Once Upon a Clementine

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I love you more than I love dessert...

A good wedding is good for many reasons, but a good wedding with a great dessert spread hits the top!  I couldn't get very nice photos because of the (romantically) dim lighting, but I ate my heart out.  I almost managed to try everything.  Well, not every flavor of everything! There was so much variety.



Highlights for me? The chocolate cake (a bit salty -- in the best way) and the tiny, white-chocolate-covered, carrot cake bites.  Also cream puffs (I had two).



Congratulations, Steph and Pete!  Sweet, sweet happiness to you!

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Grownups get married; I feel like a kid again.

I attended Steph's luau-themed bridal shower last weekend, out on Long Island.  Steph's mom is a Snackreligious-approved hostess, by virtue of the event's charming backyard setting and resplendent repast (not to mention the tiki napkins).









I never turn down an ice cream sundae bar.  I even requested (and was granted) a brownie sundae bar for my own wedding shower, back in 2001.  This one was primo, with two types of ice cream and many toppings available, including fresh and maraschino cherries, marshmallows, sprinkles, chocolate chips, gummy worms, and more. 

Thanks, Mrs. Steph's Mom!


p.s. I know her name.  ;)

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I all around win!

 

What did I win? 

I won the "Table 7 goes to the buffet" race (I realize it wasn't really a race) by virtue of being the first person back at the table with my plate of food.

I won the ability to refold my napkin in a fancy way by virtue of working for two summers on the KState catering crew.




I won mini cupcakes and cookies and brownies simply by virtue of attending Josh and Sarah's lovely wedding.  Congratulations, Sarah and Josh!  You win, too!

I won a cup of jasmine and green tea by virtue of reading all of the tea bags one by one, thereby discovering there was one jasmine tea bag left.

It was a winning sort of evening.


p.s. Take a gander at the shoes below.  Now imagine them in black.  I won these by virtue of my husband being an amazing artist who sometimes (ok, only one time) gets offered shoes for his wife.

shoes courtesy Sigerson Morrison.

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Don't look a gift horse in the mouth...

...but DO put gift cookies in your mouth!

I was pleased and delighted to attend Tim and Holly's wedding last weekend. They were married on a roof that has never looked so lovely (and I've been on it for a number of raucous parties), surrounded by friends, family, and an evening sky which seemed to have ceased its raining precisely to accommodate our celebration.




A week or two before the wedding, Holly asked me if I might be able to provide some cookies for the reception. She applied no pressure. She didn't need to. I am a cookie baker by nature -- and I'm still in my "off season." I happily agreed to spend a couple of nights baking as my gift to the couple and their guests.








For this occasion, I thought it would be good to provide sweets both delicious and a bit "mature." Holly herself suggested chocolate or oatmeal as possible themes. I chose to go with both ideas, and make two flavorful favorites from last year's Cookie Party menu: Salty Oatmeal Cookies (sprinkled with sea salt) and Chocolate Butter Cookies With a Mint Glaze (pictured, in progress, above and below this paragraph).






(photo by Dan)


Ultimately, I was thrilled with how both varieties turned out, though I didn't snap pictures of the oatmeal cookies until the big day. And on that night, when they joined the buffet? The photo sits atop this post.

I checked in with the duo a few times during the evening -- the cookies, not the couple! Both seemed to be well-received by guests (Tim and Holly looked like they were having fun, too). I did prefer one (again, we're talking cookies here). The oatmeal were my personal favorite, but I heard from others who liked the chocolate more. You should probably try both recipes. It's only fair.

One thing that had concerned me was whether I had made the cookies in enough quantity. Told Tim and Holly were expecting around 110 people, I made just under 150 of the oatmeal cookies (which were much bigger), and more than 300 (I kept losing count) of the small chocolate butter cookies. It turns out this was plenty -- even more than enough. I should have mentioned to the happy couple how well any uneaten cookies would freeze.

All the concerns about quantity and size and flavor faded in the end. What mattered was how much fun everyone had celebrating H+T. It wasn't about the cookies at all, and I knew that. But, returning home after such a sweet and savory evening, I was still happy my sometimes-obsessive love of baking could be harnessed and used to honor lovely friends.

Congratulations, Holly and Tim! Happy eating!


p.s. The rest of the food/drink provided during the reception? What an amazing buffet and bar. Well, well done. My cookies were in the finest company. I wish I had a photo of Renee's outlandish date, pear, and almond cake. Too much goodness. I nearly burst, in the happiest way.

Tent City: Meet, Greet, Eat -- Sweet!

(photo by Dan)

In Maine for Molly and David's wedding, 20-30 of us (I'm guessing based on the number of tents) camped out in Molly's mom and stepdad's backyard for the weekend of festivities.








(photo by Dan)

Inside our tent, I was able to try out Dan's new camping lantern, hung from the ceiling by a few items meant for the taming of hair-dos.




We had games, port-a-potties, a sink, an outdoor shower, a swing, chairs, friends, babies, dogs, and more. It was so glorious.



Mike tended the fire throughout our stay. S'mores were had here. And S'morks (pulled pork s'mores minus the marshmallow). Drinks were drunk around this fire. And singalong songs were sung. Ukuleles and guitars were strummed. Soles of shoes were melted in its heat, so loath were we to back away from the blaze.



Ever-accommodating, Molly's parents created as luxurious and festive a camping environment as I've experienced. We enjoyed tables and chairs and shade and sun.



Dogs and babies got along swimmingly.




Speaking of swimming, some went to the beach. Others sat and relaxed. Still others discovered that one cannot rent a keg in Maine with an out-of-state ID (or passport).




Bride and groom pig cookies appeared.



So many flavors! One wedding guest described these as hallucinogenic in their audacious composition.



One evening there was a vegetarian lasagna many times bigger than Kyle's head. It was grander than grand.




(photo by Dan)

Would you be surprised if I told you that the fifteen-year-old baker responsible for the pig cookies also made a red velvet groom's cake in the shape of an armadillo (in a nod to Steel Magnolias)? James learned the hard way that the thing that looks like a rock in the photo above -- is a rock.



(photo by Dan)

Here's another view (it's partially eaten at this point).



(photo by Dan)

There were bagels. There was coffee. Babies enjoyed toast and eggs. The morning of the wedding was all about quickbreads, quiche, ...



(photo by Dan)

and baked beans.




A good and tasty frolic was had by all.

Poetry Tuesday: Molly and David got married.

(photo by Dan)


Ceremony
A day as bright as love,
As the bride is bright, as the groom is bright, as the
Blankets thrown down to serve as rafts
For friends on the great, green grass.
We sail the field, tambourines shaking in joy,
Grins thrown open, wide skies of smiles,
Strummed music humming our expansive hopes,
Tears of large, happy witness and small, secret wishing.
Our parade of sweetness progresses through tall grass,
and they are at its head.

Reception
Receiving us: peppers, farm flowers, kittens,
Small, tart apples and gamboling calf.
The world opens its stores in the wake of this coupling,
Heirloom tomatoes like jewels, lobsters laying down their lives,
Salads rare. We are so prosperous!
Blue and gold coins of cheese, precious as the fading light.
Treasure fills these chests and overflows,
Overflows.

Icy Frolics
Gingered ice cream, Maine blueberries, lemon cake,
Sweet and tart and warm and heavy on our tongues.
Taste this, this green wine, fresh in youth;
This is their life, may it ripen with age and care.
We hold them in our hands, we take them in, they cover us,
As do our shawls and scarves and necessary hugs.
A night once cold as an empty heart now warmed by
Dancing, colored frocks, and music
Made by all of us.



















(photo by Dan)



(photo by Dan)


(photo by Dan)















(photo by August Heffner. Used with permission)