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Like many of you, we'll be going to a BBQ thrown by family and friends. In addition to the appropriate beverages, we'll likely bring along a couple side dishes.

With that, I'd appreciate any recipe recommendations for some side dishes -- ranging from the norm (cole slaws, potato salads, pasta salads..) to the unusual (you tell me!).

Thanks.

You know, this time of year I just buy whatever fruit looks good, usually canteloupe, cherries, strawberries, peaches, blackberries, papaya, mango, etc. and cut it into chunks and serve it with absolutely NO dressing of any kind whatsoever. (If there's something that will discolor, like apples, I might do the lemon juice thing, but that's all.) People go putting poppyseed dressing and stuff like that on fruit salad, and it doesn't need it if the fruit is any good.

Another thing I do, got this from some grilling book, is grill peaches. You cut fairly robust slices, melt a little butter and add a little brown sugar, brush the slices and lay them right on the grill if it's clean enough, which it usually isn't, or on tin foil. They sort of come out like baked apples, pure comfort food, and yet people usually seem amazed by the concept. (I guess it's common in the South, but not up hyar.)

I finished off my grilled steak dinner last night with grilled peach halves that were simply brushed with oil and left on the grill for 8 minutes (turned 90 degrees after about 5 minutes for that cool looking grill mark effect) and topped with vanilla ice cream. No muss, no fuss...now that says summer to me.

Unusual, but flavor salsas with chips are great additions to any BBQ.

Here is a link to a site that is full of downloadable recipes in zip format. You can scroll down to salsa. The salsa file has 445 recipes. RECIPES

The owner of the above site is quite a recipe collector and BBQ cook.

Here is an unusual salsa brought to a BBQ at my house. Everyone loved it.

Olive Salsa

4 ounces black olives; sliced
4 ounces green olives; sliced
1 can (8 oz) Rotel tomatoes w/green chilies; (hot, mild)
1 bunch green onions; chopped
2 large tomatoes; chopped
OR
2 cans (15 oz) diced tomatoes;drained
8 ounces pepper Jack cheese; in small cubes
8 ounces zesty Italian dressing

Mix and let sit together for at least one hour in the fridge.