Simple Baby Shower Menu Ideas: Make it a Soup, Salad, & Sandwich Party!

Planning an intimate baby shower for your sister, daughter, or BFF mom-to-be? Well, of course, you’d want everything just perfect—including a flavorful and beautifully presented party menu! We’re thinking of a simple baby shower menu with a yummy selection of soup, salad, and sandwiches. But these are not your run-of-the-mill nibbles here. What we have in mind are tummy fillers with a little something different to delight your guests. Unusual ingredients perhaps, a tempting combination of flavors and textures, an appealing size. Yet all so easy to serve!

You’ll see (and almost taste!) what we mean as you survey the delectable menu suggestions we found.

Simple Menu Planning Tips! Delicious and Sensible!

Since you’ll surely be busy on shower day itself, we took a few cues from the finds above to see how they were whipped up easily and affordably, and served in style!

• Plan on something different. We noted that what makes these menu items so appealing is that they’re slightly ‘fancified’ versions of your usual party fare. Try finding a few recipes with creative twists like these, and delight your baby shower guests with something new!
• Make ahead what you can. Of course, fresh is always best. But certain items like the crab or chicken salad, dressings, toppings and garnishes can be made a day or two ahead and stored in the freezer or fridge.
• Combine store-bought with fresh-made. Save on time and effort by checking out what ready-to-serve items your grocery may have. Think mini croissants, pizza crusts, crostinis, puff pastry shells, and the like. Then, simply add your toppings or fillings and pop in the oven before guests arrive.
• Include fresh fruits and veggies. Remember you have an expectant mom among you—maybe even 1 or 2 more among the guests! So fresh fruits and vegetables are always a healthy option. Plus no cooking needed! Minimal-effort options would be whole grapes or berries that are ‘pop in your mouth,’ fruits you can cut into slices or chunks, veggies you can serve as sticks with a dip or in a tossed green salad.
• Go for garnishes. Even the simplest of menu items can look and taste extra delish with attractive and yummy garnishes. Just look at the carrot soup (11) topped with roasted chickpeas and tahini! Other fancy-looking ideas would be sprigs of herbs, cheese shavings, toasty croutons, crushed nuts, and the like.
• There’s magic in minis. For some reason, petite versions of food just seem more appealing! As with the mini fritattas below (7), you can actually “miniaturize” your favorite recipe for things like quiche, cornbread, or savory muffins. Then simply reduce the cooking or baking time to about a third of what the regular recipe calls for.
• Try the potluck approach. This isn’t actually a tip from the finds we made. But we thought it would be a great way for close family and friends to pitch in for this special occasion. Each one could bring a soup, salad, or sandwich that’s their specialty, along with a recipe card to be put in a shower gift box for the mom-to-be!

Image credits:
1 – Parmesan tart with Caesar salad topping, via Five and Spice; 2 – French onion soup, via Cookbooks and Recipes; 3 – Spinach quiche, via Yummly; 4 – Veggie sticks, via My Baking Addiction; 5 – Ricotta cheesecake and fruit lollipops, via Good Life Eats; 6 – Crab salad wonton cups, via The Black Peppercorn; 7 – Mini frittatas, via Martha Stewart; 8 – Curried chicken tea sandwiches, via My Recipes.com; 9 – Spiced carrot soup, via Yum Sugar; 10 – Bruschetta, via Our Best Bites; 11 – Ham, vintage chedder, and tomato chutney sandwiches, via Taste.com