By The Paula Deen Test Kitchen

Baby showers are such a fun and festive event! I can’t think of anything worth celebrating more than the arrival of a new baby.  It is so important to make the mother-to-be feel extra special by showering her with gifts, delicious food and great company.

If you are planning or hosting a baby shower soon, don’t let yourself get bogged down with too much work and preparations; allow yourself to have some fun!  Using these recipes and tips allows you to make everything ahead of time leaving you with more time to enjoy the festivities and spoil the guest of honor.

This menu allows the guest “do it themselves” a little bit, taking some of the burden off of your shoulder.  The main course will be a buffet of sandwich items.  Choose from some of Paula’s best recipes such as Vidalia onion and lump blue crab salad, shrimp salad, lemon basil chicken salad or ham salad.  Have about three options for your guests to choose from, set them out with sliced bread, lettuce and tomato and let guests make there own sandwiches.  The great thing is that you can make all of these dishes ahead of time! 

Provide some great sides to go along with the sandwiches.  Grilled pasta salad is a wonderful and healthy dish to accompany your sandwich buffet.  The smokiness from the grilled vegetables gives this salad an extra kick.  And again, it is another dish that can be made ahead.  Chilled corn and watermelon salad is beautiful and delicious.  The bright yellow from the corn alongside the pink from the watermelon makes this dish irresistible.  Impress your guests with this out-of-the-ordinary salad. 

Potato salad is always a crowd pleaser, and keeping with the theme of do everything ahead, try Paula’s pink potato salad.  It is so easy to make, not only do the beets add beautiful color but also a unique flavor.  To wash it all down mix up a pitcher of sparkling mint and ginger lemonade, and fun and festive alcohol-free cocktail.

Because all good parties end with a delicious dessert make a beautiful grand finale with Paula’s cream cheese pound cake with grilled plums.  This cake will hold up fine made a day ahead of time, grill the plums the day of and serve with some homemade whip cream or vanilla ice cream.

This do-ahead menu is sure to be a hit with your guests and will allow you more time to have fun and less time to stress. 

Read More From Holidays and Entertaining.

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