A potato salad made using half smashed and half chunky potatoes and finished with a sour cream and mayonnaise-based dressing.

Sour Cream Smashed Potato Salad

Hope y'all don't mind me sneaking in another potato salad before we roll into Fall in a few days!

Not that it matters much what the calendar says in the Deep South because yesterday it was miserably hot and humid. Not that the weather has ever stopped a craving on me, I sure do look forward to some cooler temperatures and some belly warmin' meals though - hopefully soon!

I wrote this version of potato salad in honor of my mother-in-law, who passed away a few years back. Although it's a bit different from her version, very different from my Mama's and different even from the way my father-in-law, who was also a great cook, made his, she prepared her potato salad mostly mashed, something that was very new to me.

Chicken Pasta Salad made with a homemade Ranch style vinegar dressing, short cut pasta, cooked chicken, Vidalia onion, celery, cheese, bacon, peas and tomatoes.

Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

Hey y'all... the unofficial start to the cookout season is here, the heat is on and that means it's pasta salad time! Don't you just love a good pasta salad in the summer?

They are so adaptable and easily varied, make-ahead friendly, hold well in the fridge for awhile, and are a great take along for family gatherings, potlucks and church suppers. You can literally make an easy meal of it on a hot summer's day if you like, especially when you throw in a little protein. I've added chicken here, but a good smoked ham or shrimp are both excellent too.

This is my Deep South take on classic German Potato Salad, made with a warm bacon dressing, including our Holy Trinity of Southern cooking, along with pickles and juice, sugar, mustard, horseradish, hot sauce and black pepper. Best served warm or at room temperature.

Deep South Style German Potato Salad

We love our Classic Southern Style Potato Salad here in The South, but German Potato Salad is a popular Southern favorite too. I make no claims to the authenticity of this version, but with the inclusion of our Deep South Holy Trinity of Southern cooking, mine is a Deep South take on this classic favorite. Not only is it the perfect potato salad for our sweet and sour Southern palates, it's a great potluck, picnic and church supper dish too.

A seafood pasta salad made from crab, crawfish and shrimp, dressed with a Cajun seasoned buttermilk mayonnaise blend.

Seafood Pasta Salad

This is a great coastal Deep South seafood pasta salad that is pretty common down here, and I love it, although it's more often known as Imitation Crab Salad.

I know, I know... imitation crab seems to scare some folks as if it's some kind of weird, alien substance, pretending to be food, when really, it is generally just a basic mix of Alaskan Pollock, King Crab meat and other seafood, and, it actually works great for salads like this. Personally? I really love it in this pasta salad.

 

A classic favorite for years, this fruit salad is made with fresh apples, lite fruit cocktail, mandarin oranges, pineapple tidbits, and dressed with the fruit juices blended with instant vanilla or lemon pudding.

Fruit Cocktail Salad

Hey y'all... it's been awhile! Did ya miss me?? Well, in case you were wondering... you see, as I write this, there was this pesky little hurricane named Isaac that interrupted our lives all of last week. After he barely by-passed the west coast of Florida, he was headed right to the Mississippi Gulf Coast - my backyard!

There were days of prep, checking supplies, filling gas cans for the generator that would keep our freezer and fridge going, bolting down the hurricane shutters, stuffing the garage and storage sheds with all those nice things like chairs, tables and grills that you want to make sure are still around afterward, and all the fun stuff that goes with preparing for a hurricane.

An easy, pan-style, baked party cheesecake, made with cream cheese, sugar, lemon, eggs and vanilla, on a graham cracker crust, finished with a layer of sour cream and topped with your favorite canned pie filling.

Easy Party Cheesecake

This party cheesecake has been around for many years, and was pretty popular back in the 70s. Yep, you guessed it - this is another old recipe that falls back to the days of my good ole battered Bell's Best cookbook!

I'm pretty sure that it picked up the name party cheesecake because it was easy to make, portable, and it quickly became a potluck favorite. Now, while this is indeed what one would consider a cheater cheesecake - meaning it doesn't qualify for the real deal award requiring a springform pan, water baths and careful handling - trust me when I say it's still a tasty cheesecake that I think you'll enjoy, and certainly a lot less fuss and worry. I don't think you'll have any complaints about it, or any leftovers.

Cajun Potato Salad made from potatoes boiled in crab boil, the fabulous Trinity trio of vegetables, a flaky Creole seasoning, spicy mustard, southern Chow Chow & what else but bacon!

Cajun Potato Salad

What is Cajun Potato Salad? There is no real definition for it that I can find, and in fact, most people just make a typical southern style potato salad, add a bit of spicy mustard and Cajun or Creole seasoning, and call that Cajun Potato Salad. Well, I decided I needed to remedy this!

 

Tri-color rotini pasta is paired with red onion, celery, green and red bell pepper, black olives, chopped tomato and dressed with an Italian dressing.

Tri-Color Italian Rotini Pasta Salad

Here's another pasta salad for the recipe box. The first one I posted was a Creamy Pasta Salad version, and my attempt at duplicating a local restaurant's menu item. This one is made using Italian dressing and no mayonnaise.

A creamy pasta salad, made with shell pasta, bell pepper, red onion, black olives, cheddar cheese, tomato and bacon and tossed with a mayo, sour cream, vinegar dressing, seasoned with onion powder, garlic salt.

Creamy Pasta Salad

I love pasta salad. Any kind. It is another one of those dishes that I have no loyalty to though, so I love switching it up, different veggies, different dressing bases. This one is a mayonnaise-based pasta salad and my interpretation of one that was once served at a local favorite BBQ joint.