[USER]

I’m looking for suggestions for an affordable dish to bring to a BBQ, but I want something different from baked beans. What are some budget-friendly and crowd-pleasing options? I’d love to hear about dishes that are easy to prepare and can serve a group. Bonus points if it’s something unique or a bit different from the usual BBQ fare! Your ideas and recipes are much appreciated.

[Cecilia]

Watermelon no more than $8 and it’s refreshing in this heat wave.

[Amanda]

Deviled eggs or potato salad.

[Penny]

Jello mold with fruit or marshmallows.

[Amy]

An ice cold watermelon. A big one. Put it in a cooler with ice & let it chill well through. Cut it at the place. It’s so refreshing & I have yet to have any to take home.

You can bring a salt shaker for those who like it with a little salt.

[Jennifer]

Spaghetti salad with Italian dressing.

[Tricia]

Rice crispy treats are always a huge hit. By the great big bag of cheap off brand rice crispies and a big bag of marshmallows for extra flavor browned the butter this should cost you less than five bucks and like I said there’s never any left.

[Britney]

Italian pasta salad: tricolor rotini, bottle of zesty Italian dressing (very important) then cut up cucumber, tomatoes, black and/or green olive, celery, artichoke hearts, you can add whatever you like really!

Cheese, cut up pepperoni or salami, or you can keep it simple with just the veggies, as my fam loves it the most!

[Jennifer]

Cowboy caviar – drained Black Eyed Peas cold, a little diced bell pepper, or jalapeño, small can of corn drained, red onion diced, Roma tomato diced, chopped avocado if it doesn’t break your budget (they are $.68 at my local grocery store.) mix everything together and squeeze the juice of one lime and 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil or olive oil on top. Seasoning with garlic powder, onion powder, etc. if you’d like. Toss well. Serve chilled.

can be served alone or with tostada chips, pizza, bread, or crackers.

[Lynn]

For under $5 you can make a frosted box cake. If you want it to look homemade, top with sliced strawberries or chocolate drizzle.

[Tiffany]

Deviled strawberries. Strawberries are filled with no bake cheesecake and super yummy.

[Debbie]

3 cans of corn drained or equivalent frozen or fresh. Block of cream cheese. Can of green Chile’s. Mix and warm in crockpot, oven or stove top. Recipe calls for a stick of butter but I never do that. Always a hit and easy and frugal!

[Kirsten]

Tabouli—one tomato, one cucumber, oil, box of Near East, lemon juice or 1/2 lemon. Cheap, fast, healthy, and easy!

[Gina]

I have a look in my fridge, garden & cupboard. If I have greens, I make a juuzed up green salad with whatever colored vegetable I have. If not, I look in the cupboard. If I have Cannellini beans or Garbanzo beans, I make hummus. I’d also bring crackers & cut up celery & carrots. I just harvested a boatload of basil from my garden & made pesto. You could bring a pesto pasta salad with this.

[Author]

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