Small Thanksgiving Dinner for 4 - Made on a Sheet Pan! (2024)

Here you will find the menu and recipes for a beautiful small Thanksgiving dinner for 4. The entire meal (except the gravy) is cooked on a sheet pan! It comes together in much less time than a typical Thanksgiving dinner, and it still has all your family’s favorites, including homemade stuffing, roast turkey, mashed potatoes, candied sweet potatoes, homemade cranberry sauce, green beans, and even pan gravy!

In the past, my mom, my sister, and I have literally spent days making Thanksgiving dinner.

Yes, you read that right. Days.

We would make any items we could in advance, little by little, over the course of a week or so before Thanksgiving.

The day before the big day we’d tackle a few big-ticket items, like brining the turkey and making the pies.

And then on the day-of we’d run to the store in the morning for any last-minute items, roast the turkey, bake the bread, and tie up all the loose ends (i.e. finish all the side dishes).

It was truly a marathon!

Now I live in Florida and a lot of my family is still up north. It’s rare that I make it up there for Thanksgiving, so I’m usually just cooking for two.

What’s a girl to do? I’ll tell you what I didn’t want to do, and that was spend days making a single meal. But I’m a traditional girl and I do want a full Thanksgiving meal! I could cheat and order Thanksgiving dinner, but where’s the fun in that, right?

The Best Small Thanksgiving Dinner Menu for 4 (With Recipes)

I decided to come up with a small Thanksgiving dinner menu to feed 4! Why four people?, you ask. Well, it could be for a family for 4, but for me it’s for 2, plus leftovers! (Because in some circles, Thanksgiving leftovers are considered the best reason to make Thanksgiving dinner, lol.)

Tradition dictates that there are some things that need to be present at Thanksgiving dinner. And I don't think it should be any different for a sheet pan dinner!

Namely, roast turkey (unless you’re vegetarian or vegan, of course), gravy, stuffing (or dressing), mashed potatoes, some form of sweet potatoes, green beans, and cranberry sauce.

This small Thanksgiving dinner has it all.

And the best part is, it only takes a fraction of the time. In 2 hours and 30 minutes (including the time it takes to prepare and cook everything for this meal), you and your sweetie (or your family of 4) will be sitting down to a full-on Thanksgiving dinner. Less time in the kitchen = more time with loved ones, and that’s truly something to be grateful for.

Thanksgiving Dinner Menu to Feed 4 People - The Ingredients You'll Need

Homemade Stuffing Ingredients:

• Bread (I used potato bread, but you can use any type of bread you like)
• Unsalted butter
• Onion
• Celery
• Garlic
• Parsley
• Rosemary
• Thyme
• Sage
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Egg
• Chicken stock
• Olive oil cooking spray

Garlic Herb Butter Turkey Ingredients:

• Unsalted butter
• Garlic
• Rosemary
• Thyme
• Sage
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Turkey breast (bone-in, skin-on)

Roasted Mashed Potatoes Ingredients:

• Yellow potatoes (such as Yukon Gold)
• Unsalted butter
• Whole milk
• Salt
• Black pepper

Candied Sweet Potatoes Ingredients:

• Sweet potatoes
• Unsalted butter
• Light brown sugar
• Pumpkin pie spice mix
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Water

Homemade Roasted Cranberry Sauce Ingredients:

• Fresh cranberries
• Granulated sugar
• Pure maple syrup
• Apple cider
• Salt

Simple Green Bean Ingredients:

• Fresh green beans
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt
• Black pepper

Ingredients for Pan Gravy Without Drippings:

• Unsalted butter
• All-purpose flour
• Chicken stock
• Onion powder
• Garlic powder
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Poultry seasoning

How to Make a Sheet Pan Thanksgiving Dinner for 4

This Thanksgiving dinner doesn’t need advance prep work. It takes about 2 hours and 30 minutes from start-to-finish, including all the prep time and cook time.

Here are step-by-step photos to guide you through the process of making this beautiful holiday meal. Instructions (without step-by-step photos) are given in the recipe card below.

How to Make Homemade Stuffing:

1. Cut the bread into ¼-inch cubes. It’s fine to use the crusts. I used potato bread here, but you can use any type of bread you like.
2. Preheat the oven to 375F. Spread the bread cubes out evenly on a large baking tray.
3. Bake the bread cubes until light golden, about 10 to 15 minutes, tossing once halfway through.
4. Chop the vegetables and herbs for the stuffing.
5. Add the butter to a large skillet over medium heat. Once melted, add the onion and celery, and cook until the vegetables are softened and starting to turn brown in spots, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly.
6. Add the toasted bread, onion mixture, parsley, rosemary, thyme, sage, salt, and black pepper to a large bowl and stir to mix.
7. Add the beaten egg and toss to coat, and then stir in the chicken stock.
8. Give it a good stir, and then the stuffing is ready to bake. Spray the inside of an 8 by 8-inch casserole dish with olive oil cooking spray. Transfer the stuffing to the prepared casserole dish, and spread it out evenly. Put the casserole dish (uncovered) on a large baking tray. We’re going to roast our turkey breast right on top of the stuffing in this casserole dish.

Pro Tip: In a time crunch, you can skip this and use store-bought stuffing.

How to Make Garlic Herb Butter Turkey:

1. Add the butter, garlic, rosemary, thyme, sage, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper to a small bowl and stir to combine.
2. Pat the turkey breast dry with paper towels. Slather the butter mixture under the skin, spreading it as evenly as possible.
3. Sprinkle the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper on top. Place the turkey breast on top of the stuffing in the casserole dish.

How to Make Roasted Mashed Potatoes:

1. Wash the potatoes and pat them dry. Poke each potato a few times with a sharp paring knife. Place the potatoes onto the baking sheet next to the casserole dish of stuffing and turkey. (Once the potatoes are out of the oven, we’ll mash them with butter, milk, salt, and black pepper.)
2. Once the tray is finished with Bake 3, use potholders to transfer the potatoes to a large bowl. Mash the potatoes with a potato masher until they’re as creamy as you like them. Add the butter, milk, salt, and black pepper, and mash again to combine.

Pro Tip: If you prefer, you can serve the baked potatoes whole instead of mashing them.

How to Make Candied Sweet Potatoes:

1. Wash and peel the sweet potatoes.
2. Slice them horizontally into ½-inch thick circles.
3. Add all ingredients for the candied sweet potatoes to an oven-safe loaf pan (I used an 8.5 by 4.5 loaf pan). Stir as best you can to coat the sweet potato slices with the spices. Cover the loaf pan with foil. Put the loaf pan onto the baking tray with the casserole dish of stuffing and turkey.

Bake 1:

1. Preheat the oven to 400F. Put the baking tray (with the uncovered casserole dish of stuffing and turkey, yellow potatoes, and covered loaf pan of sweet potatoes) into the oven.
2. Bake for 15 minutes.

How to Make Homemade Roasted Cranberry Sauce:

1. While the tray is in the oven for Bake 1, prepare the cranberry sauce. Add all ingredients for the cranberry sauce to an oven-safe 1-cup glass container. Cover with foil.

Bake 2:

1. After the tray has baked at 400F for 15 minutes, remove it from the oven and place the covered cranberry sauce container on it.
2. Return the tray to the oven and bake for 25 minutes more.

How to Make Simple Roasted Green Beans:

1. While the tray is in the oven for Bake 2, prepare the green beans. Rinse them and cut off the stem ends. Toss together the beans, oil, salt, and black pepper in a large bowl.

Bake 3:

See Also

One Pan Turkey DinnerThanksgiving Dinner for 4-6 PeopleMake the Perfect Turkey Dinner for Your Family30-Minute Easy Thanksgiving Dinner Menu For 4

1. After the tray has finished Bake 2 for 25 minutes at 400F, remove it from the oven and spread the green beans out as best you can on it.
2. Return the tray to the oven and bake for 20 minutes more. (This is the final bake, for a total bake time of 1 hour.)

How to Make Pan Gravy Without Drippings:

1. While the tray is in the oven for Bake 3, prepare the pan gravy. Heat the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
2. Once melted, add the flour.
3. Whisk the butter and flour together.
4. Cook for 30 seconds, whisking constantly.
5. Add the chicken stock.
6. Whisk until smooth.
7. And then whisk in the onion powder, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, and poultry seasoning.
8. Bring up to a boil, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat.

Pro Tip: Keep the gravy in the saucepan so you can easily reheat it right before serving if necessary. To reheat the gravy, warm it over low heat, whisking occasionally. Add a splash of chicken stock to thin it out if necessary.

Equipment to Make This Easy Thanksgiving Dinner

• Half sheet pan
• Cutting board
• Chef’s knife
• Mixing bowls
• Mixing spoons
• Aluminum foil
• 8 by 8-inch casserole dish
• 8.5 by 4.5-inch loaf pan
• 1-cup glass container
• Large skillet
• Medium saucepan
• Whisk
• Potholders
• Potato masher

Variations on This Thanksgiving Menu for 4

• Stuffing. Use can whatever your favorite type of bread is. You can even use keto bread!
• Mashed potatoes. Instead of mashing the yellow potatoes, you can simply serve them as baked potatoes if you prefer. Or you can make these pureed or whipped potatoes instead. To do so, peel them after they’re baked and puree them with the butter and milk until light and fluffy.
• Green beans. Instead of green beans you can make broccoli the same way.
• Gluten free gravy. Omit the all-purpose flour and add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch dissolved in 3 tablespoons of cold water along with the chicken stock.

Tips for Making a Small Thanksgiving Dinner

• If you don’t have the oven-safe casserole dishes I used to make this meal. No worries! You can partition your sheet pan with aluminum foil. For the cranberry sauce, you can use an oven-safe ramekin.
• Fresh herbs for best flavor. I highly recommend using fresh herbs to make this meal. You’ll be surprised at what a big difference it makes in the end result! However, if you have no choice and have to use dried herbs, use ⅓ of the amount that you would use for fresh herbs.
• No basting needed. This turkey requires minimal effort and doesn’t need to be basted. This is because we slather a garlic and herb butter under the skin and cook it on top of a bed of stuffing so the meat comes out juicy and tender.
• For darker gravy. If you want your gravy a little darker, add a splash of Gravy Master.
• If you need vegan gravy. This recipe will become your new best friend! We don't use turkey drippings to make it, so the only change you'll need to make for the vegan version is to swap out the chicken stock for vegetable stock (or vegetable broth).

Thanksgiving Dinner FAQs

What is Served for a Traditional Thanksgiving Dinner?

Every family who celebrates Thanksgiving seems to have their own traditional components of this beautiful meal. However, a few of the most popular common items include:

• Roast turkey
• Gravy
• Stuffing (or dressing)
• Mashed potatoes
• Green beans (or green bean casserole)
• Candied sweet potatoes (or mashed sweet potatoes, or sweet potato casserole)
• Cranberry sauce
• Bread (or rolls)
• Pumpkin pie

What is the Most Popular Thanksgiving Side Dish?

According to YouGovAmerica, mashed potatoes is the people’s choice! You can read about their study and findings on their website.

How Can I Have Thanksgiving Dinner for 2?

You’re in the right place! If you want to make Thanksgiving dinner for 4 people or less, this is the menu for you.

As it is, this meal makes 4 servings. If you like leftovers, it’s the perfect easy Thanksgiving dinner for 2!

Festive Cookies to Make For Thanksgiving Dessert

• Eggnog Cookies
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Russian Tea Cakes (aka Snowball Cookies)
• Apple Pie French Macarons
• Chewy Molasses Ginger Cookies
• Gingersnap Cookies (aka Gingersnaps)

Let's Connect

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