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
Simple Berry Trifle Recipe
This simple Berry Trifle Recipe is a super quick and easy layered dessert of fresh summer berries, delicious pound cake, and heavenly pastry cream.
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2
4th of July Snack Mix (5 Minutes)
Celebrate Independence Day with a tasty and festive 4th of July Chex Mix. Made in 5 minutes, it's perfect for parties and snacking.
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3
Red, White and Blue Charcuterie Board
Choose your favorite red, white, and blue meats, cheeses, fruits, veggies and candies to create a beautiful Patriotic Charcuterie Board!
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4
Antipasto Skewers
Antipasto skewers are the easiest Italian appetizers EVER. Assembled on a wooden skewers, these antipasto kabobs feature cherry tomatoes, cheese tortellini, cured meats, and mozzarella balls. Drizzle a homemade Italian dressing on top to create the ultimate skewer recipe!
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5
Easy Fourth of July Snack Board
Celebrate the Fourth of July with a red, white, and blue Snack Board. Easy to make and a hit with everyone!
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6
Red, White & Blue Caprese Salad
This fun and patriot Blueberry Tomato Caprese Salad is red, white and blue and perfect for serving as a side dish for any American holiday.
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7
German Potato Salad Recipe
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.
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8
Spinach Strawberry Salad Recipe
This Summer Spinach Strawberry Salad is bursting with juicy berries, baby spinach, creamy cheese, and crunchy toasted pecans—all tossed together with a vibrant homemade Strawberry Balsamic Dressing. It’s an easy, crowd-pleasing salad that’s perfect for summer entertaining, from backyard BBQs to the 4th of July.
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9
10 Minute Homemade Barbecue Sauce
An easy to make simple BBQ sauce you’ll love. Use it immediately, or store it in the fridge for up to a month. Making your own barbecue sauce is worth the 10 minutes it takes to make.
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10
Easy Dry Rub Recipe
A homemade dry rub recipe is the secret ingredient to amazing BBQ. Making your own couldn't be easier!
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11
Easy Boston Baked Beans Recipe
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!
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12
Easy Mexican Corn Salad for Summer Gatherings
A quick and easy Mexican Corn Salad will be a favorite side all summer long. 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.
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13
Grilled Zucchini with Garlic and Herbs
This grilled zucchini is bathed in a flavorful garlic and herb marinade, then cooked to perfection on the grill. An easy side dish.
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14
Hot Slaw with Bacon Recipe
This Hot Slaw recipe with Bacon Dressing is a quick and easy side dish. And a perfect complement to heftier favorites like pork, sausages, or, of course, chicken. Whether it be fried, grilled… or pulled!
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15
Grilled Corn on the Cob Foil Packets
Grilled Corn on the Cob in Foil Packets is a favorite 3 ingredient summer side dish that is sweet and juicy and smoky with herbs and spices.
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16
Easy Grilled Vegetables with Burrata
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.
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17
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Make Ahead BBQ Chicken
Our barbecue chicken recipe uses an easy homemade barbecue sauce made with ingredients you likely already have in your pantry. We use a whole chicken cut into pieces so everyone can snag their favorite. 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.
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18
Grilled Chicken Teriyaki Skewers
Grilled Teriyaki Chicken Skewers, a savory and sweet BBQ favorite, is an easy go-to dinner idea everyone will love, all season long.
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19
Easy Summer Pasta Salad Recipe
This Mediterranean-inspired Pasta Salad is a favorite with salami, peppers, broccoli, zesty Italian dressing, and Feta cheese.
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20
Classic Potato Salad for Delicious Summer Cookouts
There is no substitute for a Classic Potato Salad. Especially when it’s made in the style of grandma’s potato salad. It’s creamy, and sweet, and comforting… just a little bit addictive.
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21
Easy Homemade Coleslaw
This simple coleslaw recipe is a summer classic. An easy recipe to serve all summer long. Crispy, crunchy, and perfectly flavored. Exactly what a coleslaw should be.
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22
Easy Strawberry Pie Recipe
This Strawberry Pie recipe uses four key ingredients—and one surprising twist. It's packed with juicy, whole berries and tastes like summer in a slice: fresh strawberries, warm sunshine, and an irresistibly sweet dessert.
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23
Easy No Bake Icebox Cake Recipe
This Icebox Cake is an easy, vintage-style no bake dessert recipe, perfect for summer. A simple layer cake made with sweet berries, graham crackers, and a delicious lemon flavored whipped cream. Easy to make in 10 minutes plus freezing time, it's perfect for summer gatherings all season.
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24
4th of July M&M Chocolate Cookie Bars Recipe
These Red, White, and Blue M&M Cookies are deliciously soft and chewy, bright with the pastel colors of 4th of July. With a vanilla sugar cookie base, they're easy to bake, no chilling, and perfect for summer!
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25
Star Studded Blueberry Pie Recipe
This blueberry pie recipe puts that bounty of farmers market berries to proper use. All their juicy, summery goodness shines through!
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26
Fudgy Brownies Recipe (A Fudgy Cakey Brownie)
A perfect blend of fudgy and cakey, these family size brownies are decadently delicious. Measuring an inch tall, they bake in a 9″ x 13″ size pan. Perfect for feeding your crowd.
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27
Strawberry Crumble Bars
These simple Strawberry Crumble Bars are deliciously summery with sweet fresh strawberries and an irresistible crumble topping. Perfect for backyard summer BBQ, picnics, or when you're craving a sweet treat.
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28
No Bake 3 Ingredient Chocolate Pie Recipe
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.
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29
No-Bake Cheesecake Recipe
This No Bake Cheesecake is a 10-minute, no-bake, foolproof way to make cheesecake, the easy way. And, it's utterly delicious. Utterly simple. And one you'll make often!
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30
S’mores Cookies
Gooey and delicious, these S'mores Cookies are everything you love about s'mores in cookie form. Packed with 2 kinds of chocolate, marshmallows, and graham crackers.
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