First let’s get something straight: It’s not a true Thanksgiving spread if it doesn’t include a dessert or two. Whether you’re a pumpkin pie stan, an apple tart aficionado or an adventurous baker who likes to try a new recipe every year, it’s important to have some post-meal sweets on offer.

If you’re stressing because you don’t think it’s “healthy” to finish your holiday feast with a fun dessert, it’s time to change your tune. Sure, desserts contain sugar. But they can also be a great way to add nutrient-dense foods like fruits, vegetables (hello, sweet potatoes!) and whole grains to your meal. Plus, as long as you’re not eating way past fullness, there’s nothing wrong with a little sweet treat.

Don’t believe us? Here are healthy Thanksgiving dessert recipes that deserve a spot on your table, although probably not all at once.

Start with Crustless Pumpkin Pie. It’s so creamy and satisfying, you’ll never even miss the crust. And with prep time clocking in at just about ten minutes, this festive dessert is sure to become a holiday staple.

These tartlets are the perfect way to please everyone at the table on Thanksgiving, and they’re packed with nutritious ingredients like oats, almonds, and cranberries. As with most vegan and gluten-free tarts, they’re best served the day they’re made, but you can press the crusts and freeze them ahead of time to give yourself a head start. The toasted-almond milk for the filling and the cranberry topping can be made up to three days in advance. Just bake the crusts and cook the filling the day you’re serving the tartlets.

If you’re looking for an alternative to your tried-and-true apple pie, this one uses whole grain flour, tons of apples, dried tart cherries and less sugar than you’d see in a traditional recipe.

This Instant Pot dessert brings out the best of fall’s sweet flavors in a fraction of the time it would normally take. Plus, it’s got three grams of fiber per serving from the apple and pear.

This is one of the simplest ways to satisfy a pumpkin pie craving without even making a crust. Instead, top luscious pumpkin filling with a simple brown sugar-and-spice crumble. The whole thing comes together in no time.

This popular seasonal dessert is made with Gajar or carrots in North India in the wintertime, when red carrots are abundantly available. While most desserts in India are too sweet for recipe developer Nidhi Jalan’s taste, this gem is delicate and heavenly. Traditionally made with milk and ghee, it’s also good with almond milk and lots of crunchy fried pistachios as a garnish. Buy fresh carrots at the farmers’ market, put on some nice music and just enjoy the process of making this gorgeous dessert.

This extremely simple recipe comes together in just 15 minutes, and each serving contains a full pear and 5.5 grams of fiber to help you digest the rest of your meal.

Cara Cara oranges bring bright flavor and bold color to this healthy and gluten-free citrus dessert. Perfect for entertaining, the crumble can be made ahead and served at room temperature.

Kabak tatlısı is a classic Turkish pumpkin dessert made simply from pumpkin chunks cooked in sugar syrup and topped with tahini and molasses. Pumpkin season is something Turkish cooks take seriously, and this is one of the most popular dishes to make. The pumpkin is drizzled with a traditional molasses-like sweetener known as pekmez. Grape and mulberry are popular pekmez; although they’re dark, caramelized and slightly bitter like sugarcane molasses, the flavor is lighter and fruitier, somewhat like pomegranate molasses. The flavor combination of the pumpkin, tahini and pekmez go exceptionally together, making this a simple but impressive treat when fresh pumpkins or kabocha squash are available. Bonus: each serving provides four grams of fiber from the vegetable.

If sweet potato is your pie of choice then these cookies are for you: They channel all the flavor of that Southern favorite in a fun two-bite package — perfect for when you need dessert but don’t want to feel over-stuffed after a big meal. The crust comes together quickly and gets pressed into a mini-muffin tin, no rolling necessary. We bake the crumble topping separately to keep it crisp and easy to put on the cookies after they come out of the oven. Any extra would be great on ice cream, yogurt or fruit — or make a double batch and keep it on hand for a quick topping for a future baked dessert.

We combined the beloved ingredients in pumpkin bread – creamy pumpkin puree, warm fall spices and a generous pour of vanilla – but omitted any dairy or eggs for a completely plant-based seasonal treat. Vegan dark chocolate chips stirred into the batter and scattered on top add extra flavor and texture. We found the pumpkin bread to be easiest to slice at room temperature, but feel free to enjoy a piece while it’s still warm if you can’t resist!

Wow your guests with this simple and refreshing make-ahead dessert. The orange juice granita is perfectly sweetened with honey and fresh mint adds an herbal background note. A topping of quick-candied kumquats brings a bright pop of color and crunch to this elegant dish.

Made with oat flour and oats, this whole grain dessert is heavy on the fresh fruit and relatively light on the added sugar.

A spiced apple filling tops these buttery cookies, packing all the flavor of an apple pie into a single bite – for a fraction of the work! They’re also much less filling than a whole slice of apple pie, which is perfect after a big Thanksgiving meal.

Thanks to a can of pumpkin puree this cheesecake contains vitamin A, potassium and various antioxidants to keep you feeling your best.

This apple tart uses store-bought puff pastry for easy, plus a whole apple for the filling. If you’d like to cut back on the sugar, go easy on the caramel syrup to serve.

Make the most of special winter citrus with this show-stopping tart that’s filled with tangy blood orange curd and topped with a silky-smooth and pillowy pomegranate meringue. The tender, flaky tart crust comes together quickly, and the curd includes blood orange and lemon juice for the perfect sweet-tart balance. Reduced pomegranate juice gives the meringue the perfect concentrated flavor without a ton of added sugar, and a quick pass of a kitchen torch at the end (or a minute under the broiler) gives this gorgeous dessert a dramatic toasted finish.

These classic French pastries are a study in contrast – a crisp, caramelized crust gets deep color and distinctive texture from a mixture of butter and edible beeswax while the interior stays creamy and custardy. Sometimes called cannelé de Bordeaux or canelé Bordelais, these little cakes are a labor of love and take a little patience and attention to get right.

If you’re a fan of rice pudding, this pumpkin-filled version is the perfect post-Thanksgiving treat.

Sweetened with just dried figs and dates, these chocolaty brownies are super-satisfying and have five grams of fiber.

This fruit-packed tart is unique because its crust is studded with finely chopped pecans, which adds texture, flavor and heart-healthy unsaturated fat.

Since there is no crust to contend with, this rustic Italian-style orange-scented cheesecake is incredibly simple to whip together. More delicate in texture than its iconic diner-display-case relative, it has a fine dusting of pistachios and confectioners’ sugar that gives it a pretty finish. These uniquities also mean that it’s a little lower in fat, carbs and calories than most cheesecakes.

This tart uses canned pears, which have all the vitamins and minerals of their fresh counterparts. To keep the added sugar content down, use pears packed in juice, not syrup.

Both the apples and cranberries in this cake add a tartness that perfectly complements the sweetness of the cake. And, because there’s no frosting or filling, this dessert is lower in sugar than many cakes out there.

This rendition of a fruit tart is free of gluten and dairy but full of luxurious flavors. The silky rich pastry cream is at once insanely vanilla-forward, custardy and an excellent contrast to the super-short, salty-sweet and buttery (without actually having real butter!) crust. Fresh seasonal fruit on top is the crowning glory. This recipe does require a few hours of waiting for the components to chill, bake, cool and set, but it all pays off in the end when you slice into your gorgeous fruit tart. With that said, there’s a lot you can do ahead of time. The filling can be made the night before and kept covered and refrigerated until it comes time to assemble the final fruit tart; the tart crust can also be baked ahead of time.

This banana bread is eggless and dairy-free, but you’ll hardly notice the difference. The crumb is moist and tender, and the flavor gets better each day (if it lasts!).

Scented with warm spices like cinnamon, cardamom, allspice and nutmeg, this cake requires just two bowls and no special equipment to whip up. And that’s not even the best part: When you cut into the loaf, entire slices of tart apples are revealed. At the very end, everything is drizzled with a salted honey glaze for a dessert that is sure to knock guests’ socks off.

Although it’s not as traditional a Thanksgiving dessert as pecan or pumpkin pie for most people, a pineapple upside-down cake is a great addition to your table if you’re looking for something fruity and refreshing. Bonus: pineapple contains bromelain, an enzyme that helps with digestion — especially important at Thanksgiving — because it helps your body break down fat and protein.

This sweet, fruit- and whole-grain laden treat works as a dessert or a morning-after-Thanksgiving breakfast.

Creamy pumpkin cheesecake gets a good dose of Greek yogurt for a slightly tangier, denser and higher-protein version.