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Our Labor Day Recipes are the best way to celebrate the end of summer! From easy grilling recipes like gourmet burgers and skewered steak to the best summer desserts for parties, we have it all.
These summertime menu ideas are perfect for a Labor Day celebration or any backyard party!
We look forward to Labor Day every year! It’s the perfect day to relax, celebrate the end of the season, and cook up all our best summer food ideas.
Easy summer recipes like Tender Grilled Pork Butt and Elotes Mexicanos make the best dishes to serve at picnics, potlucks, and outdoor parties.
Our favorite combination is Grilled Beef Short Ribs and Grilled Crab Legs, with a side of Air Fryer Biscuits, Grilled Corn on the Cob, and Fresas con Crema for dessert.
What’s your favorite? Take a look at our list and let us know!
Jump to:
- Easy Grilling Recipes
- Best Slow Cooker Recipes
- Instant Crowd Pleasers
- Best Side Dishes for Labor Day
- Easy Summer Desserts
- Summer Drink Recipes
- Reviews
Easy Grilling Recipes
We can’t think of a better way to send off summertime than with these easy grilling recipes. It’s a tradition!
Gourmet burger recipes, skewered steaks, and easy foil pack recipes that remind you of campfire meals are the way to go.
Start with one of our favorites: our Grilled Beef Short Ribs. This delicious beef short rib recipe uses our Best Dry Rub for Steak and pairs deliciously with side dishes like Baked Crispy Potato Wedges or Air Fryer Frozen French Fries.
Easy Grilled Short Ribs
My Grilled Beef Short Ribs recipe is the best short ribs recipe ever! Simple to make but packed with flavor, you are going to love these beef ribs.
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Grilled Beef
- Grilled Picanha Steak (Sirloin Cap)
- Easy Steak Foil Packets
- Portuguese Beef Skewers (Espetada Madeira)
- Perfect Reverse Sear Ribeye Steak
- Grilled Chuck Steak with Compound Garlic Butter
Do you love surf and turf recipes? Pair your grilled beef recipes with our Fried Oysters Recipe, Steamed Crab Legs, our grilled crab legs below, or any one of our Easy Seafood Appetizers!
Grilled Seafood
- Grilled Crab Legs with Garlic Butter
Grilled Vegetables
- How to Grill Corn on the Cob in Foil 🌽
- Foil Packet Potatoes on the Grill or Oven
- Best Grilled Potatoes Recipe
Burger Recipes
- Loaded Burgers with Bacon and Asparagus
- Easy Mushroom Swiss Burger Recipe
- Poached Egg Burger Recipe with Caramelized Onions
- Bison Burger Recipe
Want to try something new? You’ll love our Grilled Lamb Chops with Rosemary and Garlic Mustard Sauce!
Best Slow Cooker Recipes
Slow cooker meals are the best way to relax and take it easy on Labor Day.
Try our best slow cooker recipes, starting with Slow Cooker Beef Brisket. Paired with Grilled Potatoes and Sriracha Fry Sauce on the side to dip it all in, this is one delicious slow cooker dinner!
Easy Slow Cooker Brisket Recipe
Easy Slow Cooker Brisket: Ideal in salads, quesadillas, pizzas and more. A tender, family-favorite dish!
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Slow Cooker Chicken
- Slow Cooker Wings with Spicy BBQ Sauce
- Easy Slow Cooker Whole Chicken
Slow Cooker Beef and Pork
- Easy Slow Cooker Beef Short Ribs Recipe
- Korean Braised Short Ribs (Galbi Jjim)
- Slow Cooker Pork Ribs with Bourbon BBQ Sauce
- Slow Cooker Carne Picada Recipe
- How to Make Pulled Pork – the best pulled pork recipe ever!
Our Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chili is a great option for the veggie-lovers at your Labor Day party!
Instant Crowd Pleasers
These easy Labor Day recipes for a crowd make it so simple to feed a large group of people. The best part is, they’re so much fun to make!
Dishes like pull-apart Hawaiian roll sliders and easy empanadas make the best crowd-feeding recipes.
Start with a classic! Baked Buffalo Wings with Homemade Buffalo Sauce are one of the best recipes to feed a crowd. Serve with German Potato Salad and a Fruity Coconut Rum co*cktail!
How to Make Chicken Wings
My easy Chicken Wings Recipe takes just 10 minutes of prep to make and is baked to crispy perfection in under 1 hour!
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Hawaiian Roll Sliders
- Philly Cheese Steak Sliders
- Turkey Sliders Recipe
- Garlic Butter Ham and Cheese Sliders
Pull-apart sliders are unbeatable when you need to serve a crowd. The best part about making Hawaiian roll sliders is that you can bake them right in the container they come packaged in!
Empanadas
- Puerto Rican Beef Empanadas
- Portuguese Shrimp Empanadas (Rissóis de Camarão)
- Caramel Apple Empanadas
- Chicken Empanada Recipe
Are you a fan of sandwiches? So are we! Try our Italian Pressed Sandwich recipe. It’s easy to make enough to feed a crowd, and so delicious!
Best Side Dishes for Labor Day
Our favorite side dishes for Labor Day are easy recipes like Mexican Street Corn, Baked Crispy Potato Wedges, and a simple Tomato Cucumber Feta Salad. All your favorite side dishes for BBQ work with our Labor Day recipes!
Start with our Elote Recipe: it’s one of our most popular recipes! Serve it with any one of the dishes above, and you’ll be glad you did. You can use any leftover corn on the cob to make Elote Dip!
Elote Recipe
Mexican street corn, or Elotes Mexicanos, is a traditional Mexican food that's quick to make and crave-worthy! This elote recipe is a must try for the summer.
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Side Dish Salads
- Tomato Cucumber Feta Salad
- Fresh Vegetable Salad with Creamy Balsamic Dressing
- Orange and Fennel Salad
- Strawberry Quinoa Feta Salad
- Watermelon Basil Salad with Balsamic Glaze
- Broccoli Apple Salad
Our personal favorite salad to serve with Labor Day recipes is our Tomato Cucumber Feta Salad. It’s full of fresh flavors, with a tang from the feta cheese, and is easy to toss together in just a few minutes. Everyone will be coming back for seconds!
Vegetable Side Dishes
- Alcachofas al Ajillo (Pan-Roasted Artichokes)
- Foil Packet Potatoes on the Grill or Oven
- Best Grilled Potatoes Recipe
- Parmesan Garlic Roasted Carrots
- How to Grill Corn on the Cob in Foil 🌽
If you want to try something new, don’t pass up our Alcachofas al Ajillo. These garlicky artichokes are a skillet recipe you can make in just a handful of minutes, and they are so delicious with just about everything.
Potato and Pasta Salads
- German Potato Salad
- Spanish Potato Salad
- Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad
Potato salad is a classic for Labor Day. We’re tied between our favorite potato salad, but you need to try our Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad! Its bright flavors go especially well with beef.
Mac & Cheese Recipes
- Easy Creamy Mac and Cheese
- Ina Garten Mac and Cheese Recipe
- Bacon Macaroni and Cheese
If you’re making BBQ for Labor Day, mac and cheese is a must. Try our Easy Creamy Mac and Cheese for a super simple stovetop macaroni you will love.
Easy Summer Desserts
Save room for dessert! These easy summer desserts with few ingredients are some of our favorite Labor Day recipes. We have everything from cobblers and cakes to frozen treats, perfect for a hot day.
Try our most popular summer dessert recipe: our Homemade Strawberry Shortcake Biscuits. Everyone loves these fluffy yogurt biscuits filled with fresh whipped cream and strawberries!
Shortcake Biscuits
Scrumptious, homemade strawberry shortcake biscuits are the perfect portion and are so easy to make. Everything from the shortcake biscuit dough to the strawberry filling and the whipped cream comes down to simple prep work.
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Frozen Desserts
- Frozen Cheesecake Popsicle Recipe
- Strawberry Ice Cream Shortcake
- Rhubarb Ice Cream
- Banana Raspberry No Churn Ice Cream
- Homemade Strawberry Dole Whip Disney Recipe
If you’re a fan of frozen dessert recipes, you have to try our Strawberry Dole Whip. It’s just like the dole whip from Disney, but filled with fresh strawberry flavor. As a bonus, it’s one of the easiest desserts ever to make at home!
Cobblers and Pie Squares
- Peach Dump Cake Cobbler 🍑
- Best Key Lime Pie Bars
- Milk Bar Pie – Easy Pie Squares Recipe
- Blueberry Buckle Recipe
- Strawberry Dump Cake with Bananas
Our Peach Dump Cake Cobbler may be our favorite choice to serve on Labor Day. It’s a classic, but the best part about it is that it only uses 3 simple ingredients and is ready in no time!
Cakes and Cheesecakes
- Carlota de Limon (Charlotte Russe Dessert)
- Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake
- Lemon Jello Poke Cake with Raspberry Jam
Try our Fresas con Crema – Mexican Strawberries and Cream! This deliciously easy dessert is perfect for Labor Day. You and all your guests will love it! The best part is that it’s easy to make a big batch so everyone can enjoy it.
Summer Drink Recipes
Complete your Labor Day menu ideas with our favorite summer drink recipes! There are so many tasty drinks to choose from, it’s always a toss-up between our favorites when we throw a party.
Start with our most popular co*cktail recipe: Moscato Sangria! It pairs well with just about everything, and is so easy to make for a crowd. The fresh fruit really makes the flavor pop.
Moscato Sangria
Our easy Moscato Sangria Recipe is ready in just 10 minutes! This refreshing and delicious drink is floral and fruity. It's a perfect summer co*cktail recipe!
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co*cktail Recipes
- Rose Sangria with Summer Berries
- Fruity “MOMosa” Best Mimosa Recipe
- Frozen Tropical Fruit Rum co*cktail
- Frozen Strawberry Daiquiri Recipe
- Frosé Recipe (Frozen Rosé)
Any of these easy co*cktail recipes would be perfect for a Labor Day menu! Our personal favorite to share is our Tropical Fruit Rum co*cktail. Not only is it delicious, but it’s fun and colorful!
If you prefer strawberry co*cktails, our Frosé and Strawberry Daiquiri are unbeatable.
Alcohol-Free Options
- Watermelon Mint Lemonade
- Apple Banana Smoothie
- Blueberry Banana Smoothie
- Green Apple Smoothie
Smoothies are perfect for a Labor Day celebration, but our personal favorite drink to make is our Watermelon Lemonade Recipe. It has a little bit of mint for extra flavor, and is perfect for summertime!
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What are your favorite Labor Day menu ideas? Let us know in the comments below! We would love to hear about how YOU celebrate Labor Day.
