Easy Make-Ahead 4th of July Recipes
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These make-ahead Fourth of July recipes are delicious, festive, and simple, giving you plenty of time to enjoy the holiday! They include appetizers, salads, meats, vegetables, and Fourth of July dessert recipes for your summer party.
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5 Make-Ahead 4th of July Recipes Prepping Tips
- Vegetables: Start slicing up veggies for the grill the weekend before.
- Salads: Most salad recipes can easily be made ahead. For salads with creamy dressings, like coleslaw, pasta, and macaroni salads, cook the pasta and prep the ingredients ahead, including the dressing. Just before serving, assemble the salads.
- Corn Salad: Corn salads are perfect for making ahead as their flavors only enhance during chilling.
- Grilling sauces and rubs: While bottled barbecue sauces are convenient, they can never compete with homemade. If you are making your own sauce or dry rub, these are perfect to make ahead.
- Appetizers: Prep your vegetables and dips ahead for easy appetizers or charcuterie boards. Giving guests delicious options while waiting for the main event.
Easy Make-Ahead 4th of July Recipes
These 4th of July recipes are mostly easy and make-ahead friendly. For some, you can make the entire recipe ahead, others are easy to assemble on the day of.
1. Easy Summer Berry Trifle
Perfect for the 4th of July, this simple Berry Trifle Recipe is a super quick and easy layered dessert of fresh summer berries and rich and delicious pound cake with heavenly pastry cream. See the recipe for ideas on making this ahead.
2. Star-Studded Blueberry Pie
“Family and friends say this patriotic pie is better than a local favorite from one of our best neighborhood restaurants. Sometimes, I switch things up and use gooseberries for half of the blueberries.”
3. Antipasto Skewers
These easy Antipasto Skewers are a great addition to any 4th of July party and are simple to make ahead.
4. Patriotic Charcuterie Board
“Choose your favorite red, white, and blue meats, cheeses, fruits, veggies and candies to create a beautiful Patriotic Charcuterie Board!”
5. German Potato Salad
This German Potato Salad is a simple hot potato salad recipe with fork-tender potatoes, savory bacon, and fresh parsley tossed in a delicious tangy dressing you will love.
6. Blueberry Cherry Tomato Caprese Salad
“This red, white and blue Patriotic Caprese Salad is full of fresh tomatoes, blueberries, mozzarella and basil. A completely unexpected twist on classic Caprese salad and totally perfect for celebrating the 4th of July.”
7. Easy Boston Baked Beans
This Boston Baked Beans recipe is a classic side dish perfect for BBQs, picnics, holidays, and gatherings. Unlike traditional recipes, this is an easier, quicker, and even healthier version of this summer favorite. Smokey sweet and delicious!
8. Mexican Corn Salad
A quick and easy Mexican Corn Salad will be a favorite side all summer. It’s healthy, a simplified version of elotes, robust with the warm and spicy flavors of cumin and red pepper. Serve warm or cold, it’s simply delicious.
9. Herb-Grilled Summer Squash
Grilled vegetables are an essential part of Fourth of July parties. Few vegetables say summer quite like zucchini and yellow summer squash!
10. Easy Grilled Vegetables
Easy Grilled Vegetables with Burrata is a centerpiece of summer grilling. With a simple balsamic glaze drizzled over delicious and slightly charred vegetables, it’s a feast for the eyes and the palate.
11. Make Ahead Barbecue Chicken
The juiciest chicken on the grill starts with bone-in, skin-on pieces. Then dry-brine the chicken with a simple salt-and-pepper rub and let stand while the grill or oven preheats.
To make ahead:
The day before serving, bake chicken in your oven at 350 degrees until pieces are cooked through, about 35 minutes; then let cool and refrigerate.
Remove the chicken from the fridge about 30 minutes before it’s time to eat. Then, set up your grill for direct-heat cooking.
12. Easy Grilled Teriyaki Chicken Skewers
Grilled Teriyaki Chicken Skewers are a simple, savory and sweet BBQ kabob recipe!
13. No Bake Cheesecake
This No Bake Cheesecake is a 10-minute prep, no-bake, foolproof way to make cheesecake, the easy way. And, it’s utterly delicious. Utterly simple. Make the day before to give it plenty of time to chill!
14. No Bake 3 Ingredient Chocolate Pie
This no-bake, 3 ingredient chocolate pie is the easiest pie recipe you will ever make. Creamy, chocolaty, and seriously delicious. It takes mere minutes to make, plus chilling time.
15. Fireworks Cookies and Cream Cookies
“Sprinkles and Oreos add a fun flair to these easy 4th of July Cookies. The fireworks cookies are the perfect holiday treat for parties!”
16. 4th of July Brownie Bites
“Calling all procrastinators (or those out of time)! Here’s a last-minute 4th of July dessert idea you can throw together in just 10 minutes.”
17. Easy S’mores Cookies
Gooey and delicious, these S’mores Cookies are everything you love about s’mores in cookie form. They are packed with two kinds of chocolate, marshmallows and graham crackers. They are fun to serve and utterly yummy.
If you’re not making s’mores over a campfire, these are a simple make-ahead 4th of July recipe!
