on how to choose them help your Thanksgiving go on without a hitch.

From all of us at GreenChoice, have a happy Thanksgiving!

There are 1,000s of food products that won’t be right for you

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Tell us your dietary needs & values and we’ll show you foods that match!

***

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Katherine

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Merve

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Sydney W

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