Holidays & Occasions Labor Day 25 Of Grandma's Most-Requested Labor Day Recipes Grandma knows best. By Jenna Sims Jenna Sims Jenna is a Senior Digital Editor for Southern Living and joined the team in 2014. She writes, produces, and assigns content with a focus on email growth and commerce content. She covers a range of topics in the lifestyle space from holiday gift guides to new product launches to tips for cooking with your air fryer. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Published on August 28, 2024 Close Photo: Aaron Kirk; Prop Styling: Sarah-Elizabeth Cleveland; Food Styling: Julia Levy When planning the menu for a Labor Day gathering, Grandma knows what dishes should be on the table. We're talking all the classics like baked beans, deviled eggs, blackberry cobbler, and more. Plus, it's one last gathering to make the most of summer's best produce like tomatoes, corn, peaches, and blackberries. 20 Labor Day Appetizers To Wrap Up Summer 01 of 25 Homemade Baked Beans Fred Hardy II; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Christina Brockman Homemade baked beans are a staple side dish at any cookout. This version starts with canned pork and beans as a shortcut, however you can start with dried beans if desired. Homemade Baked Beans 02 of 25 Classic Baked Macaroni And Cheese Fred Hardy II; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Christina Brockman We know Grandma would never show up with a mac and cheese that's not made from scratch. With a recipe this simple, there's no need to buy the boxed version. Classic Baked Macaroni And Cheese 03 of 25 Classic Deviled Eggs Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox In our opinion, deviled eggs belong at every gathering so you can't go wrong bringing them to the potluck. Whether they're served as an appetizer or a side dish, we guarantee a few will disappear as soon as you set them out on the platter. Classic Deviled Eggs 04 of 25 Luscious Lemon Bars Fred Hardy; Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey; Prop Stylist: Caleb Clarke If you need a dessert to bring to the holiday potluck, lemon bars are a great choice because they're easy to transport. This recipe makes 2 dozen bars so there is sure to be enough for your Labor Day crowd. Luscious Lemon Bars 05 of 25 Heirloom Tomato Pie Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely Whether you make homemade dough or buy a store-bought one, you can't go wrong serving this tomato pie. Heirloom Tomato Pie 06 of 25 7- Layer Salad Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Caleb Clarke This layered salad is equally as impressive as it is delicious. Plus, it can be made one day ahead of time, just reserve the dressing and parmesan to add just before serving. 7-Layer Salad 07 of 25 Cast-Iron Skillet Burgers photographer: Jennifer Causey; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer Burgers are sure to taste even better when they're cooked up in Grandma's cast-iron skillet. Cast-Iron Skillet Burgers 08 of 25 Best- Ever Succotash Photographer: Jen Causey, Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn This recipe can easily be doubled and travels well if you need a dish that can be easily transported to the cookout. Best-Ever Succotash 09 of 25 Peach Chiffon Pie Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Made by West Virginia native Jennifer Garner and her mom every summer, this chiffon pie recipe originally appeared in the pages of our 1989 annual recipe cookbook. Peach Chiffon Pie 10 of 25 Oven-Roasted Corn On The Cob Photographer: Fred Hardy II, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Props Stylist: Christina Brockman Just a handful of ingredients are needed for this recipe because in-season corn is delicious on its own. Oven-Roasted Corn On The Cob 11 of 25 Chocolate Delight Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Styling: Christine Keely This dessert is known by over 100 names, but no matter what you call it we can assure you it'll be everyone's favorite dish at the Labor Day cookout. Chocolate Delight 12 of 25 Easy Squash Casserole Aaron Kirk; Prop Styling: Sarah-Elizabeth Cleveland; Food Styling: Julia Levy Fresh summer squash is the star of this classic side dish. Everyone will eat their vegetables when they're served in a cheesy casserole, including the kids. Easy Squash Casserole 13 of 25 Classic Potato Salad Fred Hardy; Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey; Prop Stylist: Hannah Greenwood Grandma knows that classic Southern potato salad should include two things: hard-boiled eggs and sweet pickle relish. Other ingredients can be skipped or added to adapt to your taste. Classic Potato Salad 14 of 25 Easy Blackberry Cobbler Hannah Zimmerman Four cups of fresh blackberries are the true star of this easy cobbler recipe. If you have other fresh fruit on hand like raspberries, blueberries, or pitted cherries, you can use those as well. Easy Blackberry Cobbler 15 of 25 Basic Pimiento Cheese Jennifer Causey; Prop Styling: Christine Keely; Food Styling: Torie Cox Our Basic Pimiento Cheese is made with just a handful of ingredients, most importantly cheese that you shred yourself just like Grandma does. Basic Pimiento Cheese 16 of 25 Corn Pudding Casserole Courtney West When it's cooked during the summer, this casserole can be made with fresh corn instead of frozen. Corn Pudding Casserole 17 of 25 Baked BBQ Chicken Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Margaret Dickey; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Homemade BBQ sauce and onions add layers of flavor to baked chicken while broiling the chicken just before removing it from the oven gives it a nice char. Baked BBQ Chicken 18 of 25 Ranch Potato Salad Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox This potato salad recipe is made with homemade ranch dressing instead of bottled ranch dressing, just like Grandma does. Ranch Potato Salad 19 of 25 Peach Dump Cake Micah A. Leal As the name implies, the ingredients for this cake are simply dumped into a pan and baked until the top is golden brown in color. Peach Dump Cake 20 of 25 Texas Caviar Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox There's always at least one dip on the menu at summer cookouts, and there's a good chance this classic no-cook dip will make an appearance. Italian dressing is used to dress fresh veggies that can be scooped up with tortilla chips. Texas Caviar 21 of 25 Classic Coleslaw Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Making classic coleslaw from scratch is actually easy to make. Once you see how Grandma makes it, you may never buy the bagged stuff again. Classic Coleslaw 22 of 25 Slow Cooker Barbecue Pork Jennifer Davick Grandma knows that using a slow cooker is the easiest way to cook pork so it's tender enough to shred with a fork. Guests can enjoy it on sandwiches, on a potato, or even by itself. Slow Cooker Barbecue Pork 23 of 25 Zucchini, Squash, and Corn Casserole Photo: Hector Sanchez Three fresh summer vegetables come together in this casserole to make one delicious dish. Zucchini, Squash, And Corn Casserole 24 of 25 Classic Fresh Field Peas Photo: Iain Bagwell This Southern summer specialty takes a few hours to make because of the time the ham hocks are simmered, but Grandma knows it's worth the time. Classic Fresh Field Peas 25 of 25 Macaroni Salad Morgan Hunt Glaze; Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey; Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel Say farewell to summer with the potluck MVP. While we love our potato salad and coleslaw, this creamy macaroni salad is Grandma's specialty. get the recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit