50+ Recipes To Save for Your Next Family Reunion
Best Deviled Eggs
Recipe: Best Deviled Eggs
Is it even a family gathering without a plate of deviled eggs? Never.
Mama's Fried Chicken
Recipe: Mama's Fried Chicken
When Mama makes fried chicken, you better believe she does it well.
Southern Cobb Salad with Cornbread Croutons
Recipe: Southern Cobb Salad with Cornbread Croutons
We added a Southern spin to classic Cobb salad with the addition of cornbread croutons and black-eyed peas.
Texas Sheet Cake with Fudge Icing
Recipe: Texas Sheet Cake with Fudge Icing
Baked on a large sheet pan, this cake was truly made to serve a crowd.
Reunion Pea Casserole
Recipe: Reunion Pea Casserole
Impress even Grandma by showing up to the family meal with this cheesy, veggie-packed casserole.
Slow-Cooker Grape Jelly Meatballs
Recipe: Slow-Cooker Grape Jelly Meatballs
Even if the family reunion is planned for the middle of summer, there's always a batch of meatballs sitting in a slow cooker to stay warm.
Baked Beans
Recipe: Baked Beans
Backyard family reunions require a piping hot dish of baked beans with bacon.
Permanent Slaw
Recipe: Permanent Slaw
A heaping bowl of coleslaw belongs right alongside the baked beans at a Southern cookout.
Pineapple Casserole
Recipe: Pineapple Casserole
To those outside the South, "pineapple casserole" might sound bizarre, but to many, it's just as much a potluck staple as fried chicken.
Oven-Baked Baby Back Ribs
Recipe: Oven-Baked Baby Back Ribs
Serve up ribs without the need to use a grill or smoker by baking them in the oven.
Broccoli Cheese Casserole
Recipe: Broccoli Cheese Casserole
Trust us, covering broccoli in cheese is the best way to serve it at a reunion.
Classic Macaroni Salad with Ham
Recipe: Classic Macaroni Salad with Ham
Pasta salad is a must at family reunions, and this recipe will taste like pure nostalgia.
Peach Cobbler
Recipe: Easy Peach Cobbler
Even beginner cooks can pull off a classic peach cobbler recipe, just don't forget the vanilla ice cream.
Ham Delights
Recipe: Ham Delights
These finger sandwiches almost always make an appearance at gathering in the South. They're sure to be loved by both kids and adults.
Oven-Roasted Corn on the Cob
Recipe: Oven-Roasted Corn on the Cob
Let the flavors of fresh summer corn shine by roasting it with plenty of fresh herbs and butter.
Sausage Balls
Recipe: Sausage Balls
There always seems to be a basket of sausage balls at the family reunion, and it always seems to be empty by the end of it.
Chicken Spaghetti
Recipe: Chicken Spaghetti
A 13- x 9-inch baking dish filled with colorful chicken spaghetti will be the talk of the day.
Kitchen Sink Cookies
Recipe: Kitchen Sink Cookies
Why bring plain chocolate chip cookies when you can offer wow-worthy cookies full of sweet and salty goodness?
Squash Casserole
Recipe: Squash Casserole
Fresh summer squash, butter, cheddar cheese, and buttery crackers on top taste like summer nostalgia to us.
Make-Ahead Yeast Rolls
Recipe: Make-Ahead Yeast Rolls
We bet you can't find a family reunion in the South that doesn't have a basket of warm rolls on the buffet.
Cream Cheese Brownies
Recipe: Cream Cheese Brownies
If you're wary of making a complicated layer cake or homemade piecrust, warm, gooey brownies will always satisfy a crowd.
Old-Fashioned Tomato Pie
Recipe: Old-Fashioned Tomato Pie
Old-Fashioned Tomato Pie is summer perfection thanks to garden fresh tomatoes and herbs.
Lime Gelatin and Cottage Cheese Salad
Recipe: Lime Gelatin and Cottage Cheese Salad
It's not a Southern family reunion without at least one congealed salad on the buffet.
Tee's Corn Pudding
Recipe: Tee's Corn Pudding
Corn pudding is a classic Southern side that will always have a spot on potluck tables.
Heavenly Key Lime Pie
Recipe: Heavenly Key Lime Pie
Your relatives will insist that this key lime pie was sent straight from heaven.
Potato Salad with Sweet Pickles
Recipe: Potato Salad with Sweet Pickles
Classic Southern potato salad gets a welcome zip from sweet pickles.
Herbed Breadcrumb-Topped Macaroni and Cheese
Recipe: Herbed Breadcrumb-Topped Macaroni and Cheese
No one would ever dare show up to the family reunion with boxed mac and cheese in tow—only a cheesy, creamy, baked version will do.
Strawberry Pretzel Salad
Recipe: Strawberry-Pretzel Salad
Is it a dessert? Is it a side dish? The beauty of this classic gelatin salad is that no one really knows, but we enjoy it nonetheless.
New Tuna Casserole
Recipe: New Tuna Casserole
Tuna noodle casserole has been gracing Southern tables for decades. This recipe has all the comforting flavors you love with a lighter calorie count.
Mamie Eisenhower's Chocolate Fudge
Recipe: Mamie Eisenhower's Chocolate Fudge
Easy to make and easier to pick up at parties, indulgent chocolate fudge will never last long.
Poppy Seed Chicken
Recipe: Poppy Seed Chicken
Poppy seed casseroles are a staple of Southern potlucks, whether filled with turkey, chicken, or ham.
Cheesecake Cookies
Recipe: Cheesecake Cookies
No one will hesitate to add one of these bite-size cookies to their already-full plate.
Old-Fashioned Chicken Salad
Recipe: Old-Fashioned Chicken Salad
People get heated about what does and doesn't belong in chicken salad (Grapes, apples, nuts? None of the above? All of the above?), but this simple, old-school recipe will keep everyone at the reunion happy.
Skillet Cornbread
Recipe: Skillet Cornbread
Southerners know the best homemade cornbread comes straight from a cast-iron skillet.
Baked Ziti with Sausage
Recipe: Baked Ziti with Sausage
Baked ziti is cheesy and oh-so-easy to pull together.
Coca-Cola Cake
Recipe: Coca-Cola Cake
Southerners have been cooking with Coca-Cola for years, and it's one of the most popular ways to make chocolate cake even more delicious.
Tuna Pasta Salad
Recipe: Tuna Pasta Salad
This lightened up, brightened up version of old-school tuna pasta salad will still delight Maw Maw, we promise.
Lemonade Iced Tea
Recipe: Lemonade Iced Tea
Two classics come together to create one refreshing drink.
Luscious Lemon Bars
Recipe: Luscious Lemon Bars
There always needs to be an option for non-chocolate lovers, and more often than not, it's a plate full of beautifully bright lemon bars.
Classic Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes
Recipe: Classic Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes
If someone is bringing fried chicken (which they will), then someone has to bring mashed potatoes to go with it.
Hello Dolly Bars
Recipe: Hello Dolly Bars
Southern grandmothers know there's much to be done with a can of sweetened condensed milk, including this favorite bar recipe.
Old-School Green Bean Casserole
Recipe: Old-School Green Bean Casserole
Of all the vegetable casseroles Southerners love to serve at holidays and beyond, green bean casserole is king.
Hashbrown Casserole
Recipe: Hashbrown Casserole
Even novice cooks are expected to show up to the family reunion with a homemade dish in tow, and this classic is the easiest way to get a crowd-pleasing result.
Chocolate Lasagna
Recipe: Chocolate Lasagna
Who else's grandmother had a layered chocolate-and-whipped cream dessert? All hands should go up.
New Turkey Tetrazzini
Recipe: New Turkey Tetrazzini
Mama has had this recipe for years, and no one ever complains when it shows up to the family reunion.
Classic Fresh Field Peas
Recipe: Classic Fresh Field Peas
Summer brings an abundance of fresh veggies, including field peas. We love to prep them old-school style with smoked ham hocks for rich flavor.
Chubba Bubba's Broccoli Salad
Recipe: Chubba Bubba's Broccoli Salad
Southerners know that "salad" is a fluid term, and this is one of our favorite iterations of it.
Classic Parmesan Scalloped Potatoes
Recipe: Classic Parmesan Scalloped Potatoes
Whether your family prefers potatoes au gratin or scalloped, we can bet one of the two will show up at the reunion.
Pan-Fried Okra with Cornmeal
Recipe: Pan-Fried Okra with Cornmeal
Although you usually receive deep-fried okra in restaurants, Southern grandmothers have been pan-frying it like this for years.
Banana Pudding
Recipe: Banana Pudding
One of the South's most beloved desserts, banana pudding is a cookout staple.
Family reunions are about getting together with the family members you don't see every day and catching up on old times and new. As with most Southern events, however, family reunions quickly become about something more. Kinship? Gratitude? Love? Well, yes, but we were thinking of another word—food! Like any good Southern potluck, family reunions are full of incredible homemade dishes, many of which are nostalgic for attendees.
You look forward to Maw Maw's batch of decadent fudge cut into thick squares. Everyone knows they have to take a bite of Aunt Nancy's congealed salad to save her feelings. And Cousin Sarah, who maybe isn't the best chef of the bunch, will always have the drinks covered. Even 99-year-old Grandpa and 2-year-old Baby Mae can find common ground around a batch of homemade baked mac and cheese. And we hear that a fresh peach cobbler can soften even the most heated sibling arguments.
Family reunion recipes are part of what make those gatherings special. As they're passed down, tweaked, reused, and loved, family reunion recipes bring generations closer together. Trust us: These all-time favorite family reunion recipes will please even your pickiest relatives.