Kersten Rettig: Spice Up Your Celebration
Weddings typically go vows, kiss, mid-aisle-dip-and-kiss, photos, reception, first dance, meal, mutual cake cutting (with “Don’t You DARE Smoosh It In My Face” feeding), Party! Party! Party!, and finally, sparkler-illuminated departure.
The couple has fun, the guests have fun, and the photographer gets their shot list.
I thought it would be fun to explore unique ways couples incorporate food into their celebrations.
I spoke to Judy Sillers, co-founder of Park Cities Events, who had a groom who so loved Blue Bell ice cream, his cake was a replica of a tub of Homemade Vanilla. It was served with three additional flavors.
Another couple had “tailgate” stations featuring fare from their favorite college-town restaurants.
My wedding took place at SMU’s Meadows Museum of Art, filled with spectacular Spanish art. George Catering provided a classical Spanish feast.
We are neither Spanish nor particularly artistic, but it was lovely and thematic.
My son and his bride served Roux on the Rocks, an old-fashioned-style cocktail named for their beloved Boykin Spaniel who enjoys ice baths.
In April I attended a wedding in Rancho Mirando in Fischer.
There, Jessica and Zach Bibb from Dallas eschewed cake cutting and replaced it with salsa making. That’s right, instead of having a wedding cake, they made salsa and fed it to each other on chips.
“Cake just isn’t our speed,” Jessica said. “Spicy food is our speed. When I was thinking about which flavor of cake to get, I joked about doing something we actually loved: salsa.”
Zach added, “We got engaged in Taos, New Mexico, the home of the hatch.”
Hatch chilis are the de facto symbol of their love for each other.
But what if you spill salsa verde on your white dress?
“I wasn’t worried one bit,” Jessica said. “Zach was a little worried about it, though. He BIT MY FINGER when I put the chip in his mouth.”
That will be a fun story for the kids.
From cocktails to grandfather’s “famous” barbecue sauce, there are plenty of ways to make wedding food memorable.
Just remember: the marriage is more important than the wedding or the food.
Cheers!
