Deliciously Festive Nuptials

We've all been to one of those weddings where the fish was over cooked and the coffee cold. Dancing and drinking can work up quite an appetite, so make sure that your wedding guests are as delighted with their meal as you are with your new spouse. No one wants their big day filled with edible disappointment, so follow these tips, tricks and techniques to ensure that your wedding will be perfectly tasteful.

- Travel the Globe:
Wow guests with cross continental culinary creations by featuring the ethnic favorites of the bride and groom. Italian wedding soup, which can be served in shot glasses, and coconut shrimp with a red curry dipping sauce can be passed around during the cocktail hour to give your family and friends the opportunity to sample the flavors of Rome and India with their champagne toast. If your heritages are distinctly different cultures, and you would prefer to spread out the global love, consider featuring one ethic dish during the cocktail hour and another during the meal. By serving foods that represent the heritages and cultures of the bride and groom, the wedding has a more personal touch as it lets guest get a deeper look into the personalities of the happy couple.

-Dress Up the Classics:
Franks in blankets are always a crowd pleaser, but if your wedding has a black tie theme or a more upscale gourmet menu, you may not want Oscar Mayer wieners floating around your reception. Instead of skipping these finger lickin' good bites, dress them up by using gourmet sausages, such as honey maple, venison, and cranberry, all of which are available at Whole Foods Markets. Ask your caterer to wrap these fancy franks with a piece of cheese in buttery pastry dough and serve them with a dipping sauce. Guests will not only be delighted to see a familiar favorite, but they will be impressed with the inventive twist.

- Perfect for Picky Palates:
When planning an event, "appealing to everyone's taste" is the most challenging aspect, says event expert Alba Cera. While chicken or beef may be the safe route, taking the road less eaten will bring more spice to your special day. Popular today are food stations where guests have the ability to have the meal of their choice prepared to their liking right in front of them. Omelet stations, where guests can have everything from shrimp to aged cheddar scrambled in, are a great choice for a morning or afternoon reception, while a mashed potato station, complete with chives, sour cream, bacon, and sweet potatoes, adds a comfort vibe to an evening wedding. By giving your guests the option of picking their portion, you can ensure that everyone, not matter how picky, will fill their plate.

-Customized Cocktails:
Although an open bar is a typical reception option, it is also a costly one. One way to remain on budget is to offer wine and beer selections and limit the hard stuff to a cocktail concocted just for you. Chocolate martinis will match up perfectly with brown linens, while a Long Stem Rose, rose flavored vodka and rose petals, will compliment your flowers and fragrance the reception hall beautifully. For a beachy wedding reception, have bartenders wear floral lais and serve flavored pina coladas to incorporate beach- inspired sensations. Drinks can often be tweaked to be the color of your choice, so let your caterer know if you want blue cosmopolitans to match the bridesmaid dresses. Feature a sign on the bar highlighting your drink, letting guests know the ingredients and creative thought process behind your selection. For your reception, if the limit is the sky, consider a martini or margarita bar, where guests can have their pick of top shelf vodkas and tequilas to be mixed into their frosty glasses. The attention to detail and finely tuned bar menu will delight guests as they will feel that the bride and groom really took the time to make sure that their family and friends had as enjoyable a day as the newlyweds. It's all about details in the end!

-Frost Yourself:
By the time you smear icing on your new spouse's nose, the guests have danced, eaten, and drank to the point of explosion, thus leaving you with an expensive, uneaten wedding cake. A trendy alternative is to make your own wedding cake out of cupcakes. Two or three days before your reception, gather the bridal party together and hand everyone their own spatula (if your kitchen does not afford such a crowd, divide the baking responsibilities up and just have a frosting party). The extra hands will get the job done fast and allow the bride and groom to-be an opportunity to enjoy some time with their closest friends before tying the knot. Once you have made a cupcake for each guest, cart them off to your caterer so that they may be stacked to shape a wedding cake. Even those guests who typically shy away from a mammoth slice of sweets will be forced to lick the frosting off of their individualized wedding cupcake.

-Things Remembered:
You know those flavored almonds wrapped in colorful tulle given out as wedding favors? Well, I hate to be the one that tells you this, but everyone throws them out when they get home. Instead of giving the disposable keepsake or spending a fortune on Lenox ornaments, give your guest something truly special, something they can eat! Cookies in the shape of wedding cakes with the bride and groom's name, or kissing swans with the date, adds a personal and delicious touch to the favor. Fortune cookies with the couple's name and wedding date on the fortune paper are also a trendy concept. A personalized bag of seeds is also a cute idea, as the guest's plant can grow with the couples love. My favorite edible favors are the personalized biscotti with the couples photo printed on the hand-dipped Belgian white chocolate that rests atop the biscotti. What a yummy memory.

Be sure to remember these tips, tricks and techniques when planning your wedding. You'll be off to a fabulous start, not to mention the brownie points with your in-laws!

— Written by Alexis Popov

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