As the matron of honor for my sister’s upcoming wedding, I want to throw her the most amazing bridal shower, especially since she went above and beyond for mine.
My sister is not your “traditional” bride, however. A frilly, uptight wedding shower is not her scene. In fact, her type of “party” is the exact opposite! And, for this reason, I have decided to throw her a Mexican bridal shower, but without the usual high-calorie foods and “cheesy” decor. My goal is to blend the fun and festive Mexican theme with the feel of a “girly” wedding shower.
I was lucky to have the opportunity to brainstorm a tentative menu for my sister’s wedding shower with MyRecipes.com editor, Ashley Johnson. Ashley was the perfect person to chat with for this event: She produced a lot of the Cinco de Mayo content for the website, recently threw a Mexican-themed baby shower, and was a bride-to-be. Ashley had so many creative menu ideas and tips for my sister’s wedding shower! Now, I can’t wait for the par-ty! 
Tips:
- Go authentic. Choose Mexican over “Southwestern” or “Tex-Mex,” which can be code for “covered in cheese.” See the Taqueria Special menu below, or check out MyRecipe’s gallery of 10 Mexican Entrees Under 300 Calories for more ideas: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipes/gallery/0,28548,1731607,00.html
- Drink smarter. Sub Sangria (hello, antioxidants!) for the typical margarita and save almost 100 calories per serving (222 in a margarita verses 139 in Real Simple’s Red Wine Sangria (below). If all else fails, go with light beer and a side of lime!
- Serve tasty appetizers. Salsa is great and certainly healthier than cheese dip (oh heavenly cheese dip), but break out and serve something that tastes indulgent but isn’t-Guacamole with Chipotle Tortilla Chips (below). The average restaurant chip has 25 calories in it. 25 calories each! You can eat four of the homemade chips, plus 2 tablespoons of the creamy guacamole dip for only 57 calories. Not into making your own chips? Buy the baked variety and save almost half the fat per serving.
- Don’t scrimp on dessert. Everyone knows the best part of showers is the delicious shower food. Try serving dark chocolate-dipped tortilla chips with a fruit salsa made with pineapple and strawberries. No time to dip? Purchase these chocolate chips from Food Should Taste Good and make the fruit salsa yourself (http://www.foodshouldtastegood.com/#/chocolate/).
Looking for a make-ahead option? Whip up a Lime Sorbet Margarita from Real Simple (points for the margarita glass presentation), or serve Mexican Paletas in colors that coordinate with the bride’s big day. Serve them with festive napkins and save yourself another dirty dish in the sink.
Recipe Ideas:
{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
What a fun party! Love all of the food ideas!
Mmmm that spread looks amazing! Best wishes to your sis
Loooks delicious!! You can never go wrong with homemade guac in my opinion!
what a fun idea for a shower! and great tips!
That sounds like such a fun shower theme! You’re going to throw a great party!
What great ideas! Your sister is going to have an awesome shower.
Just a little FYI though… sangria is Spanish. Mexicans definitely love their beer though
How fun! These are great tips. I could go for one of those Sorbet Margs!
Looks great! Love all the MyRecipes.com stuff.
great tips, I am always looking for light sangria recipes. I love fresca in sangria, even if it sounds weird!
Such perfect timing! A friend of mine is having a Mexican-themed shower and was just asking for some ideas! I will pass this along to her.
Love all of the ideas! Mexican food is extremely popular in New Mexico and I’m always looking for ways to turn the dishes healthy!
Those pictures are making me drool!
This will be SUCH a fun shower! Thank you for all the great lower cal mexican ideas too. Enjoy your day off
Too funny–I am actually throwing my sister at Mexican-themed baby shower this summer!
We love traditional Mexican food, so I thought a baby shower would be the perfect occasion to indulge wisely!
I’m sure your sister’s bridal shower will turn out great–so exciting!
Your sister is so lucky to have you! You are putting so much time and thought into this shower, I know she is going to be blown away
sooo fabulous! i wouldn’t mind having my sisters do something like this for me!
That sounds like a great idea for a shower! Something unique but still can be classy.
This sounds like such a fun theme, and the food sounds fantastic!!
did you do a post on the actaul bridal shower? Has it happend yet? I am throwing my friend her shower and I think this would be a grand idea, since her and her fiance are both spanish!!!
@bobbi: It’s this weekend! There will be a full recap!
I can’t wait for the shower tomorrow! We love Steph! XOXO
How did the baby shower go? Are there any pictures, I would love to see how it turned out
I found this in a search and it has inspired me to throw my cousin’s wedding shower in the same/similar theme. Thank you for some of these great ideas.
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