Make Ahead Desserts To Save Time This Thanksgiving
Make sure your Thanksgiving dinner end on a great note this year with these Make Ahead Desserts this holiday season! Holiday hosting can get chaotic, but with a little planning ahead, it can go a lot smoother than you think. If you know me, you know dessert is not one of my strengths. But, I’ve tested all of these recipes for my own dinner parties and they were definitely guest favorites! Here are some of my favorite dessert recipes to make ahead of time when hosting holiday feasts so I can focus on other dishes stress free!
This Lemon Cream Custard is an easy, 3-ingredient dessert that is the perfect palette cleanser after a feast. They’re tart, but creamy. Served inside lemon rinds, this little custard dessert looks super, super cute. They keep really well in the fridge, so you can make them ahead of time the day before or the morning of your dinner. Just pull them out of the fridge when it’s dessert time!
This 3-Ingredient Lemon Cream Custard is the best way to enjoy lemons during the summer! This recipe uses no oven, no egg, and no gelatin, The only ingredients are lemon, sugar, and cream, and 2 hours in the fridge. Plus, it looks so cute served inside the lemon rind. It’s creamy, tart, and super refreshing. This lemon dessert is the easiest way to impress all your guests at your next picnic!
If you’re looking for a delicious dessert with and Asian twist, you’ll have to try this matcha tiramisu. This tiramisu has less caffeine than the classic and is also alcohol-free. That emerald green color looks super beautiful on a full dinner spread too! Make this a day before, and let the flavors of each layer meld with each other. It will be absolutely delicious when you’re ready to serve!
If you’re a fan of both classic tiramisu and the vibrant, earthy flavors of matcha, this Matcha Tiramisu is a must-try. It’s a delightful fusion of Italian and Japanese flavors, bringing together the richness of mascarpone and heavy cream with the subtle umami and bitterness of matcha. The result? A luscious, creamy dessert with layers of flavor that melt in your mouth. It's perfect for my 14 course dinner for Dom's family!
These Almond Crisp Cookies look and taste elegant, and take only 10 minutes to make. These super thin cookies are not too sweet, and easy to make a lot of with very simple ingredients. Make A TON a day or two ahead, because your guests will LOVE them with a little after-meal tea or coffee.
These super thin and crunchy Almond Crisp Cookies are the go-to snacks you'll find at any Asian bakery – if you know, you know! Sweet enough to satisfy your sweet tooth – but not enough to be too sweet. It is a stress-free snack recipe to make in bulk ahead of time for a party, or just to have on hand when guests are over. This month, I made them for the home cafe experience I created in my house for 22 of my favorite people, and everyone loved these almond cookies! These Crunchy Almond Cookies are the cookies to bake this holiday season!
Another crowd-pleaser dessert that I love to make for guests is the Glazed Yogurt Lemon Blueberry Loaf. This tart, fruity cake is refreshing and delightful with a cup of tea. Bake and glaze the loaf a day ahead and store in an air-tight container, or bake it up to a week early, slice it up, and wrap individual slices in plastic wrap in the freezer. On Thanksgiving Day, simply serve the slices at room temperature or warm frozen pieces in the microwave for 30 seconds
If you’re looking for a fail-proof dessert recipe, this Glazed Greek Yogurt Lemon Blueberry Loaf is the recipe you need. The bright, fresh flavors from the lemon and the sweet, slightly tangy taste of the Greek Yogurt is tied together by that tart lemon glaze. The loaf itself is so melt-in-your-mouth moist, and packed with sweet blueberries. If you’re looking for a fruity dessert, make this beginner friendly blueberry lemon cake!
Soft, bouncy, and lightly sweetened with honey and vanilla, this Taiwanese Honey Castella Sponge Cake is another crowd-pleasing desserts that isn’t overly sweet. Baked in a gentle water bath, it has a cloud-like, moist texture that is delicious alone or paired with seasonal fruit or whipped cream. It’s an amazingly light dessert to enjoy after a decadent meal. Bake this cake up to two days ahead, and have the fruit and whipped cream ready on the day of your dinner!
You know your Taiwanese Honey Castella Sponge Cake is successful when you can hear the slight “sizzle” when you take a bite. Super moist, bouncy, soft, and slightly sweet Taiwanese Honey Castella Sponge Cake is super easy to make at home and is the best cake for summer picnics!
This Sugar Cookie Rice Krispies Treat is a dessert that is loved by both kids AND adults. And, it’s one of those desserts that can easily be made extra festive with your choice of add-ins, from dried fruit to rainbow sprinkles. Make them 2 days ahead of time, and keep in an airtight container in room temperature until it’s time for dessert!
These Gooey One-Pot Sugar Cookie Rice Krispies Treats will delight children and adults alike this holiday season! These cereal bars are gooey, chewy, and definitely satisfies a sweet tooth like Dom. With extra fun add-ins like rainbow sprinkles and extra marshmallows, this dessert is sure to make your holidays extra festive with no extra effortl. It’s a quick treat you can make in no time at all!
If you’re looking for a deliciously warm, decadent dessert after a hearty meal, you’ll have to try my Easy Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls. This sweet, gooey treat will end your dinner with a bang. Prepare the cinnamon rolls the day before so you can let them rise overnight. Then, right before everyone sits down for dinner, simply drizzle heavy cream over the cold rolls to keep the centers extra soft and gooey, and bake them for 30 minutes while you eat. They‘ll be hot and ready just as plates are cleared. Then, just drizzle that delicious cream cheese frosting all over, and serve warm.
These Fluffy Overnight Cinnamon Rolls were the star of my home cafe event for 22 people. It's an easy sweet breakfast or a decadent dessert – you get to choose! What's better than a delicious cinnamon sugar mixture rolled into fluffy, yeasty sweet dough and smothered in cream cheese frosting? Using simple ingredients, this is a fail-proof recipe if you follow along with me step-by-step.
For an impressive dessert that is actually super easy, try these Instant Pot Crème Brûlée. There’s something about the silky custard and crunchy sugar that makes this dessert so, so satisfying and festive. The day before, make your custard base in the instant pot, then wrap each creme brûlée with plastic wrap and store in the fridge. Once you’re ready to eat, sprinkle on the sugar and torch the tops of these creme brûlée. They’ll be both dessert and a show for your guests!
You will be shocked at how delicious and easy it is to make the BEST Creme Brulee in an Instant Pot! Creamy, rich, silky FAIL-PROOF Creme Brulee made in an Instant Pot in less than 3 minutes. There is no need to turn on the stove; with only FIVE simple ingredients, you will make Cafe Style Creme Brulee at home! I’ve had Creme Brulee every single day this week because it is THAT addicting and easy to create. You NEED to give my Instant Pot Creme Brulee a try; I promise your mind will be blown away!
For a chilled, rich dessert that’s easy to make, Japanese Custard Pudding is exactly what you need. I love the recipe because it’s silky, creamy, but so, so light especially after a big meal. It uses only 5 simple ingredients, most of which you will already have in your kitchen. You can make this dessert 1-2 days ahead of your dinner party, and have them chilled and ready to enjoy after dinner.
You NEED to try this silky, creamy, rich, and SUPER delicious Japanese pudding that I promise will blow your mind! If you never tried Japanese Caramel Custard Pudding – Purin, before you are missing out. Purin is one of the most famous Japanese dessert that is easy to make at home with only FIVE simple ingredients. If you made Japanese Caramel Custard Pudding in Cooking Mama, you would want to make this at home, because I promise it is better than Mama! Also, this recipe is FAIL-PROOF, so if you are a new dessert maker like me, don’t worry, I got your back!
There’s no other dessert that screams holiday for Taiwanese families more than Tangyuan. , these chewy, sticky rice balls are so fun to eat. These tiny bites can be made up to 3 months ahead and kept in the freezer. Before eating, just drop them in boiling water until soft, then serve in a warm, ginger syrup, or on top of freshly shaved ice with other delicious toppings.
Chewy, soft glutinous rice balls only need THREE simple ingredients, one of the easiest and tastiest Taiwanese desserts that you will love! If you never tried Tangyuan, Taiwanese chewy glutinous rice balls, it is a soft mochi dessert served on top of shaved ice or in sweet syrup soup. You can bulk make Tangyuan ahead of time and freeze them up to three months. Tangyuan is gluten-free and an easy dessert that is perfect for summer or winter.
