Originally Posted by
kathdavis
All of our Italian weddings here in Missouri have massive cookie tables, as well as, a large wedding cake. Since my mother had died three years before I got married and my husband is not Italian, I figured we wouldn't have cookies at my wedding, just food and cake. My dad, aunt, cousins and friends of the family would not hear of it. My dad and aunt got together and started baking and then friends of my family started calling asking me to come pick up all the cookies they had made. It was so touching. I was so blessed. An Italian getting married without a cookie table isn't really married, I guess.
My daughter is getting married in October, so I'll start baking and freezing them this summer while school is out.
I failed to add that our family Italian cookie recipes all start with 5 pounds of flour. We used to mix the batch in a plastic wash tub. Shortly after my mother died, I was only 22, my dad and I broke down the recipes to start with only 3 cups of flour, so we could make smaller batches. He loved to cook but 5 pounds of flour made enormous batches and are overwhelming.
Now, I need those large recipes, but years ago, when my dad remarried, the witch he married, threw out his recipe box, knowing how much he enjoyed cooking, while he was in the hospital dealing with colon cancer. She said that he wasn't coming back home anyway because she wasn't going to take care of him. I'm going to have to go to my aunt's house one day and snap pictures of her recipes, so I have them for the wedding.
When my girls were little, we went to a wedding on my husband's side, remember he is not Italian. It was a church wedding and the reception was in the church basement. They served cake, punch, and mints. It was short and sweet. On the way home, my 6 years old daughter said, "When I have my wedding, I want to really get married."
I said, "They did get married. We witnessed the wedding ceremony in church."
My daughter said, "No way, Mom. There was no cookies, food, wine, music, or dancing, and it was too short."
My husband got this worried look on his face and said, "Oh God, we have got to start saving for that one's wedding. It is going to cost us a fortune."
Guess which one is getting married in October. LOL
Over the years, I have seen Italian wedding that cost $40,000 to $50,000. I find that to be ridiculous and that won't be happening at our house. I have a beautiful wedding 28 years ago with over 600 people at my reception with food, cookies, alcohol, etc. and didn't spend 10% of that.