Soul food recipes have increased in popularity as they get lighter and healthier. Traditional soul food dishes are giving way to more health friendly recipes, ingredients and cooking techniques. Those changes are reflected in the most popular soul food recipes this summer. While some recipes are predictable for summer, others are a surprise.

Perhaps this summers choice of soul food recipes are simply a reflection of the changes many people are going through in general. The traditional is giving way to the new, the unexpected and the out of the box philosophy of many people. That's what this months top 3 recipes reflect. For example, one of the top recipes people picked by our readers was candied yams. This dish is traditionally a late fall or winter recipe. The holidays is the biggest months for this dish, but many people are choosing to cook southern candied yams this summer.

Many reasons have been noted but hears the main reasons discovered. Because of the availability of yams year around now due to exports and advanced storage techniques people are taking advantage by enjoying candied yams. Another reason is because of the increased marketing of the health benefits of yams is also contributing  to the increased  consumption of candied yams in the summer months.

Another surprise soul food recipe for these summer months is southern peach cobbler. This is another dish that  was traditionally prepared and eaten during the cooler months, but was chosen by our readers as a favorite dish prepared this summer.  One factor these two dishes have in common other than being one of the most popular dishes this summer (that's normally fall or winter dishes) is the fact they are comfort foods.

With the economy and other stressful situations people are facing now, perhaps more people are looking to the comfort food they enjoyed as a child. These comfort foods can give people a sense of comfort in an uncomfortable and stressful world.

Another surprise soul food recipe people are preparing and enjoying this summer is fried cabbage. This is a dish that's been traditionally boiled, similar to collard greens. But more people have discovered the joy and taste of stir fried cabbage. Why?  Many love the fast preparation time, which takes under 5 minutes, the ease of preparation and the preserving of vitamins. Note: Stir frying has been found to save over 70% of foods nutrients and vitamins as opposed to boiling in water.

These are the 3 surprising soul food recipes for this summer, it almost makes me anxious to find out what the winter months will bring us. Will people be eating potato salad,  cantaloupe, watermelon or barbecue in November, December and January? Stay tuned.