Our favorite POTLUCK RECIPES all in one place! Includes our popular recipes for Fiesta Ranch Chicken Pasta Salad, Lemon Cake Drops, Chocolate Chip Banana Bars, Orange Cream Fruit Salad and more. Perfect recipes for planning your next potluck dinner.
I love potluck recipes! We’ve attended a potluck dinner twice a month for the last 15+ years, so our family knows a thing or two about recipes that are perfect for potlucks. Here are a few of my tips, plus a great list of PERFECT POTLUCK RECIPES. Enjoy!
What makes a recipe a good potluck recipe?
Not every amazing recipe is going to be a good fit for a potluck dinner. Here are my tips on how to choose the best potluck recipes.
- Make sure it serves a crowd. Potluck recipes generally serve at least 12-15 people, often more. Potlucks are great because everyone seems to bring their best crowd-pleasing dishes, so naturally, everyone wants to try a little of everything! So make sure your recipe has enough servings. Bundt cakes are fantastic because you can slice thin pieces if needed to serve 25+.
- Make sure your recipe is easy to serve. I like to go for one-pot dishes- pastas or salads, or any type of finger food. You don’t want a dish that has several parts or something that doesn’t serve easily. Perfect potluck recipes dish out one handed and can be served on a plate without running into other foods.
- Make sure it doesn’t need to be kept super cold or super hot. Of course, everyone will do their best to keep mayo-based salads as cool as possible before serving, but try your best to bring something that doesn’t require extra attention. Low maintenance dishes are the best!
- Make sure it doesn’t have strange flavor combinations. Potlucks are literally catering to a crowd, so this probably isn’t the best time to try out that gastronomical wonder you’ve been imagining. Stick to classics or minor variation on a classic.
Chocolate Chip Banana Bars (pin recipe here)
Chocolate Chip Banana Bars are delicious, filling, and perfect for any time! Packed with 5 ripe bananas & whole wheat flour they’re sweet & satisfying.
Chocolate Chip Banana Bars are a simple & delicious banana bar recipe that's even better than banana bread! Made with 5 ripe bananas, they're the perfect banana recipe. Great for breakfast, lunch and snacks in between. Check out all the 5 star reviews- everyone raves about these!
- 5 very ripe bananas about 1 2/3 cup
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup oil any type- I use coconut
- 1/4 cup milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 3/4 cup flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 cup mini chocolate chips divided
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 15×10.5? pan with non-stick spray.
- Peel bananas and mash well. Stir in brown sugar, oil, milk and eggs until combined. Add in dry ingredients and stir. Fold in 1/2 the chocolate chips.
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle remaining chips on top. Bake 18-22 minutes, until a wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely and cut into squares.
- Yields 24 bars.
Fiesta Ranch Chicken Pasta Salad (pin recipe here)
Fiesta Ranch Chicken Pasta Salad is full of fresh southwestern flavors with black beans, corn, cheese and tomatoes. This hearty chicken pasta salad recipe topped with Fritos is perfect as a main dish or a side dish for potlucks and parties!
Raspberry Vanilla Jello Salad (pin recipe here)
Raspberry Vanilla Jello Salad is one of the easiest recipes you will ever make and it is perfect as a side dish or even dessert!
Peanut Butter Fudge Cups (pin recipe here)
Peanut Butter Fudge Cups are peanut butter cookies filled with a simple chocolate fudge! Delicious flavor combination in these amazing treats.
Ranch Chicken Cheese Dip (pin recipe here)
Ranch Chicken Cheese Dip is perfect for parties! This cream cheese dip is made with chicken, cheese and ranch dressing – that’s it!
Little Lemon Drops (pin recipe here)
Little Lemon Drops are delicious bite-sized treats that start with a cake mix – they are the perfect treat to take to your next party!
Greek Pasta Salad (pin recipe here)
Greek Pasta Salad is fresh, flavorful and simple to put together. It’s the perfect side dish! Loaded with vegetables and drizzled with a homemade lemon greek vinaigrette, it’s easy to make and everyone enjoys it. Perfect topped with crumbled feta cheese and a few additional olives.
Berries and Cream Salad (pin recipe here)
Berries and Cream Salad made using just 4 ingredients! Raspberries & Blueberries combine with Greek Yogurt, pudding mix and whipped topping to create a lovely berries and cream salad.
Caramel S’more Pops (pin recipe here)
These s’more pops are SO GOOD and bonus- they’re easy to make as well! The addition of caramel is a winner- hello, why haven’t we always put caramel in s’mores?!
Chocolate Coca-Cola Cake (pin recipe here)
Chocolate Coca-Cola Cake is made with soda, buttermilk and marshmallow creme! This chocolate cake is moist, delicious and turns out perfectly every time!
Garden Vegetable Caprese Salad (pin recipe here)
I found some incredible heirloom tomatoes at my local Farmer’s Market one day and to be honest, I planned this entire recipe around that tomato. It was perfectly ripe and juicy- yum! This salad is a variation on the traditional Caprese Salad- because I love vegetables and wanted to add more. So I did. And it was amazing! One of the best things about this salad is that it stores well. It might actually even be better the 2nd day, when the vegetables and fresh mozzarella have had a chance to absorb the deliciousness of the vinaigrette. Try it- you’ll love it.
Creamy Jello Fruit Dip (pin recipe here)
Creamy Jello Fruit Dip is made with only 3 ingredients – it can be made with any flavor and it’s the perfect dip for all of your favorite fruits!
Lemon Buttermilk Pound Cake (pin recipe here)
Lemon Buttermilk Pound Cake is a classic pound cake recipe with the addition of fresh lemon! Buttermilk gives this Lemon Pound Cake a wonderful texture and everyone loves the bright flavor of the lemon glaze. It’s the perfect buttermilk pound cake recipe!
Strawberries & Cream Poke Cake (pin recipe here)
Strawberries & Cream Poke Cake is the perfect light and refreshing dessert for any gathering with family and friends – it is delicious and so pretty!
Orange Cream Fruit Salad (pin recipe here)
Orange Cream Fruit Salad is a lovely fruit salad filled with oranges, pineapple and bananas with a sweet orange cream mixed in! Perfect to go alongside a summer dinner!
Buttermilk Banana Cake (pin recipe here)
I had some very ripe bananas to use up but instead of traditional banana bread, I opted to make this delicious banana cake. It smelled amazing while baking but tasted even better after topping it with cream cheese frosting! Enjoy.
Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies (pin recipe here)
Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies are teeny tiny chocolate chip cookies about the size of a quarter! Soft, chewy poppable cookies that are perfect for parties.
Mandarin Orange Cake with Pineapple Frosting (pin recipe here)
Mandarin Orange Cake with Pineapple Frosting is so light and refreshing and is the perfect cake for summer (or any other time too)!
Strawberries and Cream Bites (pin recipe here)
Strawberries and Cream Bites are easy to make because they begin with a cake mix and these tiny little treats are always a hit at parties!
Creamy Orange Fruit Salad (pin recipe here)
Creamy Orange Fruit Salad is easy to make, has the most delicious orange flavor and is the perfect side dish to take to a party or potluck! This delicious fruit salad is full of pineapple, oranges, strawberries and bananas coated with a vanilla pudding glaze.
Snickerdoodle Apple Pie Cookie Cups (pin recipe here)
Snickerdoodle Apple Pie Cookie Cups combine two favorite desserts in a bite sized treat that is full of cinnamon and apple pie filling!
Super Easy Pina Colada Pie (pin recipe here)
Easy Pina Colada Pie is the perfect summertime treat! Just a few ingredients and everyone loves the fun tropical flavors of this simple chilled pie.
Rich & Creamy Grape Salad (pin recipe here)
We love grapes around here and go through them fast! I wanted to bring a different kind of fruit salad to our latest family dinner and this salad was a hit! My husband adored it. It’s got a rich, creamy cheesecake-like mixture that goes perfectly with the sweet, crisp grapes. It’s decadent but still light enough to qualify as a fruit salad. Don’t leave out the pecan-brown sugar sprinkle too- it’s the perfect addition!
Tropical Jello Pretzel Salad (pin recipe here)
Tropical Jello Pretzel Salad is a combination of orange, pineapple and coconut flavors all in an easy-to-make sweet jello salad recipe!
I enjoy hosting potluck dinners because it makes a meal so much less stressful when you don’t have to prepare all of it yourself! My family participates in quite a few potluck dinners throughout the year and I’m always trying to find ideas that are simple yet impressive and, most importantly, delicious enough to share! Krusteaz mixes are perfect for creating delicious dishes for potluck dinners because they make baking so quick and easy and the recipes turn out so well every single time! I’ve gathered together some amazing sweet and savory recipes that are perfect to take to your next potluck!
Ruth Massey says
I’m looking forward to the new recipes
Tom Prosise says
I hope to receive your recipes cards.
Jessica says
I added you Tom- we’ll be sending out the February batch this week! :)