Thanksgiving is just around the corner! Unbelievable huh? Time is flying this fall!
We’ve been stuffing the season full of fun things for our family to do. It’s been a whirlwind!
Last week we snuck off to the Children’s Museum in Richmond, Virginia (they have a Fredericksburg location as well) with complimentary passes. If you haven’t been, it’s AMAZING!
The place is set up in different sections with huge climbing equipment, a theater with a lit up stage and child-sized costumes, a dinosaur play yard and sand pit to uncover bones, and even an indoor cave that you can explore complete with stalagmites. The detail and imagination that went into this place is insane. If you live near one, you should check them out here.
With all this crazy fun, I’m a little worried about Thanksgiving Dinner. We have a few fun things planned for that week, and while I love cooking, I don’t love cooking for 8 hours (does anyone?). So I’m going to think outside the box this year and make them ahead of time so they just have to be reheated.
By making the dishes ahead of time and properly freezing them, I can spread the extra cooking out over the next few weeks making Thanksgiving day much easier.
I can throw the dishes into the slow cooker or oven to heat them while we run around and play games, take walks, head to the playground, make wreaths and have an awesome day. Doesn’t that sound better than staying stuck in the kitchen for 8 hours while everyone else enjoys family time without you? Yep, me too.
The short answer: Almost everything except the turkey can be made ahead. Rolls, pie, gravy and cranberry sauce can go in the freezer weeks early. Mashed potatoes, casseroles and stuffing can be made 1–2 days ahead and reheated. That leaves you just the turkey (and reheating) on Thanksgiving Day.
Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Timeline
Here’s how I spread it out so Thanksgiving Day is mostly reheating:
| When | What to make |
|---|---|
| 2–4 weeks before (freeze) | Dinner rolls, pie (or pie crusts), gravy, cranberry sauce, cinnamon rolls for breakfast |
| The weekend before | Move the frozen turkey to the fridge to thaw (it takes about 1 day for every 4–5 pounds) |
| 2 days before | Mashed potatoes, green bean casserole (assemble but don’t bake), chop all your veggies |
| The day before | Stuffing (assembled, not baked), set the table, pull frozen rolls, pie and gravy into the fridge |
| Thanksgiving Day | Cook the turkey, then bake and reheat everything else while it rests |
What can I make ahead for Thanksgiving?
Pretty much all of the sides. The easiest wins are cranberry sauce, gravy, rolls and pie (all freezer-friendly), plus mashed potatoes and casseroles you assemble a day or two early and bake on the day. The turkey is the one thing I cook on Thanksgiving, and even that is easier if you’ve prepped everything else.
Here are my favorite make-ahead Thanksgiving Dinner Dishes:
Main Dish Make-Ahead Recipes:
Moist Make-Ahead Turkey by Yummly Life
Bread and Rolls Make Ahead Recipes:
Make ahead dinner rolls by King Arthur Flour
Cinnamon Honey Butter by The Food Charlatan
Maple Brown Sugar Cinnamon Rolls (We eat these ALL the time!) by Good Cheap Eats
Cranberry Orange Loaf by Table for Two Blog
Side Dishes Make Ahead Recipes:
Homemade Cranberry Sauce (Whole Berry) by Major Hoff Takes a Wife
Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes from the Kitchn
Make-ahead (Night before) Stuffing by eHow
Make-ahead Turkey Gravy by The Noble Pig
Make-ahead Green bean Casserole by Mom Advice
Crumb Topped Apple Pie (Freezer Recipe) by An Oregon Cottage
Have you ever made one of your Thanksgiving dishes ahead of time?
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Thank you for this list! I will definitely be trying the cinnamon butter! It could even make a good gift. 🙂