So you've fallen for the charms of a marquee wedding. The blank canvas, bespoke decor and views across your favourite corner of Cornwall have proven a highly seductive formula. But you'll have to compromise on the menu, right? Wrong.
Less formal dining options such as a barbecue, hot buffet or afternoon tea are popular choices for a marquee reception: each offers a relaxed dining experience, which is particularly chic for a summer wedding. However, a sit-down wedding breakfast of delectable and beautifully presented dishes can also be achieved under canvas. As Sarah Wright and Lucy Turner from The Round Kitchen comment, "Clients often feel that they have to compromise on food choices and quality in a marquee when, as caterers, it is just as easy to produce this food in a marquee as it is at a venue." So you can have that beautifully seasoned meat dish and intricately presented dessert you've been dreaming of.
Although classic dishes are a fail-safe and crowd-pleasing option, if you fancy something more exciting than the cream of vegetable soup and roast beef combo, then let your imagination run riot.
Think about the availability of fresh seasonal produce and how your menu can serve as a showcase for local and flavoursome ingredients, whether it's locally grown vegetables, Cornish cheese or fresh Cornish crab. Maybe your wedding theme will inform your menu: think Moroccan for a laidback bohemian affair, a medieval banquet for a reception in the grounds of a castle or classic British for an English country garden wedding.
You might even pay homage to your cultural roots through your menu choices: whether your heritage is Spanish or Scottish, choosing a traditional dish is a tasty way of adding that all-important bespoke touch to your day.
Your wedding menu should be an opportunity to add a twist of personal charm and flavour to the celebration, so get those creative - and digestive - juices flowing.
Sarah and Lucy have devised a series of innovative three-course wedding menus to inspire a flavoursome menu for a range of budgets.
HEAVENLY AND BUDGET-FRIENDLY
Potted smoked mackerel, caper and lemon pâte with spring onion, dill and horseradish, served with griddled chunks of granary bread and a watercress salad
Rolled breast of chicken with a spinach, piquant red pepper and thyme stuffing, wrapped in bacon, finished with a white wine chive cream sauce
Meringue shells with vanilla Chantilly cream, fresh strawberries, raspberry coulis and dark chocolate sauce
MID-RANGE AND MOUTHWATERING
Chestnut mushroom, leek and Cornish Blue tartlet topped with caramelised onion, finished with a white balsamic and wholegrain mustard reduction
Crispy devilled rainbow trout and whiting fillets sat on a bed of beetroot, celery and fennel slaw, finished with a warm fresh herb and citrus olive oil
Apple and rhubarb crush topped with an elderflower infused cream, finished with a muesli praline
DECADENT AND DELICIOUS
Seafood trio - Mini fish pies with salmon, haddock and shallots in and white wine spinach cream sauce, served in a scallop half shell
Tiger prawn and pickled cucumber gateaux with a sun blush tomato and basil crème fraiche
Marinated seared scallop with chilli, ginger and garlic, sat on a croute
Roast fillet of pork tenderloin with a rosemary, Cornish sea salt and pink peppercorn crust, topped with slow cooked pressed belly pork, finished with a brandy soaked apricot, Cornish cider and Dijon sauce, served with roasted celeriac chips and deep fried sage leaves
Deep filled double chocolate and cherry baked cheesecake finished with a rich cherry, port and orange sauce
The Round Kitchen
07968 385392 / 07968 206116 www.theroundkitchen.com
words Rebecca Matthews
photography Simon Green
Copyright WED Magazine 2011
