hmmm... what about german potato salad or something like grilled asparagus?

seven layer barley and blackeye bean salad: http://www.oodora.com/health-and-food/recipes/salads/barley-and-black-eyed-pea-salad-recipe.html

delicious and a huge hit!

a zucchini crudo! serves many, easy, and fresh!

Brussels Sprouts with Brown Butter and Nuts

I brought this to a potluck and was expecting people to turn up their noses at the brussels sprouts, but it was actually gobbled up. The key is using fresh brussels sprouts (not frozen) and not over-cooking them.

You can use less butter if you want it to be healthier. But honestly, 2lb brussels sprouts is like 8-10 servings, so 4 Tbsp butter (the only fat in the dish) isn't that horrible.

2 lb fresh Brussels sprouts
1/2 stick butter
1/3 cup walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, or nuts of your choice -- chopped
Salt, pepper

Cut brussels sprouts in half long-ways. Steam or microwave until bright green and almost cooked (tender but not overdone). Drain.

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat until it's nutty brown looking. Be careful not to burn it. Add nuts and stir; cook a minute or two to let the flavors develop.

Add brussels sprouts, salt and pepper. Stir to coat. Serve at room temperature.

Hint: if you're klassy like me, you can add 1/2 tsp crushed vegetarian Bac-O's when you add the nuts. Or just cook real bacon in the pan at the beginning, and use the bacon grease instead of (or in addition to) the butter. Don't add too many Bac-O's -- that stuff is powerful, and your brussels sprouts will end up tasting like green mini-hams (in a bad way). Trust.

getting a little tired of the plugs for your casserole book. . .

I like "french" potato salad, which my mom adapted from a magazine recipe - chunked red potatoes, skin on, fresh green beans, quartered roma tomatoes, tossed in a mustard vinaigrette. Can be served warm or cold.

I'm partial to sliced potatoes, summer squash, zucchini, green beans, and pasta tossed in an olive oil sauce with garlic, lemon zest, and lemon juice. You can add a little sour cream to the sauce if you like and you can either bake it like a gratin or boil up the potatoes and sautee the other veggies before assembling. It's fantastic.

I really like this one too - let the flavors marinate for several hours in the fridge.

Corn and Black Bean Salad with Basil-Lime Vinaigrette

Here's the way I like it:

- Omit the mango.
- If you have a grill or broiler, grill that corn! Yum.
- Add a pinch of chipotle or smoked paprika to the dressing.

Spicy peanut slaw is also a good one to serve at room temperature. You can pack the dressing separately and pour it on the salad right before serving, if that's how you roll. I prefer to let it marinate on the cabbage for a few hours, but the texture is less crunchy and may be considered less appetizing by some.

http://www.publicradio.org/columns/splendid-table/recipes/sides_citrus_collards.html

Collard greens, olive oil, garlic, OJ, raisins. Done.

And Deeeeeeeelicious!

This perfect protein salad is a huge hit with everyone I make it for (you can use greek yogurt instead of the mayo, I use Canola mayo), it's delicious!
http://www.food.com/recipe/pcc-perfect-protein-salad-366226
what about a hummus? or little wraps using hummus?
And, german potato salad with no mayo, use vinegar/chicken stock to keep it moist instead.
http://www.whats4eats.com/salads/kartoffelsalat-recipe
Add a little shredded cucumber to this, and YUM!

I hear you! I'm a Southerner and very familiar with this phenomenon! Why are green salads, for example, not a part of potluck rotation?!?

I would say your beans sound delish. Also, bean salads (like Texas Caviar or black bean with corn, bell pepper, lime, cilantro) are great at room temp. Here are some of my other favs:
-Green Salads
-Grilled veggies with vinaigrette (esp. grilled eggplant, zucchini, and pepper topped with a light sprinkle of feta)
-Grain salads like couscous (curried with veg?) or quinoa (southwestern flavored?)
-Of course you can never go wrong with fruit salad, esp if you dress it up with mint or a yogurt "dressing" on the side
-Moroccan carrot salad
-Steamed green bean, potato, olive, caper, and tuna (or salmon) salad with Dijon vinaigrette

I make a pasta salad with orzo, cucumbers, feta, tomatoes and feta. I dress it with lemon juice + the zest, and olive oil. a little salt and pepper and you're done.
you can easily replace the orzo with quinoa to make it healthier!

Aw, katepk, that's not very nice! I like Faith's casserole book.

A spring pesto pasta salad - with peas, asparagus, mint, etc. You can make it creamy w/ nonfat greek yogurt (or skip yogurt entirely). And I generally use whole wheat noodles. Its my go-to potluck dish. :)

(This is my recipe: http://rosemarried.wordpress.com/2010/07/08/creamy-pesto-pasta-salad/)

Thanks everyone. I am the one who submitted the question, and I think the book recommendation is very relevant & exactly the kind of thing I'm looking for.

I'm excited about some of these ideas y'all (I do love the South) have suggested. Has anyone had experience doubling (or tripling) a braised bean recipe? The linked recipe above would not be enough for a crowd.

i'm terrified by the sight of all of those casseroles, they appear to be the antithesis of 'feasting on fresh' - maybe i'm scarred by the green bean casserole inflictions of my childhood, but i never make casseroles. (sorry, faith ;) for me, fresh = fruits and veggies, grains and beans less so.

this quinoa-black bean concoction is a great salad, i've made it many times and it's always a success, even with cilantro/coriander haters.

bittman (the minimalist) had a cabbage salad dressed with vinaigrette that was good and table-stable (no mayo or cream, doesn't wilt)

another delicious alternative is an "asian" style slaw with peanut dressing

or a grated carrot/beet salad à la Chocolate and Zucchini (my DH's fave version has avocado, black olives and feta)

all of the cabbage/carrot type salads would be a breeze with a food processor.

my last savoury rec would be veggie sticks and dip(s) - herb/garlic yoghurt, something hummous or bean dip-ish, a mousse made with tinned salmon or tuna, basically whatever you can scoop up with a crudité.

and fruit salad is always a winner.

you are correct - the photo IS the antithesis of "Feasting on Fresh." But it is our actual Easter family meal with extended family. And truly typical of a Southern potluck. Thus the inspiration for our new-kind-of-potluck. Our CSA starts on Sunday and we are ready for a season of real food!!!

Ooh, and fresh hummus is totally easy, portable, and healthy. One of about 187,928 hummus recipes. You could serve with cut up pitas, or make a couple loaves of lazy wonderful no-knead bread from which chunks can be torn and dipped in the hummus.

It's also super-cheap if you make a giant batch of chickpeas from a bag o' dry beans yourself. Use some in the potluck hummus, use the rest in a soup, refrigerated salad, or as veggie-burger style patties over the next few days. Internet recipes abound for each.

I've been really excited about grain salads lately, with lots of veggies and a bright citrus or Asian-inspired dressing.

What about a wild rice (or other rice) salad with cranberries, sesame, and edamame (like this one)? Or a Greek salad with pearl couscous, feta optional? These two were awesome for a big party I threw a few weeks ago. We also had to be room temperature, and they were great!

You can take nearly anything to a potluck. It doesn't have to be limited to salads and casseroles.
My mom used to do all sorts of different things such as:
+ fajitas- cook meat/veggies ahead then put in a crock pot for keeping warm, have the tortillas to the side with other condiments
+ fresh corn- why make it complicated? Usually the potlucks we went to were heavy casseroles, and having just a simple vegetable was always popular and easy
+fresh bread with butter (you can fancy it up any way you like, herbed bread or flavored butter)
+ rice
+ hummus with pita and fresh toppings
+ corn chowder, potato soup, tomato soup, etc.
+ sliced cheese

When I go to potlucks, healthy or not, I take a huge steel mixing bowl (don't have a large enough bowl designated for salad) filled with greens and other veggies, sometimes a baggie of croutons, and a jar of tahini dressing. I toss the salad with dressing when I get to the party so things don't get limp and soggy. Then I stand back and watch it disappear. I've found it useful to have a copy of the recipe below so the mob of people who will "have to have" the recipe can jot it down.

Tahini dressing

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup Braggs liquid aminos
1/2 cup oil (I use canola)
1/3 cup tahini
any combination of garlic (which just gets stronger), grated onion, black pepper, a little salt, and/or a dash of cayenne... all to taste.

Mix in blender till smooth. Add up to 1/4 cup water until desired consistency. Lasts a week in the fridge. If there's any left over.

my cabbage slaw with mango is vegan and a big hit:

http://theactorsdiet.wordpress.com/2010/05/09/christy-and-lynn-ocho-de-mayo/

one thing that has served me well that is casserole-ish but lighter is:
lots and lots of veggies--whatever you want, but be sure to include at least something in the onion family!--shredded or mandolined. over it, pour a mixture of ricotta (i usually use part-skim, but i think that's pretty open-ended) and eggs--about 1 egg per 2/3 cup of ricotta, with some salt and pepper, and hot sauce if you go that way. on top, sprinkle bread crumbs--i usually use panko. then bake until it is done! it is so fresh and supereasy and showcases the veggies that you may have tired of already--that may not be the case this time of the year, but it's an AWESOME vehicle for summer squash and zucchini in august!

i catered an easter brunch that was held on move-in day at a home so everything needed to be served at room temp.

lots of fresh, beautiful salads. an orzo salad, fingerling potato/asparagus salad, white bean salad + more. it was oh so good!
all the recipes are linked below.
http://bit.ly/erv0Ew

For potlucks, I love making a pasta salad with Mexican pasta shapes (kids love 'em) or orzo, sundried tomatoes, fresh basil, olives, toasted pine nuts and an easy dressing of olive oil (or just use some of the oil from the sundried tomatoes), lemon juice, pepper and salt to taste.

Layered vegetarian bean dips are fun, too, with refried beans, salsa, guacamole, olives and some crumbled queso fresco and some baked tortilla chips on the side. Lastly, I made a really simple Mediterranean potato salad last summer that I love -- red potatoes, parsley, red onion and a simple vinaigrette of olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.

Also, a pro-tip I got from a co-worker when bringing salads to potlucks -- make the dressing in the salad bowl you plan on using. Then, place the salad ingredients on top. When you get to your destination, you just toss the salad. This way, you don't have to worry about bringing another container for the dressing and your salad won't wilt on the way there, either. Easy peasy!