Well, if she's going to have the ribs in the oven, that limits you to either something you just warm up or something you cook on top of the stove. I would recommend a fancy lasagna with homemade noodles for a warm-up dish, but that does take hours to prepare.

I like your idea of paella, but that's usually made on top of the stove, not in a crock pot. Jambalaya would be similar, but isn't as hard to make.

I have a good recipe for seafood stew that's kind of fancy, but still easy to make. Would you like me to type it up and post it (it's in a cookbook)?

How about Alaska King crab legs? That's what we have on Thanksgiving and Christmas every year. Very easy to make, but you do need a pretty big pot and a steamer basket. I make them in my canning kettle, with the jar rack in the bottom. They are expensive though--about $7 or $8 per pound when on sale. But you wouldn't need as many if you're having lots of other food; maybe just a couple legs per person.

BTW, there is a cooking forum here on Garden Web, with lots of helpful people.

Here is a link that might be useful: cooking forum

LIL SMOKIES

1 lb. pkg. little smokie sausages
1 bottle BBQ sauce

In saucepan or crock pot put sausages and cover with BBQ sauce. Heat thru.

Take a crock pot full of these and you will be the belle of the ball! Guys think this is a complete meal when it's accompanied with a 6-pack of Budweiser and some chips!!! LOL

Lil Smokies....always have a freezer full...Larry thinks they are a food group ...I don't like them! LOL!

Here's two I'm making for NY's.
Everyone loves the corn salad

Cold Corn Salad
1 Pkg Frozen whole kernel corn (almost thawed)
6-8 slices fried bacon (crispy & crumbled)
fresh garlic cloves 2-3 (more if you like garlic)
2-3 chopped fresh jalapeno peppers (with membrane and seed removed)***Used minced green chiles instead
chopped olives (optional-black or green either one)
2-3 stems of chopped green onions
1 C grated colby/jack cheese (marbled)**Used grated sharp cheddar
Original Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
In large mixing bowl combine all chopped vegetables with corn. Stir in enough dressing to coat vegetables well. ( I use almost half a bottle.) Then stir in grated cheese and crumble bacon on top.
If you are going to serve immediately, let corn thaw completely.
I let it set overnite, so flavors will blend!

-------------------------------------------------------
And also serving this!

GARDENGURU'S ITALIAN MARINATED SHRIMP
Serving Size: 8
2 pounds fresh shrimp -- cooked & peeled
2 jars artichoke hearts -- drained
2 jars button mushrooms -- drained
1 small jar black olives -- pitted and drained
1 small onion
1/2 green bell pepper
1/2 red bell pepper
1 clove garlic
3 tablespoons fresh parsley
1 pint Italian salad dressing
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Place shrimp, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, and olives in a deep bowl.
Finely chop the onion, pepper, garlic, and parsley. I use a food processor and pulse it all together until nicely slivered but not mushy.
Mix with the remaining ingredients thoroughly and pour over the shrimp mixture.
Cover and marinate in refrigerator for 24 hours before serving, stirring occasionally.
Serve with toothpicks and plates and/or with a serving spoon.

My Adult Children love Seafood. I often make them Shrimp Gumbo. It is so easy and I use frozen okra and deveined(sp) Shrimp so I don't spend all day cleaning and dicing.

You can put it in a Crockpot too, just remember to add the shrimp last so they don't get tough.

Gayle

Thank you all so much for your suggestions and time :)

I think I'm going to try some adaptation of this:

Paella
4-6 chicken tenders
½ onion, finely chopped
1 (16-ounce) can stewed tomatoes
3 Wegmans chicken and turkey chorizo
sausages, sliced
1 pinch saffron or 1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1½ tablespoons minced garlic
1 cup chicken broth (I like the Pacific
brand, which comes in 1-cup box)
2 tablespoons chopped pimiento
¼ pound shelled raw shrimp
8 clams in the shell or 1 (6-ounce) can,
chopped and drained
8 mussels (debearded)
½ cup peas
2 cups cooked rice
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine chicken, onion, tomatoes, sausage, saffron or turmeric, oregano, garlic and chicken broth in slow cooker and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours. Turn to high and add pimiento, shrimp, clams, mussels and peas. Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes. Stir in rice and serve. Serves 4 to 6.

I like that everything is pretty much done *in* the cooker..It's always such a pain to transport the food, so this way, I can just put it all together at her house, rather than Browning Onions and Meat at my house, and trying to get it there without making a mess in my car.

Thanks again!