More Than Mashed: Make Stellar Sides with These 25 Perfect Potato Recipes!

Potatoes are a classic and expected side at any Thanksgiving gathering. It’s a staple of the holiday, and for good reason – who doesn’t love an awesome potato dish? While mashed potatoes are great and we love them very much, sometimes you need to branch out and try some other ways to eat this side dish. These recipes are so good that one (or many!) may end up being your entree. Check out these dishes from our Food Monster App for your potato inspiration!

1. Roasted Potatoes

Image Source: Crispy Roasted Potatoes with Miso Tahini Dressing [Vegan]

Roasting potatoes is a great way to bring out their flavor, especially when you pair them with the right things. Roasting also can help get your potatoes to the perfect texture: soft on the inside, and crispy on the outside, just like in these Crispy Roasted Potatoes with Miso Tahini Dressing from Christina Bedetta. For another delicious recipe with a crispy exterior, try out these tasty Coconut and Turmeric Roast Potatoes from Tomi Makanjuola!

Herbs are incredibly important when roasting potatoes, as the flavor of the dish will vary greatly depending on which you use. However, when you find the right ones, you’re sure to end up with a meal that all of your guests will be impressed by. For perfectly paired potatoes and herbs, try out Crazy Vegan Kitchen‘s Easy and Zesty Lemon Garlic Herb Roasted Potatoes. Partner your potatoes with pesto with these Pesto Roasted Potatoes and Cauliflower from Melanie Sorrentino! You could even roast them up in a pan with Francesca Bettoni‘s Pan-Roasted Herbed Potatoes.

2. Cakes and Croquettes

Image Source: Lentil-Stuffed Potato Cakes [Vegan, Gluten-Free, Soy-Free]

People usually think of potatoes in terms of baked, mashed, and roasted (which are still awesome – keep reading for some baked potato recipes!), but did you know you can also make potatoes into cakes? Additionally, if you’ve never tried croquettes, you’re seriously missing out. Get started with trying potatoes in these portable forms with a recipe that comes with some added protein: Lentil-Stuffed Potato Cakes from Power Vegan Meals by Maya Sozer! For potato cakes that come paired with a sauce that you’ll want to dip everything else in too, Philipp Ertl‘s Quinoa Potato Cakes in Tomato Sauce are for you. For a simple but incredibly delicious recipe, try Melissa Tedesco‘s Potato Cakes!

Now let’s talk croquettes. Baked or fried, either way, these amazing treats are perfectly soft yet crispy, with breading that you’ll flip for. What are you waiting for? Get your hands on some Potato and Cauliflower Croquettes from Simona Malerba! If you want cheesy croquettes, then look no further than Rosie Newton and Dillon Sivyour‘s ‘Cheesy’ Fried Potato Croquettes.

Gratitude: Plant-Based Thanksgiving Cookbook

No other holiday captures the spirit of home cooking the way Thanksgiving does. This is why you need the ultimate Thanksgiving cookbook, One Green Planet’s Gratitude: Plant-Based Recipes to Create your own Thanksgiving Tradition! In the cookbook, you’ll find our 100 most popular plant-based Thanksgiving recipes like Soft Baked Pumpkin Doughnuts, Spiced Apple Cake with Cashew Frosting, Sweet Potato Chocolate Pudding with Nut Crumble Topping, Cinnamon Apple Hand Pies, and hearty entrees like Roast Root Vegetable Stack With Dukkah, Vegducken: Butternut Squash Stuffed With Eggplant, Zucchini, and a Mushroom Lentil Stuffing, and Seitan Roast With Sausage and Pear Stuffing and Apple Cider Gravy and so much more!

3. Baked Potato Dishes

Image Source: Irish Potato Pie [Vegan]

Baking potatoes provides so many opportunities for different ways to serve potatoes. The possibilities are endless – for example, you can bake potatoes into a pie! Check out this Irish Potato Pie from Julie Zimmer to see how. Cooke your potatoes twice and watch how awesome they come out, especially with a sauce you’ll want to eat with a spoon, like in Dan Waters‘ Twice Cooked Baked Potatoes With Asparagus and Mushroom Cream Sauce.

Keep it comforting, warm, and perfectly spiced with Lenia Patsi‘s Baked Potatoes and Peppers. You can also play around with potato textures and give these Crispy Smashed Potatoes with Caper Aioli from Buffy-Ellen Gill a whirl – go from mashed to smashed! For a recipe where you can be sure to get irresistible rosemary and pesto flavor in every bite, go for Laine Rudolfa‘s Rosemary Hasselback Potatoes with Parsley Pesto.

4. Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

Image Source: High Protein Chickpea-Stuffed Sweet Potatoes With Garlic Tahini Sauce [Vegan]

How could we do a roundup of potato recipes without including sweet potatoes? The answer is that we couldn’t of course. We’ll start with stuffed sweet potatoes! They go well with so many other ingredients and are a classic thanksgiving ingredient that your guests will look forward to.

Make them happy with nourishing and delicious High Protein Chickpea-Stuffed Sweet Potatoes With Garlic Tahini Sauce from Alexandra Caspero! If you prefer lentils to chickpeas, try these Lentil Curry Stuffed Sweet Potatoes from Kaylee Pauley. Judy Moosmueller‘s Sweet Potato Boats are as cute as they are tasty! You can top your sweet potatoes with any variety of amazing toppings or sauces. Get cheesy with Plant Tribe‘s Roasted Sweet Potato and Broccoli with Cheesy Sauce, or try a pesto topping with Gina Fontana‘s Quinoa and Pea Pesto Stuffed Sweet Potatoes.

Image Source: Baked Sweet Potatoes and Cranberries With Cinnamon Oat Crumble [Vegan]

Let’s be honest, sweet potatoes are delicious in any format. With these recipes, you can make multiple sweet potato dishes and still have variety galore. Plus, everyone loves a good Thanksgiving bake or casserole! Capture all of that festive flavor with Adam Merrin and Ryan Alvarez‘s Baked Sweet Potatoes and Cranberries With Cinnamon Oat Crumble. Lentils, sage, and plenty of hearty flavors can all be found in this Sweet Potato and Sage Lentil Shepherd’s Pie from Kristen Genton. Make the most creamy and comforting dish possible with Taylor Kiser‘s Scalloped Sweet Potatoes in Cauliflower Sauce. Get adventurous and have sweet potato take the place of another ingredient entirely with this Sweet Potato ‘Rice’ Casserole from Alissandra Maffucci. Whip up a dish full of satisfying nutrients with Molly Patrick‘s Sweet Potato Bean Hash!

Easy Ways to Help the Planet:

• Eat Less Meat: Download Food Monster, the largest plant-based Recipe app on the App Store, to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy. You can also buy a hard or soft copy of our favorite vegan cookbooks.
• Adopt-a-Pet: Visit WildWatchers, a watchdog platform specifically designed for animal, earth, and wildlife warriors to actively give back, rescue, and protect animals and the planet.
• Reduce Your Fast Fashion Footprint: Take initiative by standing up against fast fashion Pollution and supporting sustainable and circular brands like Tiny Rescue that raise awareness around important issues through recycled zero-waste clothing designed to be returned and remade repeatedly.
• Support Independent Media: Being publicly funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing high-quality content. Please consider supporting us by donating!
• Sign a Petition: Your voice matters! Help turn petitions into victories by signing the latest list of must-sign petitions to help people, animals, and the planet.
• Stay Informed: Keep up with the latest news and important stories involving animals, the environment, sustainable living, food, health, and human interest topics by subscribing to our newsletter!
• Do What You Can: Reduce waste, plant trees, eat local, travel responsibly, reuse stuff, say no to single-use plastics, recycle, vote smart, switch to cold water laundry, divest from fossil fuels, save water, shop wisely, Donate if you can, grow your food, volunteer, conserve energy, compost, and don’t forget about the microplastics and microbeads lurking in common household and personal care products!