25 Tailgate Foods You Can Make Ahead

Serve this colorful, veggie-packed pasta salad at your next outdoor gathering. From creamy avocado to crunchy bell peppers, this pasta salad is full of texture and flavor. A homemade herb-lime vinaigrette ties everything together.

This easy fresh tomato salsa recipe yields about 5 cups of salsa—plenty to serve a crowd. If you like spicy salsa, use the full amount of jalapeños and add more cayenne pepper. Serve with chips, tacos and more.

This loaded baked potato salad recipe marries traditional potato salad with all the fixing of a classic stuffed potato. It's creamy and decadent thanks to sour cream, mayo, bacon and Cheddar cheese. Take it along to your next picnic or potluck--friends and family will love it!

This is 7-layer black bean dip simplified: just heat and season refried beans, then top with fresh vegetables for a texturally exciting dip.

Red and green cabbage and bright orange carrots make a colorful, healthful combination. For an especially nutty flavor, use Savoy instead of regular green cabbage.

This healthy pasta salad draws inspiration from a traditional antipasto platter. Artichoke hearts and pepperoncini add briny flavor, while fresh mozzarella lends a creamy note. Serve this pasta salad at your next dinner party or backyard get-together.

This vibrant green hummus recipe couldn't be easier--just toss a few ingredients in the food processor and whir away! Aquafaba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas) and avocado make this healthy dip extra smooth and creamy. Serve with veggie chips, pita chips or crudités.

This TikTok-trending, veggie-packed salsa gets inspiration from Texas caviar (aka cowboy caviar), a dish created in 1940 to ring in the New Year by Helen Corbitt, who was a chef at Neiman Marcus. Scoop it up with tortilla chips or try it as a topping for grilled meat or fish, or as a filling for a quick quesadilla. 

Nobody will miss the meat in this colorful, zesty vegetarian taco salad. The rice and bean mixture can be made ahead and the salad quickly assembled at mealtime. Recipe by Nancy Baggett for EatingWell.

If you're a fan of pickles, this easy pasta salad will easily become your go-to. If you want to give it some extra kick, an additional teaspoon or two of hot sauce will do the trick. Pair it with anything hot off the grill or pack it up for a picnic. It can also easily translate from a side dish to an entree by adding a can of flaked tuna or shredded chicken.

We gave no-bake cookies a healthy makeover, bumping up the peanut butter and cutting back on added sugar and butter. The result is a chewy, peanut buttery, oat-packed delicious cookie. It's easy to whip up a batch of these--only a few simple ingredients are needed to make these chewy peanut butter cookies and there's no baking required.

Margarita lovers will go crazy for this twist on classic guacamole. Spiking your guacamole with tequila adds an extra layer of flavor and blends deliciously with the fresh lime juice and jalapeño. This guacamole is for grown-ups only, but you can omit the tequila if you're serving to kids.

Salami, Cheddar cheese and pepperoncini deliver flavor in every bite in this easy appetizer.

This classic hummus recipe couldn't be easier--just toss a few ingredients in the food processor and whir away! Aquafaba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas) makes this healthy dip extra smooth and creamy. Serve with veggie chips, pita chips or crudités.

Make guacamole at home that tastes just like it came from Chipotle--but don't worry, our version won't be extra! This deliciously fresh guac is perfect for topping burrito bowls or tacos, or serve as an appetizer or healthy snack with tortilla chips and veggies.

Tomatoes—both cherry and heirloom—are the star of the show in this pasta salad. This easy summer dinner includes salami for its rich savory flavor, but you can skip it or sub in white beans to make this dish vegetarian. Recipe adapted from Tomato Love by Joy Howard.

One batch of dough does double duty as both the crust and streusel topping to make one of the easiest desserts around.

This easy, fresh tomato salsa is delicious on tacos, tostadas or simply served with tortilla chips. Since the heat of jalapeños varies, start with one, taste, then add more if you want it hotter. For a sweet-tangy variation, add about 1 cup diced fresh fruit, such as pineapple, mango or peach.

This pickle-on-a-stick appetizer has all the flavors of a classic Reuben sandwich in one small bite. Watch this crowd-pleasing no-cook appetizer disappear in a snap at a party, game-watch or tailgate.

File this under tailgate food, because our choose-your-heat-level salsa is going to go faster than a wide receiver. Roasting the tomatillos mellows their acidity and adds a subtle sweetness.

These bite-size pimiento cheese balls from Jamie and Bobby Deen are a huge hit with kids (of all ages). They're the perfect appetizer to bring to a summer picnic. Jamie and Bobby share a passion for great home-cooked food with a Southern flair with their celebrity-chef mom, Paula Deen. These brothers are following in their mom's footsteps with their own TV shows, books and website. Our favorite part of what they're up to: healthy makeovers of some of Paula's recipes! Recipe adapted from The Deen Bros. Get Fired Up, by Jamie & Bobby Deen and Melissa Clark (Ballantine Books, 2011).

Super creamy with the nutty flavor of sesame seeds, this homemade tahini sauce recipe is a popular way to begin a meal in Cyprus. Serve with crudités and pita.

This Instant-Pot potato salad is one-pot cooking at its best. The potatoes and eggs cook together in the multicooker. Mustard and apple-cider vinegar lighten the potatoes nicely and add a great punch of acidity while the vegetables stay crisp and bright. Be sure to dress the potatoes when they're hot to help them best absorb the flavor of the dressing.

The deep flavors of molasses, cinnamon, ginger, allspice and nutmeg make these wholesome pumpkin cookies delicious without the addition of butter--and they lend themselves beautifully to the inclusion of whole-wheat flour. They are also the perfect texture for a sandwich cookie--fill them with a slightly sweetened cream cheese frosting.

Try this spinach dip, spiked with fresh dill and briny feta cheese, as a sandwich spread--or serve alongside crackers or crudité.