The best Thanksgiving dessert recipes

If you still haven’t figured out what to make for dessert Thursday, we’re here to help. These are some of our favorite Globe Food recipes from the last couple of years, sure to serve up some inspiration. Happy baking!

Apple hand pies

Globe recipe contributor Karoline Boehm Goodnick writes that “these half-moon shaped delights are perfect for a small gathering of folks who appreciate a good pastry-to-filling ratio. In this sweet version, apples are ideal because they’re firm and easy to contain. If you love to bake pies, you’ll enjoy rolling out this dough, stamping out rounds, and making these individual cuties.” Added bonus: “Leftovers will make a great breakfast. Cold pie for breakfast is the best New England tradition of all.”

Find the recipe here.

Traditional apple pie

Of course, if you’d rather make a classic apple pie for Thanksgiving, we’ve got you covered, too. Sheryl Julian writes, “A few years ago, Jackie King of A&J King Artisan Bakers in Salem, taught us how to make the definitive, classic, juicy, two-crust apple pie. It’s loaded with Cortland apples that are tucked into two rounds of buttery, flaky pie dough that are crimped at the edges and sent to the oven until the apples are bubbling at the edges and the pastry is golden brown. If you want to try your hand at pie, this is the recipe to use.”

Find the recipe here.

Peanut butter pie

For something different, consider wowing your family and friends with this multi-layered black-bottom peanut butter pie. Karoline Boehm Goodnick writes: “I first learned about baking a pie on Pi Day years ago when I was working at the flagship Flour Bakery in the South End. Owner Joanne Chang, a graduate of Harvard with a degree in applied mathematics and economics, was once known for her ability to recite more than a few digits of pi, and began baking pies on March 14 (pi begins with 3.14). This recipe for black bottom peanut butter pie has several voluptuous layers — a chocolate cookie crust covered with chocolate ganache, peanut butter mousse, whipped cream, and a garnish of peanuts and chocolate.”

Find the recipe here.

Crustless cranberry pie

This one is from The Recipe Box Project several years back, but one of its biggest fans here at the Globe swears “it’s delish and simple!” So we’re bringing it back. “This popular crustless pie is essentially a cake-y batter poured over fresh cranberries in a pie pan, baked until the cranberries make a saucy bottom for the buttery top. Cambridge resident Sandra Shapiro clipped this many years ago from The New York Times and writes, ‘I bake this in an attractive earthenware pie plate.’ Her recipe was called ‘Mrs. Arthur Morawski’s Cape Cod Cranberry Pie,’ and the clip said it was baked by Hester Griffin for the West Dennis Library. Similar recipes have appeared in The Boston Globe’s Confidential Chat, in Laurie Colwin’s ‘More Home Cooking,’ where it was called ‘Nantucket Cranberry Pie,’ and in Ina Garten’s ‘Barefoot Contessa How Easy Is That?,’ in which she adds an apple to the berries.”

Find the recipe here.

French silk pie

And in case you missed it, the Globe Food section published its modern Thanksgiving menu last week, and this French silk pie from that package is a show-stopper. Karoline Boehm Goodnick writes that “making French silk pie is a laborious effort, probably best when you are bringing dessert to a Thanksgiving feast, rather than hosting. But it is possible to work ahead, leaving only minimal tasks for the big day. The crust can be completed several days in advance; store it uncovered on the countertop until you are ready to use it. This version adds cocoa powder to a standard pie dough so you have a chocolate crust. In the filling, espresso powder deepens the chocolate without turning it into a mocha flavor; grated orange rind is a nice touch in the filling, with orange-scented whipped cream for the top.” We’ll be saving room for seconds.

Find the link here.