The turkey tends to end up on all the Thanksgiving greeting cards, but the side dishes make the meal a feast. There are universal favorites like stuffing and cranberry sauce and then there are the recipes like bacon-and-egg-infused oysters only your family would be crazy enough to dream up. Three recipes are sure to be the toast of the table.

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Celery, Root, Porcini, Parmigiano & Butternut Squash Gratin

Move over, boxed mashed potatoes. Rich, creamy and cheesy, this gratin from MarxFoods packs the gluttonous punch one craves on the nation’s biggest cheat day of the year. The butternut squash adds a taste of fall harvest, but it’s the wild porcini mushrooms that really make the dish interesting by adding an earthy depth. Get the recipe

Sausage and Herb Stuffing

image: sarah bossert

Litehouse’s sausage and herb stuffing combines apples, Italian sausage and cranberries for a sweet-and-savory twist on the classic stuffing. Hosts can stick it in the bird, and guests can simply make it as a side. Get the recipe 

Bourbon Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Oatmeal Crumble

Long Island carnivores rejoiced when Del Frisco’s Grille Huntington, sister restaurant to popular New York City steakhouse, opened in Walt Whitman Shops this summer. Bring the sweet potato casserole, which your niece might be delighted to learn is a favorite of Taylor Swift, to the dinner table this Thanksgiving. Spiked with Jack Daniels bourbon and topped with homemade candied pecan oatmeal crumble, this cold-weather comfort food is an ideal accompaniment for traditional Thanksgiving feasts. Get the recipe

You tell us: What’s your favorite Thanksgiving side dish?