Beautiful Day

I may have mentioned this, and I may have not, but for the past several months a friend and I have been planning the dessert bar for her wedding.  She has a passion for baking, and wanted to incorporate that into her special day somehow. Together, I think we pulled it off exceptionally well.

We began planning the menu ages ago.  Jenny decided that she wanted to have a dessert bar, a coffee bar, and a smoothie bar at her reception rather than I full course meal.  If you knew Jenny, that would not surprise you!  Although I had nothing to do with the coffee or smoothie bars, I had a BLAST helping with the dessert bar.

After much planning and deliberation, here is the menu we finally settled on:

• Whippersnaps (strawberry, lemon, and chocolate)
• Mini banana nut muffins with cream cheese frosting (over 400 of them!)
• Cake balls in the following flavors (all of which were a HUGE hit)
• Red velvet with vanilla coating, some dipped in sprinkles,  and some in coconut
• Chocolate dipped in chocolate and covered with mint Oreo, and chocolate dipped in chocolate with vanilla, chocolate dipped in chocolate with coconut... the list goes on.
• Vanilla coated in vanilla and dipped in graham cracker, and coconut, and some with sprinkles.... WE MADE SO MANY!!!
• Three Neapolitan cakes, all filled with buttercream and raspberry preserves:
• a 12"
• a 9"
• a 6"  
• A two layer, 6" vanilla cake, with lemon curd filling.  This cake did not get used at the actual dessert bar, because it fell apart.  But we had a backup strawberry cake on stand-by that turned out wonderfully!  No harm done!!!
• Two 10" chocolate cakes with mint chocolate frosting, and covered in mint Oreo.  Yum.
• Four Bohemian wedding cakes, all 9", with brown butter frosting.  These went on the groom's table.  

It felt like there were more cakes at the reception than people.  Definitely more cake slices...

Recipes and methods to follow... Along with more pictures... After I get a good night's rest!  (: 

But here is a sneak preview:

We all have Stefanie, a dear friend of the bride's, to thank for the lovely table-scape. Stefanie helped Jenny get ready the morning of her wedding, and played the piano during the ceremony.  She also sang one of the prettiest arrangements of Blessed Assurance that I ever remember hearing.  And on top of all that, she made the dessert bar look prettier and run more smoothly than I imagined it could!
 
None of the pictures I post will do the day justice.  The entire wedding was absolutely beautiful.   Because Matthew and Jenny are absolutely beautiful!