I briefly passed through Amish country in Pennsylvania once, very long ago, and I only remember how peaceful it seemed. The little bit I know about the Amish came to me from television and a few articles here and there, but I recently found some interesting information about Amish weddings and wedding feasts, so I thought I'd share it with you.

Wed on a Weekday

Did you know that most Amish weddings take place in November or December, after the harvesting season is over? And while most of us look for weekend dates for our weddings, among the Amish Tuesdays or Thursdays are the popular days of the week to get married because a full day before and after are needed to prepare for the Amish wedding, and this can never include a Sunday. The wedding ceremony and feast are typically held in the home of the bride's parents.

The day before the Amish wedding, married couples in the Amish community help the bride to prepare the food for the wedding celebration. This is one of the few days where the Amish men assist the women in the kitchen. I can only imagine how amazing an undertaking this must be. There's a lot to be said for catering your own wedding feast, especially when it includes amazing comfort foods like roasted chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, salads, creamed celery, cheese, bologna, bread, butter, honey, jelly, fruits, pudding, cakes, pies, and ice cream. And from what I've read, Amish cooking is absolutely luscious! One of their traditional wedding foods is a date pudding with sauce--it may be a butterscotch or caramel or some other divine sauce. I'll give you a recipe in a moment.

But first, here's why they need the day after the wedding--most Amish wedding celebrations usually go on late into the night with singing, talking and game-playing. The Amish don't do honeymoons. The newlywed Amish couple usually spends their first night in the bride’s home so they can help with the clean-up the next day. I don't know what they do with the leftovers, but they can feel free to send them my way. Now, as promised, a recipe for Amish date pudding, and after that--a couple of ideas for fall and winter wedding favors!

DATE-NUT PUDDING WITH CARAMEL SAUCE

Ingredients :
1 c. dates, cut up
1 c. boiling water
1 c. sugar
1-1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. chopped nuts
1 tsp. butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. soda
1 egg
Pinch of salt
CARAMEL SAUCE:
1/2 c. cream
1/2 c. butter
2 c. brown sugar
Pinch of salt

Preparation :
Pour boiling water over dates and let cool. Add sugar, flour, nuts, butter, vanilla, soda, egg and salt to date mixture and blend well. Bake in a 9 x 13 inch greased and floured pan at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. When cool, break into pieces and fold in caramel sauce. Cook the caramel sauce until it candies. Cool before folding into date pudding; add sliced bananas and whipped cream when ready to serve.

If this recipe tastes as good as it sounds, it's totally irresistible, just like these favors for fall and winter--

The Fall-Leaf Tea Light and Place Card/Photo Holder (left) reminds me so much of autumn--brilliantly colored leaves and cozy fires. As I've always said, fall is my favorite season, followed by winter with its wonderful holidays and beautiful snow. MyWeddingFavors.com has just added some new winter favors, and this "Snow Flurry" Flocked-Glass Ornament Place Card/Photo Holder (right) is one of my favorites. You can certainly see why! Meanwhile, if any of you make the Date-Nut Pudding recipe, let me know how you like it. I'll probably make it, too, sometime in the fall. It just sounds like the perfect coo-weather dessert!

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