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Coffee cake. Buns, in case anyone wants to make little sandwiches out of th ham. Fruit salad or a watermelon. Okay, not baking, but it will be refreshing in the heat. Although someone else might have the same idea.

Good idea. I hadn't thought of making buns for the ham. I could go home and start the dough tonite and be letting the happy little yeast do its thing in the fridge until early Sunday morning. Fruit salad and watermelon are nice ideas, too. Baking is not a prerequisite, just something I love. Thanks!

I was planning on pulling the cupcakes out of the fridge at the last possible moment when everyone is heading for the desserts. Hmmm, now I'm wondering if that's gonna work. And here in the South, if we didn't eat baked goods when the weather was warm, we'd hardly ever get to enjoy them at all! =-)

Here's my favourite picnic salad, it seems strange but its a real winner

- shaved red onion
- diced watermellon
- shaved fennel
- pumpernickel croutons
- basic EVOO vinaigrette
- lots of fresh mint
- lots and lots of fresh-cracked pepper...

it's a real crowd pleaser. just add the pumpernickel croutons at the end :) have fun!

@hungrychristel...Neat! Kinda reminds me of a panzanella!

What about some cookie bars or something that WON'T get melty...
if your Church is anything like mine, there will be lots of kiddos that want something sweet and not all foodie-fancy. Chocolate Chip, M&M, or Peanut Butter Chip bars (or a combination!)

I

Red velvet cupcakes are so festive and delish for picnics.

Pecan pie or apple pie

Texas sheet cake

brownies

I just tried Baked's lemon loaf cake, and it's now my favorite:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Lemon-Lemon-Loaf-350989

A good veggie dish that will hold up and can be used for sandwiches or a spread, or as a side - like ratatouille or caponata

Cornbread

Cold fried chicken - a picnic classic, IMHO

Tabbouleh

Ina Garten's broccoli with bow ties pasta salad (I throw in some sun dried tomatoes, smoked mozzarella or feta sometimes):

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_24673,00.html

Enjoy!

I have no idea what it's called but I recall having a cucumber salad at pot luck/picnics. I remember it being cukes, tomatoes, some onion and dressing. It would be cooling on a hot day.

The trouble with someone saying s/he's bringing a ham means that everyone else sighs with relief that the main is taken care of and then you end up with tons of starchy sides. I love all the cold fruit and vegetables suggestions.

MM's suggestion of cold fried chicken is wonderful. Another main, which is probably sorely needed. You wouldn't have to make enough for 40 people, and you could do oven-baked chicken fingers to cut down on the cost a bit. Take a couple of dipping sauces -- BBQ, honey-mustard, Ranch for the kids.

Then, of course, take the home-made rolls and a baked sweet. And maybe a cooler with a 20# bag of ice!

I say black bean salad all the way, and if it's going to be that warm, you'd be a hero if you brought some homemade lemonade and/or iced tea. Have fun this weekend.

We make this Hungarian side dish called Lecso pronounced (leh choh), this goes great with ham, you can serve it at room temp or hot, you can add sausage but we always made it vegetarian because we had it with ham. If you google the recipe you can get the exact recipe but I just I ball it. But how I make it is:
But oil in stew pot and add 2 yellow onions sliced along with 2-3 cloves of garlic minced and stir over med heat it they start to get soft. Add 4-5 med tomatoes chopped into med size pieces, 4-5 green, yellow and red peppers sliced into thin strips, s&p, and about 11/2 Tbs Hungarian paprika. Turn down the heat and let simmer for with lid on for about 45 min or into soft about that time I add orzo about 1/2 cup or you can use 1/4 cup rice and again put lid on till done. It taste better the next day when everything marries. Well whatever you make have fun at the potluck.

Wow!!! You are all the best! I am thrilled you all spent your precious time to give me some much needed ideas. Thanks!

I ended up bringing:
A tray of cupcakes. Half were buttermilk dark chocolate banana cake with chopped Reese's inside and chocolate icing. It looks funny typed out like that, but it was crazy good. The other half were orange blossom cake with a citrus icing. I used one of my sturdier icings and kept them cold until everyone started moving towards the desserts. They were a big hit once people realized what they were. My little girl was bragging on them and when she told what they were, the reaction was like a thunderbolt. "I've gotta try THAT!" Note to self, next time put a note or something since people thought they were just chocolate and vanilla.

I also brought a big platter of rolls in all different shapes and configurations, a pot of bbq pork and beans (using the leftover pork from my dinner party Saturday night), and cucumber and tomato salad (the tomatoes at the farmer's market looked awesome!). Everything was well received and I am always amazed by the repeated queries of "You made this from scratch??!!" I often forget that to "non-foodies" or whatever you would like to call those not dedicated to making good food with their own hands, that many things I think of as simple are looked on with something bordering on awe.

I love events like this and if I had not had my friends over for dinner and cards Saturday, I probably would have cooked boatloads more, hehe! And I am so bookmarking this page for ideas for next time too :-D