Black Meringue

Food and Drink

Catering is one of the biggest expenses on your wedding day. Emily Dubberley has some suggestions to make your reception appetising and original

Food and drink combine to form one of the biggest expenses of your wedding day. Confetti.co.uk estimates that together they account for almost 17 percent of your total expenditure, and can set you back about £2,500. But all too often you get the same old same old: smoked salmon, prawn cocktail or paté to start; chicken, beef or salmon for your main course and a traditional wedding cake to finish proceedings. While that’s all very well, if you’re going to be blowing a large proportion of your budget on keeping your guests fed and watered, you may as well make it memorable. Black Meringue presents the ultimate guide to quirky wedding feasts that won’t leave a bad taste in your mouth.

50s Kitsch

The 50s is a decade that never goes out of style: think bobby-socks and flouncy dresses, retro plates and ice-cream parlour treats. The key to going 50s is cherry-picking the good and forgetting about the less inspired ideas: fish set in aspic is never going to be a crowd pleaser.

Canapés
The 1950s were big on canapés. Think cheese and pineapple on sticks, bacon-wrapped dates and celery sticks stuffed with cream cheese. Another cheap option is miniature sandwiches cut out with tiny cookie cutters. Add 50s-style waitresses in pointy glasses to serve the canapés and your guests will feel like they’ve entered a time warp in all the right ways.

Starter
Cheese soufflés are a classic 1950s starter but if you’re opting for cheesy canapés and a cheese course at the end, you may find it a bit too much like cheese overkill, alternatively, asparagus had hit the UK by the 1950s, albeit in tinned form. Use artistic licence and opt for fresh asparagus with melted butter and a caper and spring onion garnish instead, or allude to the fish in aspic dishes by arranging fresh seafood in individual scallop shells. And sticky barbecue ribs will work if you decide to go for an American diner feel.

Main Course
1950s food wasn’t the height of glamour, but individually wrapped meat loafs served with creamy mash should be a crowd pleaser. Alternatively, go for a ‘build a burger’ bar where guests can choose from veggie, chicken or beef burgers, and a host of toppings including bacon, cheese, fried onions, salad and condiments (ideally in tomato-shaped retro sauce bottles).

Dessert
An ice-cream fountain is the obvious solution. Either opt for classic banana boats, knickerbocker glories and Brown Derbys (a ball of ice cream and a warm chocolate doughnut) or have a ‘serve yourself’ ice-cream sundae stand offering a selection of ice-creams, dessert toppings and sauces. If you fancy more of an American twist, why not finish with Krispy Kreme Doughnuts (www.krispykreme.co.uk) with varieties including Glazed Raspberry, Apple Crumble and the romantic sounding Dreamcake?

Cheese
You can’t get much more 1950s than Ritz crackers. Team them with cracker-barrel cheese and celery sticks. Stuffed olives on sticks and cocktail onions will also help create a 1950s ambience.

The wedding cake
Mich Turner, author of Couture Wedding Cakes, (£30, Jacqui Small, released Spring 2009) has been described as ‘the Bentley of Cake Makers,’ by Gordon Ramsay and made cakes for both Madonna and Pierce Brosnan’s weddings. She says the latest looks are “designs that are nipped and tucked, neat and flawless”. Go for something like the Can-Can wedding cake, which is classic and elegant with a modern twist.

The drinks
It always makes sense to offer soft drinks for the drivers and any kids that may be coming to the wedding. Luckily, a 50s theme offers a lot of scope. Try bottles of Coca- Cola - served with solid silver straws (£29, www.twenga.co.uk) if you’ve got a limitless budget or a tiny guest list.

Milkshake is another fun choice. Make it with fresh ingredients and go for interesting flavours like mango (tinned is easiest), After Eight (melt them in the microwave then slowly add the milk, beating constantly) and ginger (made with the syrup from stem ginger). And alcoholic milkshakes can also be fantastic: think chocolate and brandy, Baileys and banana or vodka and strawberry. Be warned, though, they’re addictively moreish and cane be filling so warn guests to pace themselves.

If cocktails are your penchant, martinis (vodka or gin with a mere whisper of vermouth), gimlets (gin and lime) and Mai Tais were all classics in the 1950s.

Time for Tea

Rather than having a formal sit-down meal, you could opt for the classy option of afternoon tea. This has the advantage of being cheaper than the traditional wedding feast as there are fewer courses, and will also make the meal part of your wedding a bit shorter. That mean’s it’s ideal if you want to get to the party stage of proceedings as soon as possible, or simply want to finish early and head off on your honeymoon.

Canapés
Miniature Welsh rarebits, tiny cupcakes and baby scones with jam and cream will all give your guests an elegant introduction to their afternoon tea. You could even dish up miniature trifles served in shot glasses with teaspoons. Just go lightly on the sherry if there are going to be children attending.

Main Course
Quiche and savoury pastries will help ensure that your afternoon tea is filling enough to keep people going all night. Asparagus and gruyére tart, smoked trout and broccoli quiche or pastry pin wheels filled with pesto, parmesan and oven-dried tomatoes are all interesting alternatives to quiche lorraine.

Be imaginative with your sandwich fillings and bread types too, so your guests have lots of variety. Try some of the following options – remembering to cut the crusts off where relevant, of course:

• Pastrami, American mustard and cornichon open-top sandwiches on rye bread
• Duck, spring onion, cucumber and hoi sin in rice pancake wraps
• Hummus, falafel and coriander in mini-pittas
• Poached salmon, crème fraiche, caper and horseradish on granary bread
• Roast vegetables with guacamole served in flour tortillas

Make sure you also include the following classics, so that no one is disappointed:

• Beef and watercress sandwiches on white bread
• Ham and tomato on granary bread
• Cucumber and cream cheese on white bread
• Chicken with tarragon mayonnaise on wholemeal bread
• Egg mayonnaise and cress on white bread
• Smoked salmon on wholemeal bread
• Tomato and basil sandwiches on white bread

And don’t forget to have some carb-free options in case you have any Atkins obsessives attending the wedding. Options include:

• Vegetable crudités with sour cream and chive, hummus and blue cheese dips
• Rolls of ham stuffed with cream cheese and fresh herbs
• Beef and horseradish pinwheels (slice rare beef thinly, spread with horseradish and roll tightly then slice into 1cm rolls)
• Smoked salmon and cream cheese parcels

You can also add in hot dishes like buttered crumpets, potted shrimps on toast and Welsh rarebit if you’re worried that your guests won’t be satisfied with a cold buffet alone.

Dessert
When it comes to dessert you’ve got endless options and the joy of afternoon tea is that it comes with an array of cakes, so all your guests should be happy. Think heart-shaped scones with jam and clotted cream, chocolate éclairs, individual lemon tarts, cream puffs, fresh raspberry tartlets and miniature Victoria sponges. Offer guests different varieties of tea as well as champagne to wash it all down.

The wedding cake
For an elegant ‘afternoon tea’-themed cake Mich Turner recommends her hand-painted Petit Rose cake, from the Couture Cakes collection (left). Tailor the colour of the flowers to match your wedding theme or even design it to match your crockery. And what could be nicer to wash it down with than a hot cup of tea?

The drinks
Continue the afternoon tea idea into the reception with cocktails, created by Gustavo Bertolucci. Pearl’s award-winning mixologist collaborated with the restaurant’s head pastry chef, Ben Knell, to combine two British favourites – cocktails and desserts. Options include strawberries and cream, Bramley apple pie and lemon meringue pie. Priced at £11.50 each, the cocktails can be enjoyed in the 55-seat bar (see www.pearl-restaurant.com for details), or you can make the apple pie one - complete with pastry top - using the recipe overleaf.

For a simpler alternative, try Pimms and lemonade, or the Glayva Cooler as a more original option. Glayva is a blend of spirits mixed with herbs, almonds, oranges and honey. To create the cooler, simply mix 50ml of Glayva with 250ml ginger ale, and serve over crushed ice with a wedge of lime. Alternatively mix Glayva with cranberry juice and fresh lime juice for a twist on the classic Cosmopolitan.

Dark Desires

If you’re inclined towards the emo end of the style spectrum, let your personality shine through at your wedding. There’s no need for it to be depressing: with a little thought your dark desires can add gothic glamour to your wedding day.

Canapés
Miniature cupcakes covered in red, purple or black icing with silver decorations give a suitably emo feel without ruining the romance of your wedding. Shot glasses of chilled roast tomato soup will appeal to any closet vampires. And salmon an appetiser of mousse on rye bread garnished with spring onions and watercress combines dark and tasty food in one bite.

Starter
Steak tartare is elegant but suitably red for it to appeal to emo sensibilities. Devilled eggs are also dark in theme but classy enough not to look out of place on a wedding menu. Borscht, the classic beetroot soup, is a velvety purple colour and will look dramatic – and colour-co-ordinated – served with a dollop of sour cream and garnished with caviar.

Main Course
Rare roast beef is a crowd-pleaser that will appeal to vampiric vixens. Serve it with Shetland black potatoes as an unusual side dish. If you’ve opted for a steak tartare starter, you don’t want beef overkill, in which case you could go for scallops served with boudin noir (black pudding) on a pea purée, or aubergines stuffed with either lamb and pine nuts or roast vegetable and couscous, depending on whether you’ve got any veggies attending the wedding.

Dessert
Figs are ideal, given their velvety and dark appearance. Poach them in sugar syrup with cardamon and star anise, and serve with vanilla-infused mascarpone. A rose liqueur-infused gateaux can be given a touch of the gothic by decorating with black rose petals. Or opt for a dark chocolate mousse served in glasses decorated with red velvet ribbons.

Cheese
Continuing the moody theme may seem impossible when it comes to your cheese course but there are various options available. Try Black Truffle Moliterno cheese (£39.95 for 1.5 kilos, www.efoodies.co.uk), Little Black Bomber cheddar, which comes wrapped in black wax (£3.50 for 200g, www.snowdoniacheese.co.uk) or simply opt for a goats’ cheese that’s been rolled in peppercorns. Serve with rye bread, purple grapes and pomegranate seeds for the full effect.

The wedding cake
What could be more gothic than Mich Turner’s black lace cake (above), particularly if you’re going for a black-trimmed dress? Alternatively, Brighton-based Choccywoccydoodah makes fabulously baroque chocolate cakes trimmed with roses, cherubs, columns and all manner of glorious ostentation, looking more like sculptures than something you can eat (from £195 for a cake that serves 40, www.choccywoccydoodah.com. Bespoke prices available by calling 01273 329462).

The drinks
Absinthe is a classic drink much beloved by the Romantic movement so it’s perfectly suited to an emo wedding. However, you don’t want your guests to get wasted too quickly so tone it down by either making a cocktail with champagne or serving it in punch form rather than classically with sugar and water.

Or as a sexy alternative to champage, opt for Banrock Station’s sparkling shiraz red wine (£7.99, www.booths-wine.co.uk). It’s deep red, with an intriguing bouquet combining plum and coconut. The luscious texture is velvety and the dark berry flavor should appeal to most palates. It goes brilliantly with chocolate so is ideal if you opt for a Choccy Woccy Do Dah cake.
For non-drinkers, hibiscus juice and pomegranate juice are both wonderfully deep colours. Serve alone or mix with sparkling mineral water to add some fizz.

Green Queen

There’s no reason why your wedding day should be an excuse to increase your carbon footprint. Using locally-sourced products, British beers, wines and spirits and bio-degradable table decorations will all help minimise the environmental impact of your wedding so you can get hitched with a clear conscience. After all, if your partner means the world to you then it makes sense to treat that world with respect.

Canapés
The key to keeping things eco-friendly is local sourcing, so ideally you should forget anything that will notch up food miles like Alaskan salmon or Russian caviar, and instead take advantage of food that’s seasonal and available near you. If your wedding is taking place near the sea you could go for a selection of smoked fish, while country dwellers could opt for locally-foraged salad, asparagus or mushrooms depending on the time of year.
If your dream menu has speciality goods that are only available from overseas, it is still possible to be eco-friendly. “You can get overseas products for some of your ingredients, but make sure that they’re fair trade as this way you’ll be supporting the local infrastructure,” says award-winning environmental journalist Sarah Lewis.

Nowadays you can even get ethically-produced foie gras from Spanish producer Pateria de Sousa, so being green needn’t be as limiting as you might think.

Starter
Again, your main concern is making sure that, where possible, the food you opt for is in season and locally-sourced. To find out what food is available when you’re getting married, check www.bbc.co.uk/food/in_season. For example, in July you could opt for clam soup, aubergine caviar or smoked trout ravioli with a watercress garnish, while September gives you options including wood pigeon with a gin and blackberry sauce, moules marinière or smoked duck breast with damson sauce.

If you’re uber-green there’s a reasonable chance that you’ll have lots of vegetarian mates, so make sure you’ve got a decent array of options rather than simply offering the ubiquitous mushroom risotto. Celeriac soup, scrambled egg served in its own shell with shavings of white truffle or baked new potatoes stuffed with cheese and chives all make original alternatives that your guests won’t have eaten a million times before.

Main Course
Sticking to the same principles of locally sourced seasonal produce, for a July wedding main course options would include whole baked pike with a tomato and bacon stuffing, saddle of hare (towards the end of the month) or baked crayfish tails with butter and garlic. If you’re planning a September betrothal, choices include roast seabass with wilted spinach, autumn lamb with root vegetables or a rich venison pie served with parsnip chips and creamy potatoes.

For vegetarians, forget vegetable lasagne or mushroom-stuffed filo parcels and instead opt for baked squash with a cream cheese, herb and pine nut filling, caramelised onion and goats’ cheese tartlets served with a wild herb salad or Jerusalem artichoke ravioli with a drizzling of white truffle oil.

Dessert
Few things are nicer than fruit desserts made from produce that’s in season. Summer is the time for berries – think fresh sorbets, cream and fruit-filled tarts or summer pudding with a raspberry coulis –w hile an autumn wedding gives you options including blackberry and apple crumble, baked figs with honey ice cream or elderflower sorbet served in champagne glasses with a fan of apple as a garnish.

Alternatively, opt for a good-quality organic chocolate and serve your guests chocolate brownies with home-made toffee sauce and vanilla ice cream. If you’ve got kids coming to the wedding, this is sure to have them giggling with glee.

Cheese
Artisan cheeses are the obvious choice, so scour the internet for locally-sourced cheeses and investigating the heritage of your wedding location. For a list of English cheeses, complete with details of where they come from, see www.thecheesesociety.co.uk. Abbleby’s Cheshire cheese is wonderfully sharp and crumbly (£16 per kilo) while Colton Basset from Nottinghamshire is ideal for Stilton fans (£65 for 4 kilos). Serve with locally-baked bread or home-made rather than mass-produced biscuits.

The wedding cake
Making your own cake is the best way to ensure that all the products used are fair trade and eco-friendly. If you have vegan guests you should also check that the icing doesn’t contain egg whites, and that you don’t use honey, eggs, butter, milk or gelatine in the recipe. If you want a cream cheese-type icing, use tofu instead. Bananas, flaxseed or yoghurt can be used in place of eggs to help the cake bind. However, if you’ve got your heart set on a traditional wedding cake, simply provide vegans with a separate cake of their own.