Help! I need some meal ideas for a babyshower!

This is what I would want: sloppy joes, potato salad, macaroni salad, vegi tray, chips, crackers and various dips. Coffee, tea and pop to drink. You could also have baked beans and other kinds of salads, I would keep things simple and easy to eat and transport, specially if you have to take the food someplace else for the shower. If the shower is small you probably don't need to have as many thi8ngs to choose from. Good luck and have fun.

Tapas are easy but you can also order them so that saves you a lot of time to prepare varieties of food and the quantities as well. You can also do nachos with a variety of dips.

You can also go for fritters or tempura. You can use about anything for tempura. Vegetables or seafood for tempura. Bananas, Casava and Breadfruit for fritters. More exciting would be soft shell crabs tempura...YUMMY!

Then again, what does your friend like? Most of all, don't be bog down ny all the food prep. Have fun! - Lyn

What about chicken wings in a crock pot? Those are super easy and the bonus of using a crock pot is that they'll stay warm throughout the whole thing.

You could do little mini burgers. They sell really tiny buns and then you could just shape the meat patties to fit. But the hard part about that is everyone likes different things on their burgers so you'd have to set out a bunch of different condiments.

I have a great recipe for an Avacado Feta Salsa that she might like since she likes to try different things. I've made it twice in the past week for different events because everyone always loves it. Let me know if you want it.

Macaroni and cheese is always a crowd pleaser. I don't think I've ever met anyone that doesn't like it.

Two things that are always nice to have are a fruit salad and a fresh vegetable tray with dip. Deviled eggs are easy finger food.
You could also make a casserole and seven layer salad.
What's nice is all of these can be made a day or two ahead.
To drink, have a ice water and a nice non-alcoholic punch made with a couple 2 liters of ginger ale, raspberry sherbet, and some frozen raspberries thrown together right before the shower.

Do you have a theme? Most showers i go to have just finger foods like spinach dip w/ bread, raw fruit/veggies etc...do you actually have to have a meal? Is the shower over a lunch/supper period?

i would suggest a big pot of soup and some fresh bread, but chances are it will be too hot for something like that...what about a mexican theme w/ make your own frijitas (all you have to do is cut up veggies/grill some chicken/) then for an appitizer you could have salsa n taco chips?

Are you thinking about a meal (lunch or dinner?), or a bunch of little snackies for people to eat while your friend unwraps her gifts and stuff?

One of my favorite hearty snacks is Stuffed Mushrooms. They are pretty easy and quick to make. Fill mushroom caps with stuffing (you can even use an instant stuffing, like stovetop for this), bake until the mushrooms are tender.

Deviled eggs are also really good! I LOVE those. I loke adding powdered mustard to the "filling" when I make mine, and then topping them with a bit of paprika. It makes them look fancy;-)

Various dips and chips are also good. 7-layer Mexican dips are easy to make and are always a huge hit. You can make it before hand and when it's time for the party, just heat it up and serve with tortilla chips.
Good luck!

I would definately recomend "fingerfood". Small chicken-bits, some meat on sticks, veggies with dip, cheese, garlicbread, regular bread.. oh you get the idea - just make alot of small dishes - this way - all people will find somehting to eat..

We're gonna need a lil' more info..
In her present state - she's still has the palate for new things?
Please define "home cooking"? Ethnicity? Southern? something that comes out of an oven?
Theme for the day?
Location? (outside= no mayo products)
Quick & Easy? - made days in advanced or on the spot?
Push comes to shove try www.foodtv.com for party recipes.

You can try this fish fillets with red pepper sauce.
Hope you enjoy cooking and enjoy your baby shower!1 (12 ounce) jar roasted red sweet peppers, drained and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup loosely packed fresh chopped basil
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Dash ground black pepper
1 pound fresh or frozen fish fillets
1/4 cup water
1 lemon, sliced
Fresh basil (optional)
DIRECTIONS
For sauce, in a large skillet cook fresh sweet peppers and garlic in hot oil over medium heat about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. (Or, if using peppers from a jar, in a 2-quart saucepan cook garlic in oil for 30 to 60 seconds or until light brown. Stir in peppers; remove from heat.)
Place the pepper-garlic mixture in a blender container or food processor bowl. Cover; blend or process until very smooth. Add the 1/2 cup water, the basil, tomato paste, vinegar, sugar, salt, and black pepper. Cover and blend or process with several on-off turns until basil is just chopped and mixture is nearly smooth. Transfer to a 1-quart saucepan. Cook and stir sauce over medium heat until heated through.
Meanwhile, measure thickness of fish. In a large skillet bring the 1/4 cup water and half of the lemon slices just to boiling. Carefully add fish. Return just to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. (Allow 4 to 6 minutes per 1/2-inch thickness for fresh fish; 6 to 9 minutes per 1/2-inch thickness for frozen fish.) Remove fish from skillet.
To serve, spoon some of the sauce onto 4 dinner plates. Place a fillet on top of sauce on each plate. Garnish with remaining lemon slices and, if desired, basil. Freeze any remaining sauce for another time.

Go visit Rachel Ray's website and you will find a lot of really tasty meals that do not take a lot of time. I cook her recipies all the time. Write her and she just might do something on the topic on her show.