Make-Ahead Breakfast Ideas for Holiday Mornings

Let’s be honest. As much as a big breakfast spread sounds great, no one wants to get up at the crack of dawn to cook a from-scratch feast on a holiday morning. Wouldn’t it be nicer to just crawl out of bed, pad into the kitchen, slip a preassembled dish into the oven — or better yet, remove the foil from a plate of coffee cake or blueberry muffins — then leisurely sip coffee in the sunlight? That’s the vibe we’re going for with these 25 crowd-pleasing make-ahead breakfast dishes, most of which can be fully prepped the night before.

Raspberry jam and a simple frangipani made with almond flour, butter, sugar and eggs are spread on store-bought brioche, then baked until golden. Make the frangipani up to a week in advance and lay the bread out the night before so all you have to do is spread and bake in the morning. These little delights are better when made with stale bread.

Recipe: Raspberry Almond Toasts

Planks of squishy challah soak up vanilla-scented custard sweetened with maple syrup in this overnight French toast from Yossy Arefi. Burying it all under a pile of saucy apples — and maybe a dollop of whipped cream — makes it feel special.

Recipe: Overnight French Toast With Maple Apples

In this Sheela Prakash recipe, two tablespoons of loose Earl Grey tea season the moist and tender barely sweet cake, while a cardamom and brown sugar streusel is scattered across the top. Serve it with a pile of oven bacon, fruit salad and a pot of tea (of course) for a breakfast that will make everyone happy.

Recipe: Earl Grey Cardamom Crumb Cake

In this Yossy Arefi recipe, bread cubes, sausage and mushrooms soak overnight in a savory custard dotted with chives. Once baked, the bread becomes almost light and fluffy, while the sausage and mushrooms add heft and bite under a blanket of melty Cheddar.

Recipe: Sausage and Mushroom Strata

Buttery croissants are the luxurious base of this casserole from Ifrah F. Ahmed, which is sweetened with maple syrup, spiced with cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg and hints of vanilla, and dotted with pops of frozen blueberries.

Recipe: Croissant French Toast Bake

Do like Yasmin Fahr does: Make a giant, herb- and feta-loaded sheet-pan frittata inspired by kuku sabzi, cut it into squares and then tuck them into pitas with fresh tomato, more feta and a drizzle of harissa. You can make the frittata the night before and then reheat it briefly in the microwave before assembling.

Recipe: Herb, Feta and Egg Pitas for a Crowd

Melissa Clark’s gorgeous croissant breakfast casserole has more than 9,000 five-star ratings, and is a Christmas-morning tradition for many readers. Toasting the croissants before assembling adds caramelized notes that can stand up to the sausage, sage and melted Gruyère.

Recipe: Buttery Breakfast Casserole

Delight your matcha-latte-loving teens with these overnight oats from Ifrah F. Ahmed. Prep the oats in jars the night before and then just top with fresh fruit and yogurt in the morning.

Recipe: Matcha Overnight Oats

Store-bought frozen hash browns are the hero of this super easy and very comforting recipe from Naz Deravian, which is excellent served alongside a pile of bacon or sausage.

Recipe: Hash Brown Casserole

So much easier than making traditional French toast for a crowd, this version from Lidey Heuck is one of our most popular breakfast recipes. It can be prepped the night before, and it’s a blank canvas for customization, so go for it! Add fresh or frozen berries, chocolate chips or chopped nuts to the mixture before baking or on top at the table.

Recipe: French Toast Casserole

For these tidy little wraps from Naz Deravian, make a quick and easy sheet-pan frittata packed with spinach, feta and sun-dried tomatoes. Then wrap it in lavash and pan-fry for a crunchy exterior and a tender interior. To make ahead, wrap the pan-cooked egg wraps in foil and keep in the fridge for three days, or the freezer for three months.

Recipe: Make-Ahead Egg, Spinach and Feta Wraps

Delight kids of all ages with these homemade copycat pastries that you can fill with jam, Nutella, cinnamon sugar or whatever you wish. The cream cheese dough is so easy to make and a dream to work with — no cracking, fall-apart pastry while you roll — but feel free to use store-bought pie dough if you prefer.

Recipe: Homemade Pop-Tarts

Ali Slagle is at it again with her smart tricks. Make a big batch of oven bacon on a sheet pan and then bake the eggs in the bacon fat. Cut the eggs into squares and tuck them into English muffins with the bacon and slices of Cheddar. If you want to eat right away, warm in the oven until the cheese is melted. Or you can wrap them in foil and refrigerate for up to three days or freeze for up to one month.

Recipe: Make-Ahead Breakfast Sandwiches

Melissa Clark adapted this gorgeous casserole from Floyd Cardoz, who was inspired by a traditional recipe from the Parsis (a group of Zoroastrians from Persia who settled in India sometime between the eighth and 10th centuries). Tomato sauce seasoned with mint, green chiles and ginger is poured over a layer of sliced potatoes, baked and then topped with eggs and baked a bit more until the eggs are set but still wonderfully runny.

Recipe: Indian-Spiced Tomato and Egg Casserole

I make some version of this granola, which Sam Sifton adapted from Daniel Humm, the chef at Eleven Madison Park, every week, but it’s rarely the same. Sometimes I add pistachios, other times I add cashews, and on special occasions, I add chopped chocolate. It has a touch more salt than many granola recipes, which balances the sweetness of the dried fruit, brown sugar and maple syrup, but keep that in mind and reduce it if that’s not your thing.

Recipe: Eleven Madison Park Granola

Make these perfectly poppable egg bites from Lidey Heuck the night before and then reheat in the oven or the microwave before serving. They also freeze like a dream, so you can make them weeks in advance if you’re that kind of planner.

Recipe: Egg Muffins

A breakfast burrito is to New Mexico what a bagel is to New York: It’s an important part of the state’s culture. You’ll find all kinds of variations, but the must-haves are flour tortillas, scrambled eggs and New Mexico green chiles, a red chile sauce or both (appropriately called “Christmas”). Ali Slagle’s version calls for frozen hash browns and cheese, but you could also add crumbled cooked sausage and bacon.

Recipe: New Mexico Breakfast Burritos

Readers go wild for these blueberry muffins that Marian Burros adapted from the Jordan Marsh department store recipe in 1985. They are tender, light and decidedly sweet. (For a less sweet version, try this recipe’s rival, the Ritz-Carlton’s blueberry muffins.) Mashing a half-cup of berries and adding them to the batter produces a very moist muffin, and one that will stay fresh longer.

Recipe: Jordan Marsh’s Blueberry Muffins

You don’t have to make this hearty and wholesome baked egg recipe from Lidey Heuck in advance — it comes together in about 40 minutes. But if you want your holiday morning to be as lazy possible, do this: Toast the store-bought(!) cornbread crumbs and cook the bacon and the greens the night before, so all you have to do is heat the oven, crack the eggs into the dish and bake. (Refrigerate the greens, but leave the cornbread crumbs out.)

Recipe: Baked Eggs With Kale, Bacon and Cornbread Crumbs

If you have a houseful of oatmeal fans, you could make overnight oats or slow-cooker oatmeal. But if you want something portable that folks can nibble on all morning, make these tender and belly-filling breakfast bars from Samantha Seneviratne. Add up to 1½ cups of mix-ins like chocolate, shredded coconut, dried fruit or a combination.

Recipe: Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

You can use leftover cubed cooked potatoes or frozen hash browns in this classic egg, cheese, potato and sausage casserole from Lidey Heuck. For a bit of color, stir in some chopped spinach or finely chopped broccoli. To make ahead, assemble the night before, refrigerate and then pop into the oven when you rise.

Recipe: Breakfast Casserole

Another outstanding version of overnight French toast, this one from Samantha Seneviratne. It really works with any soft bread like brioche, fruit-studded panettone or shiny challah, but I’ve also been known to make it with leftover hamburger buns, and no one was the wiser.

Recipe: Overnight French Toast

Forget rolling and chilling dough for Christmas morning breakfast. Instead, whip together this fuss-free quiche from Sarah Copeland. Prep the night before, refrigerate and then pop into the oven in the morning. If you’re serving a hungry crowd, double the recipe and bake in a 9-by-13-inch pan for about an hour.

Recipe: Crustless Egg and Cheese Quiche

Here’s another mostly hands-off version of oatmeal, this one from Melissa Clark. Melted butter, milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract and nutmeg are combined with oats and almonds and then poured over a layer of berries in the baking dish. Once baked, the top is crispy while the bottom is custardy and toothsome. It’s a holiday, so a dollop of whipped cream is advised.

Recipe: Baked Oatmeal With Berries and Almonds

Before you sip your first mimosa or Bloody Mary of the day, gird your stomach with one of these hearty bean, egg and cheese breakfast burritos from Yewande Komolafe. Wrap with foil and refrigerate for up to 24 hours before reheating, or freeze for up to 3 months. (But wait to add the avocado and cilantro until you’re ready to eat. Those don’t freeze well.)

Recipe: Breakfast Burritos

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