Spring has sprung, and everything is new, beautiful, and bright! It’s arguably the most appealing time to have a baby shower – what better time to celebrate a beautiful new life than when new life is popping up all around! There is an unlimited number of adorable themes to choose from. But, even with all the cute themes, creating a cohesive, stress-free menu can be one of the most challenging parts of planning a shower. But have no fear. I’m sharing a few simple tips & yummy menu ideas to make planning easy-peasy for your upcoming baby shower!

Tips & Tricks:

1. Work ahead! 
   Pick as many recipes as possible that can be prepared ahead of time! Choosing more items that will be served cold or room temperature (rather than hot!) will save you from scrambling to heat things at the last minute. Create a timeline for items that do need to be warmed up, so you don’t forget anything! Set out all serving platters and utensils the night before and label them – this is also helpful when you delegate to helping hands!
   
2. Opt for easy-to-eat items.
   Remember that most guests will be eating and mingling simultaneously unless you are having a full sit-down meal. Neat finger foods and items eaten with just a fork or spoon will work best. The same goes for dessert – opt for cookies, brownies, or cupcakes; bonus points if they’re mini!
   
3. Go for quality over quantity!
   I know you’ll want to make every guest happy, but remember you’re not running a full restaurant! To create a satisfying menu and not go crazy in the process – choose a few savory options and one or two sweets, and you’ll have enough variety! Keeping the menu seasonal is great, but remember it doesn’t have to match the theme exactly – for example: if you’re doing a Peter Rabbit theme, not every dish has to include carrots!

Spring Shower Menu Ideas:

Brunch!

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times – I LOVE a baby shower brunch! You get the cool of the day with moms who aren’t wiped out from a full day, and the food options are delicious and easy to make ahead! For spring, I love to go with fresh, bright flavors and colors; these are the dishes that would make my brunch-loving heart sing!

• This post from The Spruce Eats has a scrumptious round-up of brunch favorites. The bananas foster french toast casserole, and the blueberry and ricotta muffins are perfect for a spring shower. The muffins can be made 100% ahead of time, and the casserole can be popped in the oven the morning of.
• Round those out with this to-die-for deviled egg recipe, with some (or all!) of the topping variations and a simple green salad. These recipes can be mostly made ahead of time, with minimal assembly or heating before guests arrive. Deviled egg tip – if you don’t want to fill them ahead of time, make the mix and store in gallon ziplock bags in the fridge, prepare all components of the garnishes, and right before the guests arrive, snip off the tip of the ziplock, pipe the mix in and garnish!
• A lemon bundt cake and some beautiful, delicate macarons would be the perfect fit for dessert! I like to leave the baking to the professionals for events, but if your skills are up to par and you want to take on the task, check out this Bundt cake recipe and these foolproof macarons!

Grazing Tables

I am in love with the idea of grazing tables! They take no actual cooking, have a little bit of everything for everyone, and guests can mingle around the table while they “graze”! You can dress grazing tables up or down depending on how elaborate you get with your decor and they fit almost any venue.

Here are a few of my favorite grazing table recipes and ideas – you may have to adjust amounts based on your party size, but you can use any of these ideas independently or mix and match to create your perfect table.

• The jarcuterie trend is here to stay; it takes a bit of prep work, but it definitely wows on the cuteness factor!
• A DIY salad bar is perfect for a grazing board and brings in beautiful, bright colors.
• This cheese board from Half Baked Harvest focuses on lighter cheese like burrata, feta, and goat cheese, so it’s perfect for spring!
• This Giant Grazing Table gives you an exact breakdown of the number of items you’ll need for a group and perfectly incorporates all the beautiful spring fruits and colors.
• To finish it off – purchase (or make – for all you ambitious home bakers!) a variety of mini desserts to create the cutest table. This post from A Taste of Home rounds up 40 easy, adorable mini desserts – I’m obsessed with the mini citrus cakes and mini strawberry rhubarb pies!

Afternoon Tea

There’s just something about a spring baby shower that makes me want to don a fascinator and eat tiny sandwiches at a perfect afternoon tea! Imagine how adorable the classic tea fare would be on mix-and-match tiered trays in the middle of each of your tables! The absolute best part is that these recipes can be made entirely ahead of time, allowing for a more relaxed day for you!

• Cucumber sandwiches are the first thing that comes to mind when I think of tea foods, and the fresh herbs on this one make it bright and fresh.
• This mini quiche recipe is adorable, delicious, and easy – made easier when you use store-bought mini pie crusts!
• Scones and tea go hand in hand; this is the best recipe for homemade scones. This recipe is great because you can customize the flavors – check out the lemon blueberry version, which is absolutely delicious when served with clotted cream and lemon curd!
• These adorable smoked salmon canapes are so so easy and so so yummy!
• I love these dainty mini fruit tarts for dessert, and delicate petit fours are an absolute must! Most bakeries (even grocery store bakeries) carry petit fours, but if you’re in the mood to take on the time-consuming task, this recipe is excellent and includes terrific tips to help you succeed!

Menu Inspiration

I hope I’ve provided some menu inspiration for your spring baby shower,  and you can check one thing off your to-do list! Don’t stress during planning, but take time to enjoy celebrating the mama-to-be and the beautiful baby on the way! And don’t forget to include RegistryFinder.com on your invitations so your guests can easily find all of mom’s carefully crafted registries in one place!

Featured Image Photo Credit: Happiest Baby