282625 Mon Jan 23 11:11:43 -0800 2006 25 31 Home Cooking 0 1506619 My Mom and I offered to co-host this baby shower at embarrasingly late notice. I only have 2nd hand clues as to what I should bring. The primary hostess said the following to my mother: It's from 2:00-4:00 on a Sunday, I don't think people will want to eat much that time of day so we aren't doing that much food. Hostess is making an Italian Cream Cake. She asked my mother to make a chocolate pound cake. One daughter is making cucumber(and possibly other) tea sandwiches. One daughter fancys herself a decorator and is supplying fine china and cloth napkins. Nuts and strawberry tea are the other menu items. I was instructed to bring "nothing, or whatever I want". I'm guessing that the hostess envisions something along the lines of an English afternoon tea based on the planned offerings. My Mom, on the other hand, thinks the menu "needs" a fruit or vegetable item. Also, the hostess mentioned to my Mom that she remembered I made mini quiches for the guest of honor's sister's shower, some 7 years ago (always flattering when people remember something like that). Do you think that was a subtle hint? I'd really rather not make those, because they are a massive pain (cleaning the tiny fluted tart tins) and I don't like to have to take over someone else's oven...the quiches really need to be warm. So...who has thoughts on what sort of thing I should take? another sweet? cheese coins? fruit skewers? the damn quiches? TIA. Mon Jan 23 11:11:43 -0800 2006 0 danna 1 1506623 Fruit salad comes to mind. Mon Jan 23 11:24:16 -0800 2006 1506619 0 twinmommy 2 1506645 I thought of fruit salad, too. Perhaps with a little fresh mint and chopped walnuts or pecans. An aforementioned reference to cheese coins/cheese straws seems like a good idea, too. You could also do some chilled steamed asparagus wrapped with prosciutto if you're looking for something salty. Mon Jan 23 12:37:52 -0800 2006 1506623 0 Hungry Celeste 1 1506627 A good way to screw things up is to give a one-person job to two or more persons. Sounds like that could be the dynamic here. When I see a scenario like that in the making, I beat a hasty retreat. If trapped, I will say "tell me what to bring and I'll bring it." (Probably go buy it at Costco or TJ's.) Nothing worse that a bunch of folks tripping over each other in the kitchen with no one firmly in charge. Mon Jan 23 11:28:42 -0800 2006 1506619 0 Sharuf 1 1506629 Something with cheese would definitely add to the menu. I'm not sure what cheese coins are but I'm sure that would be good. Other ideas - figs with blue cheese or mascarpone, tomato/mozz skewers, stilton balls rolled in pistachios. Mon Jan 23 11:35:34 -0800 2006 1506619 0 belle 2 1506635 My only caveat here would be to watch the type of cheese. Pregnant american ladies sometimes don't eat raw milk cheese and/or honey. Some won't eat veined cheeses at all no matter what kind of milk it's made with. Mon Jan 23 12:02:54 -0800 2006 1506629 0 Lizard 3 1506640 I only recently heard the no-honey thing. I can't quite grasp what the problem might be. Can you enlighten me? A friend of mine made beautiful, tedious, cut-out cookies decorated w/ royal icing for a friend's shower. The girl cried and accused my friend of "trying to kill my baby". (raw egg white) My friend and I added this hormonally-influenced behaviour to our (book-length) lists of reasons we aren't going to reproduce ;-) Belle - here is a link for cheese coins, just crackers, or I suppose biscuits at an English tea. Link: http://www.marthastewart.com/page.jhtml?type=content&id=recipe3255&search=true&resultNo=21 Mon Jan 23 12:24:53 -0800 2006 1506635 0 danna 4 1506644 The honey thing is the (ridiculously rare) risk of botulism (yes, the bacteria (?) can reside in honey). However, I've never heard of it being proscribed for pregnant women, only children <1y of age. Whatever. As for your dilemma, she wants you to bring the quiches. However, if she was too big a weanie to just come out and ask, I would do something simpler. I agree, it sounds as though she's after English tea type thing. I think the fruit salad idea was the best one. Although not a great time of year for fruit salad, I think you could put something nice together. Good luck! Smokey Mon Jan 23 12:33:50 -0800 2006 1506640 0 smokey 4 1506647 It sounds like this is a particularly disorganized shower! But I hope that you'll have a good time. The funny thing about showers is that when the chair is capable of hosting and planning a nice shower at home she often elects to go out. And when she is least capable to planning a nice shower at home, she insists on doing so. Believe me, I've been mired in a few real beauties that the in-laws have insisted on throwing together! Anyway, I have a couple of ideas. I've noticed that whole strawberries with sugar and cream are often included in afternoon tea. You can make them look really beautiful by mounding them in a shallow bowl and inserting a few tiny daisies for decoration. Our better grocery has Devonshire cream, but you can always use sour cream if you can't find it. I also thought that if you like to bake it might be nice to make a savory scone. Maybe something with herbs or cheese. They don't need to be warm and would add something substantial to the menu. But since your Mom was looking for a vegetable and the tea sandwich question seems muddled (so I WOUDLN"T go there!!) how about a tray of prosciutto wrapped asparagus? I just blanch them for a few minutes so that they are barely cooked and pat them dry. Then wrap them in good prosciutto and you can dress the final platter with truffle oil and lemon or oranze zest. Sliced kumquats make a really nice garnish. The honey thing is important for babies but seems pretty bogus for expectant mothers. I mean, I agree that it's best not to drink a glass full of raw eggs or eat sushi every day when you're pregnant, but some expectant Moms seem to be looking for a sense of contol. Developing an involved list of forbidden foods may just be a way of staying occupied while awaiting the new arrival! Is it OK to eat honey while I'm pregnant? By Amos Grunebaum, MD Feb. 26, 2001 -- It's perfectly safe for a pregnant woman to eat honey, though it should not be fed to children under age 1 because it may contain the deadly bacterium Chlostridium botulinum. Botulinum spores are also commonly found in dust and some uncooked foods. When they grow in contaminated foods or inside the digestive tract of a young child, they can produce a toxin that causes botulism, a rare but sometimes deadly disease. Mon Jan 23 12:42:28 -0800 2006 1506640 0 Kate 4 1506752 YUM -- thanks for the recipe. Mon Jan 23 17:50:02 -0800 2006 1506640 0 belle 4 1506828 Yikes! This sounds like the first and last afternoon tea (at a person's home) I was invited to. Right down to the quiches. Anyway, I have had these coins on various occasions and they are great. Martha Stewart's Hors D'Oeuvres Handbook has some nice tea and cracker ideas, some recipes are really easy too. Good luck and try to make the best of the situation. Tue Jan 24 00:43:47 -0800 2006 1506640 0 Tracy L. 3 1506668 If the cheese is contained in a BAKED product, then I don't see how that could be an issue.... but people do go crazy about stuff like that, I know... [sigh] Mon Jan 23 14:10:56 -0800 2006 1506635 0 Sir Gawain 4 1506675 I hear you. But I've never been pregnant. From all accounts europeans eat cheese and sometimes have wine when pregnant, and I've also heard that japanese women in japan have been known to eat sushi. Last I checked, babies were still being born in both places. But like I said, I may change my tune if and when I get in the family way. Mon Jan 23 14:35:32 -0800 2006 1506668 0 Lizard 1 1506648 The quiche mention was a hint but I would not worry about it unless you REALLY want to go out of your way. I would make another small sammie (radish butter with chives) Tug Mon Jan 23 12:44:31 -0800 2006 1506619 0 Tugboat 1 1506653 I have had good luck at potlucks with the scallion and goat cheese muffins found at epicurious, made in mini muffin tins. They are little cheesy savories like quiche, but very easy to make. Link: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/100599 Mon Jan 23 12:58:51 -0800 2006 1506619 0 poundcake 1 1506658 Does the guest of honor have a passion you could satisfy? Can you make inquiries?If she does, take that and run with it. Otherwise.... Although good commercially made mini quiches are available at places like Costco and TJ's, they would probably be compared to the sister's shower treats, so you porbably don't want to go there....and you don't want to risk upstaging the primary hostess' cake with some other sweet like cupcakes. I was going to suggest the Devonshire cream too, with some mini-scones, and I second the asparagus spears/prociutto offering. Maybe a savory cheesecake? I make a good one with fritos-type cornchips (TJ's)and toasted cumin for the crust, and flavor the cream cheese/mascarpone filling with smoked salmon, aged white cheddar and a little adobo sauce from canned chipotle peppers. A little goes a long way. It's savory but not very spicey, and always well-recieved. Good luck with the party, have a good time and don't worry too much about the food. It's all about the baby, right? Mon Jan 23 13:15:54 -0800 2006 1506619 0 toodie jane 1 1506699 After reading the title of this post "What would you take to this shower?" my first thought was "A Flask of Gin"! Yes, it does sound like you were being asked to repeat the quiches but passing on this veiled hint would be wise. Nothing will ever be as good as the remembered product. Doing something else "cheesy" is a great plan and for goodness sake, make it easy on yourself. Piping cheese straws is fine, if you like to pipe cheese straws. You could also make a small cheese straw cookie (or coins, as you call it) that would be quicker to do. Go ahead and use a Cheddar instead of Roquefort, it will endear you with the mother-to-be. Every generation has their Pregnancy Pecadillos and this one is pretty easy to work around. In lieu of a traditional new baby gift, bring the new mother some really good Roquefort dressing instead of booties. She'll thank you. Mon Jan 23 15:54:51 -0800 2006 1506619 0 Sherri 2 1506719 Gin: oh, no kidding, but I have to drive home. there is nothing I despise more than a baby shower. if I could stand the sight of those things (larval humans and their accoutrement) I would surely have caved to societal and familial pressure and produced one by now. I'm attracted to several of the ideas presented so far. I'm leaning toward the cheese-centric. I love fruit salad as suggested by many, but I feel that I should take something that does not require utensils. Thanks, and keep 'em coming! Mon Jan 23 16:46:44 -0800 2006 1506699 0 danna 3 1506722 Nigella Lawson's "How to Be a Domestic goddess" has a recipe for blue cheese shortbread (I believe she uses Cashel blue) that has always looked awesome to me. (I'm sure the mother-to-be can eat blue cheese when it's been baked at 300+ degrees.) Alas, I lent the book to a friend and the recipe isn't on nigella.com. but it did look reaaaally good. Mon Jan 23 16:52:47 -0800 2006 1506719 0 Sir Gawain 3 1506737 I can't decide what's worse... a baby shower or a wedding shower... either one, there's bound to be stupid games! My best friend's baby shower, which, if I do say so myself, was actually kind of fun (everyone else thought it was kind of weird!) She was due on Cinco de Mayo, so we had a fiesta, and the only game we played was a pinata! And if you think the sight of a 6 month pregnant woman, beating a stork pinata that had fallen on the ground isn't funny, then you've got another think coming! ;-) Anyway, that's another subject! All I really wanted to say, is that if you're wanting to do fruit but don't want to mess with utensils, you could always do fruit kabobs. You really did get me on a tangent! Mon Jan 23 17:32:02 -0800 2006 1506719 0 Katie Nell 3 1506746 "larval humans and their accoutrement" Wow. Maybe you should have just declined your involvement. But you did give me a great idea for a band name. "Hello Cleveland. I am Larval Human and these are the Accoutrement. . ." Or maybe they should be the "Accoutregents" Mon Jan 23 17:41:59 -0800 2006 1506719 0 Tugboat 3 1506823 Thanks so much for making me spit my drink out on the larval comment. simply hysterical. It seems as though your "friend" was being more than a little passive-aggressive in the mini quiche non-request. So depending on the friendship, I would either go to the trouble of making them or bring something she truly dislikes. But that's just me. If you recipe-google "stuffed mushrooms", there's one on there w/ cream cheese, sausage, parmesan and wine that's just great. You can also make it in advance. Although it's probably as much work as the mini quiches - it's still always a big hit. Best of luck to you. And thanks for the great laugh. Tue Jan 24 00:13:36 -0800 2006 1506719 0 bryan 3 1506862 i join the pack in kudos for, "larval humans and their accoutrement". simply awesome! i will appropriate it for my own use, but i will be certain to give credit where it's due. Tue Jan 24 08:47:18 -0800 2006 1506719 0 mark 1 1506754 Baby showers are awful. And what ever you bring, you can't please everyone. So make something easy that you like. Instead of a fruit salad, do a fruit tray: sliced pineapple, apples, grapes, bananas, pears, kiwi, mango, whatever. Serve it with toothpicks and a lovely wine. Mon Jan 23 17:55:56 -0800 2006 1506619 0 Janet 1 1506766 Dipping fruit in chocolate is really simple, and always impresses. Dip strawberries in melted chocolate chips, and chill in the fridge for an hour. Since there are already desserts, maybe you could dip only 1/4 of it. Mon Jan 23 18:28:52 -0800 2006 1506619 0 katya 2 1506859 That crossed my mind. Do you adulterate the chocolate in any way? (cream, butter, etc.) Any tempering requirements? I have made those before and had issues w/ the chocolate cracking off. I think I may not have dried the strawberries and carefully as I should. Since the shower is two days before Valentine's, there should be berries in the stores. Thank you. Tue Jan 24 08:30:02 -0800 2006 1506766 0 danna