14 Easy Make-Ahead Recipes for Thanksgiving
on Nov 09, 2026
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These 14 Easy Make-Ahead Recipes for Thanksgiving are a simple way to prepare for your Thanksgiving dinner. Recipes range from cranberry sauce to gravy, roasted vegetables, mains, and more.
Be sure to check out our Thanksgiving Alternative Main Dishes That Aren’t Turkey and 15 Easy Chicken Recipes for Thanksgiving Dinner for even more Thanksgiving inspiration.
Table of Contents
Our Top 14 Easy Make-Ahead Recipes for Thanksgiving
For Thanksgiving coming up, it’s important to prepare as much as possible ahead of time. We gathered our easiest, make-ahead recipes.
- If you’re in the mood for an easy appetizer to prepare ahead of time, you can’t go wrong with Herb Lamb Meatballs with a Horseradish Dipping Sauce
- For a delicious and easy dip to prepare, try Creamy Rosemary White Bean Dip with Crispy Garlic.
- You can even prepare Juicy Oven Roasted Turkey Breast with Brown Sugar and Butter ahead of time and rewarm, or roast at the time of serving.
Thanksgiving Make-Ahead Main Dishes
Juicy Oven Roasted Turkey Breast with Brown Sugar and Butter
This Juicy Oven Roasted Turkey Breast with Brown Sugar and Butter is a game-changer. Oven-roasted turkey breast is one of our favorite ways to include turkey in our Thanksgiving dinner, without having to worry about the difficulty of cooking or butchering a full bird. Sweet and savory, this moist turkey is packed with flavor.
We are living for this simple, yet packed with juiciness and flavor, garlic herb roasted chicken. The herb roast chicken spice blend is simple: a mix of parsley, thyme, rosemary, garlic, and lemon, and of course, unsalted butter, all tossed and roasted to perfection.
Herb Lamb Meatballs with a Horseradish Dipping Sauce
I am absolutely dreaming of these herb lamb meatballs paired with a horseradish dipping sauce. It is just the perfect, easiest, no-fuss recipe that is filled with flavor. The perfect make-ahead Thanksgiving recipe.
Seasonal Make-Ahead Salads
Shaved Celery and Fennel Salad
This shaved celery and fennel salad is the perfect side dish to pair with dinner. Crunchy and tangy from the lemon juice, it is extremely refreshing and comes together in no time.
Roasted Beet Salad with Labneh
A delicious side: Roasted Beet Salad with Labneh! Now, let’s take it to the next level using beet tops to make an Italian-inspired salsa verde. You get the earthiness from the beautifully roasted beets and a tangy flavor from salty labneh and the vinegar in the salsa verde.
Radicchio Salad with Chives and Hazelnuts
A delicious and satisfying Radicchio Salad with Chives and Hazelnuts! The crunchy radicchio paired with the nuttiness of the hazelnuts, tossed together with a beautiful and tangy Dijon vinaigrette, is just magical. You can make this salad in one large bowl, dressing and all, or make your dressing ahead of time, and toss it all together when it’s time to serve.
Comforting Make-Ahead Holiday Sides
These Creme Fraiche Mashed Potatoes take this classic potato dish to the next level with a creamy and tangy twist. This recipe is the perfect side dish for all your Thanksgiving needs!
These crispy paprika oven-roasted baby potatoes are the perfect side dish for dinner. Smoky, hot, and roasted to perfection, you’ll keep coming back to this classic.
Easy Sautéed Haricots Verts with Shallots
A fresh twist on the classic green beans welcomes these Easy Sautéed Haricots Verts with Shallots. These haricots verts, also known as French green beans, are tossed with shallots in two ways: both with sautéed shallots and finished with crispy shallots.
Festive Make-Ahead Appetizers for Thanksgiving
The most decadent, sheet pan roasted butternut squash soup recipe! It starts off with one pan of vegetables and is blended with broth and coconut milk, or heavy cream. It comes together seamlessly!
Creamy Rosemary White Bean Dip with Crispy Garlic
This Creamy Rosemary White Bean Dip with Crispy Garlic is the appetizer we keep coming back to. It’s garlicky, creamy, and crunchy from the crispy garlic fried in paprika oil.
This dip is so versatile; whether you want it as a spread for your sandwich, an easy prep-ahead dip for your chips, pita, or crusty bread, or even vegetables like cucumber or carrots, this dip has you covered.
Shrimp Cocktail with Old Bay Mayo
We turn to this shrimp cocktail with Old Bay mayo anytime we want to make a delicious appetizer. This shrimp recipe really comes together in no time, with the only tedious part being cleaning and peeling the shrimp. Sorry, but it’s got to be done! Serve this alongside any party or holidays coming up, and I promise everyone will love you!
Make-Ahead Holiday Favorites
5 Ingredient Spicy Jalapeno Cranberry Sauce
This vibrant 5 Ingredient Spicy Jalapeno Cranberry Sauce takes the classic tart side and adds a spicy kick from fresh jalapeños. Whether you’re dressing up your turkey for Thanksgiving or serving alongside prime rib for a holiday meal, this recipe will be your tried-and-true cranberry sauce recipe.
Easy Meyer Lemon Pie with Honey Graham Cracker Crust
This Easy Meyer Lemon Pie with Honey Graham Cracker Crust is creamy, bright, and comes together in no time! Made with a base of sweetened condensed milk and fresh Meyer lemon juice, it is a special pie for any occasion. The crust is a sweet and buttery base that holds perfectly with the lemon filling. This is one of those special desserts you can prepare for your Thanksgiving menu.
Make-Ahead Recipes for Thanksgiving FAQ’s
You can prepare gravy, cranberry sauce, stuffing, and roasted vegetables ahead of time, to name a few.
At least 5 days ahead of time.
3 to 5 days in advance, or you can store it in the fridge up to 3 months.
Even More Thanksgiving Recipes
Find all our Thanksgiving recipes in our index!
If you do make any of these 14 Easy Make-Ahead Recipes for Thanksgiving, leave a comment and give this recipe a rating, we would love to hear what you think! Don’t forget to tag us on Instagram, we love to see what you’re making! If you’d like to stay in touch and get the latest in your inbox, sign up for our Newsletter. We can also be found on YouTube, Facebook, and Pinterest!
