Vegan Baby Shower

Yesterday, I had the privilege of hosting a baby shower for my dear friend, Amanda, who is due in January. As I mentioned in my last post, the baby’s gender is unknown (by choice), so I chose aqua/Tiffany blue for the color theme. I figure that shade of blue could suit a boy or a girl.

Not to mention I LOVE that color and I already had serving dishes/plates and accessories to match.

Vegan Baby Shower

I created the shower invitation (above), glued it to aqua paper and created a band using strips of scrapbook paper, topped with monogrammed ribbon. Postage was about 20¢ extra due to the knot in the ribbon.

The shower menu was all vegan (except for the Sixlets in the snack cups and the chocolates in the party favors). I was REALLY surprised at how well the food went over. I thought some people might be disappointed or nervous to try it, but everyone was a good sport and a few even went back for seconds ;)

Menu

  1. Crunchy Veggie Wraps (my own recipe)
  2. Artichoke-Walnut Pesto Crostini (from Chloe’s Kitchen by Chloe Coscarelli)
  3. Hummus & Pita Chips (store-bought)
  4. Potato Salad Provençal (from Big Vegan by Robin Asbell)
  5. Fruit Cups (pineapple, grapes, blueberries)
  6. Mini Cake Donuts (from Erin McKenna of Babycakes)
  7. Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies (from Vive Le Vegan by Dreena Burton)
  8. Snack Cups (peanuts and light blue Sixlets)
Vegan Baby Shower

My Crunchy Veggie Wrap Recipe (yields 12 full size wraps or 24 halves)

Ingredients:

  • 1 large green bell pepper, diced
  • 1 large red bell pepper, diced
  • 4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 extra-large cucumber, peeled and chopped
  • 2 green onions, chopped
  • 1 large (or 2 small) carrot, peeled and grated*
  • 3 large (or 4 small) avocados (skin and nut removed), chopped
  • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • ½ cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed with garlic press
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • salt & pepper to taste
  • (12) 10″ tortillas (I used Mission Wraps in Zesty Garlic Herb flavor.)
  • 1½ cups (12 oz.) hummus
  • ¾ cup sunflower seeds
  • agave nectar or honey (I used honey, which many vegans do not eat.)
  • (1) 9 oz. bag of baby spinach
  • (1) 4 oz. container of sprouts

Notes

*Instead of grating the carrot, I like to use a vegetable peeler to make short strokes along the carrot. When there’s nothing but a nub left, I cut it in half and give it to the pups ;) 

Instructions

STEP 1
Combine all of the vegetables and avocado in a medium bowl.

STEP 2
In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, dijon mustard, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of black pepper to make a vinaigrette. Add vinaigrette to the vegetables and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

STEP 3
On one side of a tortilla, spread 2 Tbsp. of hummus to about 1″ from the edge. Lightly drizzle agave nectar or honey over the hummus and sprinkle 1 Tbsp of sunflower seeds on top. Top with about ½ cup of baby spinach, forming a bed across the middle, from left to right (staying about 1½” from the edge).

Top the spinach with about ¼ cup of the vegetable mixture, then about ¼ cup of the sprouts. The trick is to not overfill the tortilla so that it can be tightly rolled (next step) without spilling out.

STEP 4
If making 12 large wraps, tuck in either the left or right side of the tortilla (to form the bottom), then fold over the top and bottom sides of the tortilla, wrapping tightly. Secure with a toothpick if desired or plate seam side down.

If making 24 half wraps, tuck in the left and right sides of the tortilla, then fold up the bottom side (while holding in the left and right sides) and tightly roll upwards (like a burrito) until a wrap is formed. Slice the wrap in half on a diagonal and plate seam side down.

Repeat Steps 3 & 4 with the remaining tortillas.

Vegan Baby Shower

Vegan Baby Shower

The potato salad was DELICIOUS! I’ve raved about this cookbook (Big Vegan by Robin Asbell) before, and again, it did not disappoint. I’ve never had artichokes in potato salad before, and I loved it. You know it’s good when people ask you for the recipe!

This is also great for entertaining because you can make it a day or two ahead.

Vegan Baby Shower

The crostini recipe from Chloe’s Kitchen by Chole Coscarelli was very flavorful. Just a little too much garlic for my taste – next time I would use 2 cloves instead of 3 – but everyone seemed to really like it.

Unfortunately, I’m still using a cheap food processor, which processes to a pulp… so my pesto looked more like tuna salad than crostini topping. Oh well. Again, great for entertaining because you can make the topping the day before if you like.

Vegan Baby Shower

I posted about the Mini Cake Donuts (along with the recipe) in my last post. Aren’t they darling?! I may have baked them a little too long this time – they were just a little dry, but a whole lot easier to get out of the pan!

Vegan Baby Shower

Vegan Baby Shower

I didn’t get a shot of the cookies (you can barely see them in the lower right corner of the left photo above). So I took a quick pic of a few leftover cookies today… because just look at how PERFECT they are!!!

I swear they are not from the store. Leave it to Dreena Burton to have the best ever vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe. And it’s SO easy. I literally whipped these up as a last-minute menu addition right before the shower.

Dreena Burton’s Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies
(from Vive Le Vegan by Dreena Burton)

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour (or 1¼ cup spelt flour, which is what I used)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ¼ cup unrefined sugar
  • ¼ tsp sea salt
  • ⅓ cup pure maple syrup
  • ¼ tsp blackstrap molasses
  • 1½ tsp pure vanilla extract
  • ¼ cup neutral flavored oil (a little generous 1/4 cup)
  • ⅓ cup non-dairy chocolate chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a bowl, sift in the flour, baking powder, and baking soda.
  2. Add the sugar and salt, and stir until well combined.
  3. In a separate bowl, combine the maple syrup with the molasses and vanilla, then stir in the oil until well combined.
  4. Add the wet mixture to the dry, along with the chocolate chips, and stir through until just well combined (do not overmix).
  5. Place large spoonfuls of the batter (I rolled mine into balls) on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and flatten a little (I did not flatten).
  6. Bake for 11 minutes, until just golden (if you bake for much longer, they will dry out).
  7. Let cool on the sheet for no more than 1 minute (again, to prevent drying), then transfer to a cooling rack. Makes 8-10 large cookies or 15-20 small cookies.
Vegan Baby Shower

Could there be a cuter expectant mother?! Just as her usual sweet self, Amanda got up and hugged the gift giver after opening each gift. I thought the gift above was so creative and thoughtful – a first year scrapbook, complete with every month and more. All she has to do is place in the photos. Genius!

Vegan Baby Shower

Each guest received a party favor, which included a nail polish and chocolates. Regretfully, I forgot to take a pic of the basket of favors (they were so cute altogether), so I snapped a pic of a leftover favor with my phone.

I created the tag by taping (with double-stick tape) the Thank You message to a scalloped piece of scrapbook paper (made with a Paper Studio 2″ Scallop Circle Punch), punching a hole at the top, and securing it with ribbon.

Click here for a free sheet of 35 Thank You tags (you’ll need to print and cut by hand or with a circle cutter).

Whether you’re hosting a baby shower or not, hopefully, this will give you some vegan entertaining ideas ;)

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11 thoughts on “Vegan Baby Shower”

  1. Looks beautiful Livvy!

    Jason and Amanda are fortunate indeed to be able to live in your home. Let alone, you throwing her a Baby Shower!

    I know that you enjoy doing that type of thing, and are so-o-o good at it. How kind of you!!

    Reply
  2. I found your blog when searching online for a vegan potato soup recipe. I’m looking forward to trying some of the recipes featured, especially the chocolate chip cookies!

    Reply
  3. I’m making the veggie wraps for a baby shower today! Did you heat the tortillas before placing all of the ingredients?

    Reply
  4. I’ve been trying to look up vegan baby shower ideas that don’t completely suck! Everything about this baby shower is awesome! I can’t wait to plan my shower now! Thank you for posting these awesome recipes! My theme is blue and elephants too and I fell in love with literally everything you did! :)

    Reply
  5. Are the white flowers in the vases real or did you make them with tissue paper like the blue hanging ones on the fireplace mantle?

    Reply
  6. oooh very nice, especially excited about those cookies!
    I’m going to try to make some tomorrow but was unsure about the spelt. I only have wholemeal spelt flour and haven’t experimented a lot with spelt and vegan baking, did you use white spelt flour or wholemeal? if you used white do you have suggestions for using wholemeal?

    Thank you :)

    Reply

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