Adding spices and seasoning can help spice up those run-on-the-mill summer side dishes.

Each summer, one question is asked over and over, as we gather for backyard barbecues, picnics and family reunions —"What can I bring?" Since hosts and hostesses usually have the main course covered, the solution is simple: sides!

Yet sometimes, even the biggest potato salad fanatic craves something new and different. When standby summer foods become ho-hum, savvy cooks look to the spice cabinet for ideas to recharge run-of-the-mill pasta and potato salads and deviled eggs.

The following recipes are easy to make and feature familiar flavors in exciting new ways. In fact, they're so good, they may just upstage the main course, and make you the star of the season's get-togethers.

Sensational spuds

It's a barbecue lover's dream! Homestyle BBQ potato salad, a welcome addition to the picnic basket, is full of that sweet, tangy taste usually reserved for grilled meats. For those who prefer to just wing it, Buffalo chicken potato salad dresses up chicken and potatoes in a uniquely delicious way. This super side marries creamy potato salad with the mild heat of Buffalo wings — complete with the trimmings — celery and blue cheese. Leftovers can make a tasty lunch the next day.

Perfecting the pasta salad

It's easy to give ordinary macaroni salad a makeover by adding some fresh flavors and changing up the shape of the pasta. Send taste buds south of the border with mexican pasta salad, a combination of two favorites — seven-layer dip and macaroni salad. Greek pasta salad provides a taste of the Mediterranean with crisp cucumbers, Kalamata olives and feta cheese. A yogurt dressing, accented with mint, oregano and black pepper, is a cool, refreshing change from standard salad fixings.

Turn devilish into divine

Grandma certainly would be proud of curried deviled eggs, a modern interpretation of her cookout classic. A teaspoon of mild curry powder gives basic deviled eggs an unexpected flair.