Best Make-Ahead Meals

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Create the best make-ahead meals with these four easy recipes. These make-ahead dinner recipes include delicious grilled steak, meaty baked beans, orzo salad, and Key lime cheesecake.

by Rita Heikenfeld

Spring and early summer: think graduations, weddings, potlucks, and al fresco dinners. If you’re like me, entertaining family and friends makes the season special. Then again, there’s the time element. Who isn’t super busy nowadays?

That’s why I’ve chosen some impressive, tried-and-true dinner party recipes that taste as good as they look. The bonus? Feel like a guest at your own party because these dishes are all made ahead!

If you’ve never had a flat iron steak, try my recipe for grilling the steak with a thyme, parsley, and garlic herb rub. Flat iron steak, from the shoulder of the cow, has the beefy flavor of chuck yet is relatively tender.

Need a sensational side for that potluck? Your mama most likely never made baked beans like the recipe I’m sharing today. The additions of ground beef and an apple may sound strange to you, but trust me, folks will go back for seconds.

Orzo and chickpea salad with dill and feta is better and less expensive than the store-bought deli version. Leftover salad can be piled into a pita half for lunch the next day.

And because a party needs dessert, I hope you make my Key lime cheesecake. This was a much-requested dessert during my catering career.

Grilled Flat Iron Steak with Herb “Crust”

Prep ahead and refrigerate. Take out about 15 minutes before grilling.

Ingredients:

For each steak (1-1/4 pounds, approximately)

Combine:

• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, minced
• Palmful fresh parsley, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt

Instructions:

1. Score each steak on both sides.
2. Rub each steak with olive oil, then press and rub seasoning all over steak.
3. Turn grill to high.
4. Grill steaks on one side for 5 minutes without moving. This develops nice grill marks.
5. Flip steaks and finish grilling to desired doneness. Remove meat when it reaches a couple degrees BELOW what you like, since carryover cooking occurs after meat is removed from grill.
6. Tent with foil and let rest 5 minutes or so to distribute juices throughout the meat. Meat will rise a couple degrees in temperature as it sits.
7. Cut on the diagonal against the grain into thin slices. If there are any juices on the cutting board, pour them over the sliced meat.
8. Serve hot, warm, or chilled.

Keeps in refrigerator, covered, for up to 2 days.

Swap it out!

Instead of an herb crust, a savory rub from pantry spices is yummy, too. After scoring and rubbing the steak with olive oil, rub this blend all over:

• 1 tablespoon each seasoned salt and Italian seasoning.
• 1/2 teaspoon each onion powder, granulated garlic powder, coarsely ground black pepper (1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper can be subbed in for the black pepper).

Tip: Is it done?

A meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the steak will read:

• Rare — 120 degrees Fahrenheit
• Medium Rare — 130 degrees F
• Medium — 140 degrees F
• Medium Well — 143 degrees F
• Well Done — 160 degrees F

Not Your Mama’s Baked Beans

Substitute turkey bacon and ground chicken for the beef if you’d like. The flavor will be a bit milder.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 or so pound bacon, cut into small pieces
• 1-pound lean ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large Granny Smith apple, chopped, peel left on
• 1 can, 28 ounces, favorite baked beans, undrained
• 2 cans, 15 ounces each, favorite plain beans, drained
• 1 generous cup barbecue sauce
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• Squirt or 2 Dijon mustard
• Garnish: sliced green onions (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In large skillet over medium heat, sauté bacon until almost done.
3. Stir in ground beef, onion, and apple, smooshing with potato masher or wooden spoon to break meat up. Cook until beef is done.
4. Stir in both kinds of beans, barbecue sauce, brown sugar, cayenne, and mustard. Mix well and adjust seasonings.
5. Spray 3-quart casserole pan and pour beef and bean mixture in.
6. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until hot throughout and bubbly. Give it a stir a couple times during cooking.
7. Garnish with green onions and serve hot or at room temperature.

Orzo Salad with Chickpeas and Dill

Components can be prepped a day ahead of time. Orzo is a rice-shaped pasta.

Ingredients:

Salad:

• 1 cup uncooked orzo
• 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained but not rinsed
• 1 cup chopped cucumber
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
• Palmful finely chopped fresh dill or to taste
• 1/4 cup diced red or sweet onion

Dressing:

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• Finely chopped fresh dill, to taste — a teaspoon or so

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions for Salad and Dressing:

1. Cook orzo according to package directions. Drain and cool.
2. Combine orzo, chickpeas, cucumbers, feta, dill, and red onion.
3. Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and dill. Drizzle over salad and combine.
4. Add salt and pepper.
5. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Gilding the Lily

Quartered grape or cherry tomatoes are good additions.

Add Chickpea Nutrition to Other Grain Salads

Get a boost of fiber and protein by folding chickpeas into tabouleh, brown rice, and farro salads.

Key Lime Icebox Cheesecake

Fresh lime juice can be used instead of Key lime juice. This isn’t a dense, New York-type cheesecake. The filling sets up silky smooth.

Ingredients:

Filling:

• 1 graham cracker or chocolate cookie crust
• 1-pound regular cream cheese, not low fat or fat-free, cut into chunks, room temperature
• 3 large eggs
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 4 to 5 tablespoons Key lime juice

Sour cream topping:

• 1 cup sour cream, not low-fat or fat-free
• 3 tablespoons sugar or to taste
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions:

Filling:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Put filling ingredients in a food processor. Process until smooth. (You can also use a mixer or even whisk by hand).
3. Pour into crust.
4. Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until puffed slightly in the middle. Don’t overbake.
5. Turn oven up to 450 to 500 to bake topping.

Topping:

1. Whisk topping ingredients until smooth and pour onto cheesecake immediately after it bakes, smoothing top.
2. Put back in oven for 5 minutes.
3. Remove, let cool to room temperature on rack, then refrigerate to chill completely before serving.

Don’t worry if topping doesn’t look set. It will firm up in the refrigerator.

Keeps in refrigerator, covered, for up to 3 days.

More Delicious Recipes to Enjoy

• Best Pita Bread Recipe
• Chicken & Turkey Pot Pie Recipes
• Quick & Easy Kolache Recipe
• Easy & Simple Zucchini Recipes

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Rita Heikenfeld comes from a family of wise women in tune with nature. She’s a certified modern herbalist, culinary educator, author, and national media personality. Most importantly, she’s a wife, mom, and grandma. Rita lives on a little patch of heaven overlooking the East Fork River in Clermont County, Ohio. She’s a former adjunct professor at the University of Cincinnati, where she developed a comprehensive herbal course. AboutEating.com column: rita@communitypress.com

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Originally published in the May/June 2025 issue of Countryside and Small Stock Journal and regularly vetted for accuracy.