16 Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Dishes

Want to actually sit down and enjoy Thanksgiving this year? These make-ahead Thanksgiving dishes can all be prepped a day or more in advance, so the big day is mostly about reheating, setting the table and visiting with family. From freezer mashed potatoes and slow cooker dressing to a faux pecan pie, here are 14 that make the holiday so much easier.

Once you’ve got a few of these done, fill in the rest of the table with our Thanksgiving side dishes, Thanksgiving desserts and Thanksgiving menu ideas.

Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Sides

These hold beautifully in the fridge or freezer and reheat like a dream.

1Freezer Mashed Potatoes

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Freezer Mashed Potatoes
Made with potatoes, butter, and cream cheese, this recipe for freezer mashed potatoes makes the most deliciously creamy mashed potatoes that freeze beautifully.
Check out this recipe

Make these creamy mashed potatoes ahead of time and freeze them, then just reheat on Thanksgiving day.

2Crock Pot Dressing with Cornbread

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Grandmama’s Crockpot Dressing Recipe with Cornbread
Grandmama’s crockpot dressing recipe layers Southern cornbread dressing with turkey or chicken and cream of chicken soup, then cooks low and slow so it stays moist and frees up your oven.
Check out this recipe

Grandmama’s cornbread dressing cooks in the slow cooker. Bake the cornbread ahead and the rest is easy.

3Southern Oyster Dressing with Cornbread

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Baked Southern oyster dressing in an oval dish with a golden brown top
Southern Oyster Dressing with Cornbread
Southern oyster dressing made with dried cornbread, fresh shucked oysters and their liquor, onion, celery and sage, baked until golden. A coastal Thanksgiving side for 6 to 8.
Check out this recipe

Bake and dry the cornbread and chop the onion and celery a day early, then stir it together and bake on Thanksgiving.

4Hash Brown Casserole with Sour Cream

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Hash brown casserole with sour cream
Hash Brown Casserole With Sour Cream
This hash brown casserole with sour cream mixes frozen hash browns, sour cream, cream of celery soup, cheddar and butter in one bowl, then bakes under a buttery Ritz cracker topping. It’s the side dish at every Southern gathering.
Check out this recipe

Assemble this cheesy sour cream hash brown casserole the night before and bake it while the turkey rests.

5Sweet and Sour Green Beans

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Sweet And Sour Green Beans
A perfect balance of sweet and tangy, sweet and sour green beans with crispy bacon and onion is one of my favorite Southern side dishes.
Check out this recipe

Sweet and tangy green beans that only get better after a night in the fridge.

6Easy Creamed Corn

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Creamed corn with fried chicken on plate.
Easy Creamed Corn
This easy creamed corn recipe cooks frozen corn in butter and heavy cream with a little sugar, salt and pepper for a thick, creamy side dish in about 15 minutes.
Check out this recipe

Creamy corn that’s on the stove in about 15 minutes and reheats well.

7Homemade Dinner Rolls

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Homemade Dinner Rolls
These homemade dinner rolls (Preston Rolls) are soft, fluffy, and beginner-friendly. Made with yeast dough that keeps up to a week in the fridge, they’re perfect for family dinners, holidays, or anytime you want fresh-baked rolls.
Check out this recipe

Make the dough a day or two ahead, then shape and bake the rolls fresh.

Make-Ahead Salads and Starters

These need time in the fridge or freezer, which makes them perfect to finish early.

8Granny Jordan’s Vegetable Salad

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Granny Jordan's Vegetable Salad
Vegetable Salad
Marinated in a tangy yet sweet vinegar dressing, Granny Jordan's Southern vegetable salad is overflowing with canned and fresh vegetables, like pimentos, celery, green beans, corn, green pepper, and onion.
Check out this recipe

Granny Jordan’s vegetable salad marinates in a sweet and tangy vinegar dressing and needs to chill overnight.

9Frozen Cranberry Banana Salad

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Frozen Cranberry Banana Salad
While the salads vary by tearoom, I have personally never been to one which did not serve a frozen cranberry salad such as this. Creamy, fruity, light tasting and just the right size when prepared in a little muffin paper, this is the quintessential tearoom must have and a very special treat to enjoy at home.
Check out this recipe

Old-fashioned tearoom-style frozen salads that wait in the freezer until you’re ready to serve.

10Holiday Fruit Salad

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Holiday Fruit Salad
Featuring a variety of fruit in a creamy custard-like sauce, this holiday fruit salad is one of my favorite treats… ever!
Check out this recipe

A creamy holiday fruit salad that comes out of the fridge ready to serve.

11Cranberry Crunch

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Cranberry Crunch
Old-fashioned cranberry crunch with whole berry cranberry sauce baked between layers of buttery oat and brown sugar crumble. Just 5 ingredients.
Check out this recipe

A sweet-tart cranberry crunch that’s been a family holiday favorite for years.

12Cheese Ball

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Cheese ball on plate with crackers.
Cheese Ball
This creamy cheese ball recipe is made with three different types of delicious cheese and seasonings, wrapped up in a smooth ball covered in crunchy pecan pieces.
Check out this recipe

A cheese ball tastes even better after a night in the fridge.

Make-Ahead Main Dish and Desserts

Yes, even the turkey and dessert can be mostly hands-off.

13Oven Roasted Turkey Breast with Garlic Herb Butter

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Oven roasted turkey breast with herb butter on a platter with rosemary and cranberries
Oven Roasted Turkey Breast with Garlic Herb Butter
This oven roasted turkey breast is rubbed with garlic herb butter under and over the skin, then roasted over onions and broth until golden and juicy. A 5 to 7 pound bone-in breast feeds 6 to 8 and leaves drippings for gravy.
Check out this recipe

Roast it a day early, let it cool, then slice and refrigerate it with some of the pan juices. Warm the slices covered at 325°F with a splash of broth.

14Crock Pot Turkey Breast

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Crock Pot Turkey Breast
This turkey in crock pot recipe is so easy and results in slow-cooked turkey breast that's juicy, flavorful, and perfect for Thanksgiving.
Check out this recipe

A juicy turkey breast cooks all day in the crockpot, no oven required.

15Faux Pecan Pie Without Pecans

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Faux Pecan Pie Without Pecans
This faux pecan pie without pecans tastes like classic Southern pecan pie, with a rich custard filling and a crunchy buttered pretzel topping in place of the nuts. A nut-free mock pecan pie for holidays.
Check out this recipe

A taste twin to classic Southern pecan pie with no pecans, great for folks with nut allergies. Bake it a day ahead.

16Sweet Potato Crème Brûlée

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spoonful of creme brulee
Sweet Potato Creme Brûlée
This sweet potato creme brûlée is the perfect holiday dessert, with tender sweet potatoes topped with custard and that brown sugar shell.
Check out this recipe

Silky sweet potato custard with a crackly sugar top. The custard chills overnight, so it’s made for planning ahead.

Tips for a Make-Ahead Thanksgiving

  • Start with anything that freezes, like mashed potatoes and roll dough, a week or two out.
  • Make salads, desserts and the cheese ball 1 to 2 days ahead.
  • Assemble casseroles the night before and bake them on the day.
  • Label your dishes with reheating times so helpers can jump in.

Make-Ahead Thanksgiving FAQs

What can I make the day before Thanksgiving?

Pies, cheese balls, cranberry dishes, marinated vegetable salads, roll dough and assembled casseroles are all great to make the day before.

Can I freeze mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving?

Yes. Our freezer mashed potatoes are made to freeze, then reheat on the day.

How do I reheat make-ahead casseroles?

Let them sit out about 30 minutes, then bake until hot in the center, adding a few extra minutes since they start cold.

13 Comments

  2. Christy, I copied your Cranberry Crunch recipe, and will add it to my menu this year(2017): I didn’t realize that post was from 2011 and I posted a favorite to share with you..so now I am posting it here:
    A big favorite of mine with “whole berry cranberry sauce”
    Hope you try it out one day. It was a hand me down from a friend years ago:

    Cranberry Salad:
    1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
    1 8 oz. package cream cheese
    2 tablespoons sugar
    2 tablespoons mayonnaise
    1 20 oz can of crushed pineapple – drained
    1 8oz. carton cool whip – thawed
    1 cup chopped nuts pecans or walnuts
    Coconut (Optional) *I love coconut!

    Beat the sugar and mayonnaise with softened cream cheese
    And blend in the cranberry sauce. Then mix in the drained pineapple,
    And Cool Whip. Stir in the nuts and handful of coconut if using:
    I make this for Thanksgiving and for Christmas! Cannot wait to also try your cranberry crunch. Thanks for all the wonderful recipes!

    Reply

  3. I’m so tickled to have found a solution for making mashed potatoes ahead of time! We host the singles in our church every Thanksgiving, and since I cook most of the food, I love finding recipes that I can fix ahead and just reheat–especially now that I’m older! I’ve even done away with the turkey! Instead, I buy rotisserie chickens, debone and freeze them until the day before. Then I thaw overnight and reheat. It helps that my crowd prefers chicken to turkey. 🙂 God bless you and yours with a wonderful Thanksgiving, Christy!

    Reply

  4. I have the same problem. I am using an iPad and can no longer print the recipe card. When I click on the print button, it goes to my print screen but the page is just a dark gray color page. No words or picture.. I have started to just highlight the recipe card, then click copy and put it into an email to myself then I print the email. Not sure what happened to interfere with the printing option.

    Reply

  5. I love your recipes and I many, many, many, of your recipes! Have signed up with you months ago (probably years ago). For some reason I can no longer print your recipes! Please help me! I can get your “print” it takes me back to your first page and does not print, anything! I am 83 yrs old and would love to have more of your Recipes!

    Reply

    1. Hey Carolyn! I have heard from two other people that are having this problem but I haven’t been able to figure out what it is. I haven’t changed anything at all on my website and it is an isolated problem so my guess is that an internet browser has updated or altered in some way and needs to be updated on the user’s end. Can you please tell me what type of computer you are using (desktop, laptop, apple, telephone, ipad, etc) and what browser you use (safari, firefox, chrome, explorer, etc)? I would love to be able to help you but it’s just a little more difficult with me being on this my side and you on yours. With a little information we may be able to figure it out though 🙂 Thank you for being here and I’m sorry for the frustration!

      Reply

      1. I can’t print either. The page is blank. I have updated my operating system on my iPad.
        Thank you for all the time and work you put into sharing your recipes and crafts
        Roberta Fisher
        Evansville In

        Reply

  6. Christy,

    Spending time with family really is the best part of Thanksgiving. It’s my favorite part of the holiday. Thanks for these great recipes that allow folks to prepare ahead of time!

    Reply

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