25 Best Labor Day Recipes

Celebrate the end of summer with our best Labor Day recipes! They include fun appetizers, picnic salads, grilling recipes, no-bake desserts, and more.

Looking for Labor Day food ideas? You’re in the right place! Below, I’ve rounded up our best Labor Day recipes for an epic end-of-summer cookout. You’ll find easy mains that you can toss on the grill, fun appetizers, seasonal side dishes, and—of course—summer desserts to round out the meal. I don’t know exactly what I’m making for our BBQ yet…but I do know that corn, tomatoes, and peaches will be on the menu. If you ask me, summer food is the best food. Celebrate it this weekend with these Labor Day recipes! Labor Day Appetizer Ideas Corn Salsa Crisp, juicy sweet…

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Fresh Tomato Sauce

Learn how to make tomato sauce at home! Made with fresh tomatoes, this simple, flavorful recipe is perfect for serving on pasta, pizza, and more.

For me, making this homemade tomato sauce recipe is one of the highlights of late summer. Like bruschetta or a good Caprese salad, it’s something I only make at this time of year, when fresh tomatoes are sweet, juicy, and abundant. This tomato sauce has a slightly looser, chunkier texture than my traditional marinara sauce, and its flavor is sweeter and fresher. If you have a garden full of tomatoes, it’s a great way to use them up, but even if you don’t, I hope you’ll try it. You can toss it with pasta or zucchini noodles, spread it on…

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Moscow Mule

Learn how to make a Moscow mule! Served in an iconic copper mug, this classic cocktail is a refreshing combination of vodka, ginger beer, and lime.

Have you ever made a Moscow mule? Served in a copper mug, this cocktail looks fancy, but don’t be fooled. With just three ingredients—vodka, ginger beer, and fresh lime juice—this classic drink couldn’t be easier to make at home! A Moscow mule is fizzy and refreshing, with a delicious gingery bite. I love sipping one on a warm summer evening or a crisp fall night. The combination of bright lime, warming ginger, and, well…being served in a mug makes it a great all-seasons drink. I’m sharing my go-to Moscow mule recipe at the bottom of this post, with my best tips…

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No Bake Cookies

These 7-ingredient no bake cookies are filled with oats, peanut butter, and cocoa powder. They're chewy, fudgy, and easy to make—no oven required!

Who else loves no bake cookies?! Made with simple ingredients like oats, peanut butter, and cocoa powder, these classic treats are chewy, fudgy, and packed with delicious chocolate peanut butter flavor. They’re also easy to whip up on the stovetop—no oven required! I’ve been making this no bake cookies recipe on repeat lately for two reasons. Reason #1: It’s great for making with kids! My four-year-old Ollie loves mixing and scooping the dough. Reason #2: You don’t have to turn on the oven. On a hot summer day, these no bake chocolate oatmeal cookies are the best way to satisfy a…

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Air Fryer Green Beans

Learn how to cook fresh green beans in the air fryer! A delicious weeknight side dish, they're lightly crisp, tender, and ready in 10 minutes.

Have you ever tried cooking green beans in the air fryer? They come out lightly crisp, tender, and beautifully caramelized. And best of all, they’re ready in 10 minutes. Just like my air fryer zucchini and air fryer corn on the cob, these air fryer green beans are a perfect healthy side dish for busy weeknights. Fresh green beans are one of my favorite vegetables to cook at this time of year, so in the last few weeks, I’ve had this air fryer green beans recipe on repeat. I’m sharing a few of my go-to serving suggestions below, but to be…

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Blistered Shishito Peppers

Looking for a fun summer appetizer or snack? Make these blistered shishito peppers! Tender, charred, and occasionally spicy, they're always a hit.

appetizers / snacks & dips

This blistered shishito peppers recipe is the simplest summer appetizer. It relies on just 3 main ingredients—shishito peppers, salt, and oil—but it’s still flavorful, satisfying, and totally addictive. You might think you’re going to eat one pepper, maybe two, but before you know it, you’ll have devoured half the pan! Um…yes, I’m speaking from experience. If you’re not familiar with shishito peppers, they’re small, thin-walled peppers that are traditionally used in Japanese and Korean cooking. These days, you can often find them at farmers markets and at major grocery stores like Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. Most of the time, shishitos…

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Easy Peach Cobbler

This easy peach cobbler recipe is one of my favorite summer desserts! It has a fresh peach filling and a buttery, from-scratch biscuit topping. Delicious!

summer

Peach lovers, this easy peach cobbler recipe is for you! It features a buttery biscuit topping over tons of sweet, juicy peaches. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream, and you have a perfect summer dessert. If you’ve been following for a while, you know that peaches are one of my favorite parts of summer. I add them to salads, serve them with cheese, top them onto pizza, and, of course, devour them plain. But nothing beats using them in this homemade peach cobbler. The peaches become juicy and jammy in the oven, almost creating a sauce for the biscuits and ice cream. It’s…

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Air Fryer Zucchini

This air fryer zucchini is tender and flavorful, tossed in a delicious garlic and herb seasoning. Ready in 10 minutes, it's a perfect weeknight side dish!

This air fryer zucchini recipe is a quick and easy side dish for busy weeknights. It cooks in about 10 minutes and requires just 6 basic ingredients, but it still comes out tender, caramelized, and flavorful every time. I think of it as my summer shortcut for making roasted zucchini. Unlike the oven, the air fryer won’t heat up your entire house, which makes this recipe a lifesaver in hot weather. It’s also faster (no preheating required!), and with a four-year-old running around, I can’t complain about saving a few minutes in the kitchen. 🙂 If you have an air…

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No-Bake Protein Balls

This no-bake protein balls recipe is one of my favorite healthy snacks! It's easy to make with simple ingredients like peanut butter, oats, and flax.

When I need an afternoon energy boost, these protein balls are the perfect bite-size snack! Made with peanut butter, honey, and mini chocolate chips, they’re lightly sweet, nutty, and delicious. They’re super satisfying too—oats and ground flaxseed add plenty of fiber, and a couple scoops of protein powder give them a nice protein bump. They’re similar to the energy balls I’ve shared in the past, but with one key difference: you don’t need a food processor to make them. You can just stir together the ingredients in a bowl before shaping the mixture into balls. So easy! I always get requests for…

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Pasta Puttanesca

This pasta puttanesca recipe stars a flavorful tomato sauce packed with garlic, olives, and capers. Perfect for weeknights, it's ready in 30 minutes!

Pasta puttanesca is a perfect example of what I love about Italian cooking. This Southern Italian dish features a garlicky tomato sauce spiked with briny olives, capers, and anchovies. It requires simple ingredients and minimal prep, but it still delivers rich, bold flavor. I shared a puttanesca recipe with zucchini noodles in Love & Lemons Every Day, but since this classic pasta is one of my weeknight favorites, I thought it was about time I shared a more traditional recipe too. It calls for 10 ingredients, cooks in under 30 minutes, and is absolutely delicious. I hope you love it as…

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Homemade Salsa

Break out the tortilla chips! This homemade salsa recipe is zesty, fresh, and super easy to make. Enjoy it as a dip, or pile it onto tacos, nachos, and more.

appetizers / cooking basics

If I learned one thing from living in Austin, it’s that homemade salsa is infinitely better than any kind in a jar. I loved sampling salsas at restaurants and taco trucks. Each one was different—some were made with roasted ingredients, others got a smoky, spicy kick from dried chiles, and still others were nice and fresh. This variety inspired me to start experimenting with making homemade salsa. I might pull out dried chiles in the winter, when good tomatoes are hard to find, or roast tomatillos if I see them at the farmers market. But on hot summer days, this…

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