The ancient Romans used to make a cake of barley or wheat and then break it over the bride’s head as a sign of fertility. The wheat from which it was made symbolized fertility and the guests eagerly picked up the crumbs as good luck charms. It also became customary to pile several small cakes to create one large tier. The bride and groom would then try to kiss over the tower of cakes without knocking it over. If they succeeded, it was a sign that their marriage would be long and prosperous. Later, a clever baker decided to amass all these small cakes together, covering them with frosting. Thus, the modern tied cake was born.
A Wedding without a Cake?
December 31, 2010 By 1 Comment
Toasting the Bride and Groom
December 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Toasting comes from an ancient French custom of placing bread in the bottom of the glass – a good toaster drained the drink to get the “toast.” According to legend, when a bride and groom drink their wedding toast, whoever finishes first will rule the family.
A very lovely English toast goes like this:
Love, be true to her,
Life, be dear to her,
Health, stay close to her,
Joy, draw near to her,
Fortune, find what you can do for her,
Search your treasure house through for her
Follow her footsteps the wide world over
And keep her husband always her lover.
Proposals weren’t always done on bended knee.
December 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment
When I go on blended knee
Chivalrous gentlemen sent a pair of gloves to their true loves. If the woman wore the gloves to church on Sunday, it signaled her acceptance of proposal.
The term “spooning” was coined by lovesick men of Wales. A suitor carved a spoon of wood and presented it to his beloved. If she wore it around her neck on a ribbon, she returned his love and they were engaged.
Did you know that the toast desides who rules?
November 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment
The Wedding Toast
Toasting comes from an ancient French custom of placing bread in the bottom of the glass – a good toaster drained the drink to get the “toast.” According to legend, when a bride and groom drink their wedding toast, whoever finishes first will rule the family.
A very lovely English toast goes like this:
Love, be true to her,
Life, be dear to her,
Health, stay close to her,
Joy, draw near to her,
Fortune, find what you can do for her,
Search your treasure house through for her
Follow her footsteps the wide world over
And keep her husband always her lover.
Favors, Favors & More Favors
November 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Wedding Favors
Additional meanings have become attached to the wedding favor as time has passed. In total, the wedding favor is a symbol of well wishing for the five most important ingredients of a marriage bond: Health, Wealth, Happiness, Fertility and Long Life.
Essentially, the wedding favor is a symbol of love and respect from the bride and the groom, and a token of well wishing for their deliriously happy future together. In addition, they add to the décor and overall theme of the wedding itself.
Wedding favors have become increasingly popular over the years as more and more people want small keepsakes to remember special occasions by. The actual monetary ‘value’ of the gifts is relatively small now in comparison to our ancient Ancestors. Common favor include ribbons, candies, picture frames, personalized book marks, laminated plaques, candy, seed packets, pillows, balloons and potpourri.
The First Kiss
November 2, 2010 By Leave a Comment
First kiss as a married couple
No ceremony is complete without the kiss. In fact, there was a time when an engagement would be null and void without one. Dating back from early Roman times, the kiss represented a legal bond that sealed all contracts.
The kiss that seals the wedding is much more than a sign of affection. It has long been a token of bonding – the exchange of spirits as each partner sends a part of the self into the new spouse’s soul, there to abide ever after.
New Wedding Traditions
September 8, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Why not make your wedding your own using some the the following new wedding traditions?
- New Wedding Traditions
- group photo of all the guests
- menu of Grandma’s recipes
- family serenades
- combined ethnic cuisines
- favorite professors as officiants
- presenting the bouquet to instead of tossing it to the girls
- dancing to your parents’ first dance song
- using herbs from your backyard in your bouquet
- toast by friend from each stage of life: i.e. childhood, elementary school, high school, college, work
- table of family photos
Measuring Does Matter
August 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Heart Shaped Measuring Cups
An important factor in being a good cook is to understand how to properly measure ingredients. With many recipes, the correct measurement of ingredients can either make or break a recipe. This is especially true in baking where every tiny teaspoon counts!
There was a time when cookbooks did not use terms like teaspoon, tablespoon or cup. Instead, they used phrases like “nice leg of spring lamb” or a “handful” of beans. Sometimes, a recipe would reference the size needed to another item, such as “the size of a walnut.” Recipes would also indicate personal preference by terms like “sufficient” salt. After all, what is sufficient for one person may not be sufficient to another.
It wasn’t until 1896 when Fannie Farmer introduced the “Boston Cooking-School Cook Book” when exact measurements were introduced. In the United States, we generally measure liquid ingredients and dry ingredients by volume. Elsewhere in the world, cooks usually measure dry ingredients by weight. In fact, worldwide weight is typically the universal way of measuring.
Wedding Favors have been around awhile
August 19, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Wedding Favors
The tradition of giving wedding favors is rooted in ancient European history. It was a ritual of common practice for wealthy aristocrats who were celebrating marriages, christenings, births and birthdays. The bride and groom would give small presents, now known as favors, to their guests and well-wishers to thank them for sharing the momentous occasion. Initially the favors were of great value, being made of expensive materials such as gold, silver, precious gems, porcelain or crystal with contents great value, most notably sugar. At that time, sugar was a very rare substance, prized for its suppose medicinal qualities.
Why Is There a Sprig of Live Ivy in the Bride’s Bouquet
August 17, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Ivy symbolizes eternal fidelity & wedded bliss. A popular Victorian tradition was for a bride to plant the ivy in her bouquet after the wedding and watch it grow through the years, passing down sprigs from the same plant for her daughters & granddaughters to use in their weddings.
