18 Thanksgiving Desserts That Are Easy to Take On the Go

When you’re planning to hit the road for the holidays, the last thing you want to deal with is figuring out how to transport a fussy dessert. Nobody wants to hold a pie plate on their lap the entire ride—or worry about a sheet pan or casserole dish sliding around in the trunk. But don’t give up on gifting your host a homemade Thanksgiving dessert just yet. We’ve got plenty of travel-friendly ideas that you can make in advance and take on the go, including Thanksgiving cookies, fall-themed cupcakes and even pumpkin bread. One of our favorites? These decadent chocolate brownies, topped with a sweet and crunchy layer of pecan pie. To ensure the layers stay distinct when these two classic desserts come together, the brownie is baked first then the nut filling is layered over it and baked again. In the oven, the syrup seeps into the brownies, keeping them moist and rich.

The dough for these spiced autumn cookies is easily made in a food processor, much like pie dough, but with softened butter. Get festive with the decorating by making fall leaves or turkeys using halved candy corns or pecans for the tail feathers.

These cupcakes were inspired by one of our favorite holiday pies. We toasted the pecans and finely ground them into a flour (replacing some all-purpose flour) to make the cupcakes, and we topped the cupcakes off with a brown-butter frosting you'll want to make again and again (it's perfect on banana bread). Store-bought dulce de leche spooned on top is an easy way to bring on pecan pie's gooeyness.

We turned the fall staple into a cool and refreshing no-bake dip perfect for family gatherings.