Cookie Table?

FutureMrsMF

Ummm, Im a little lost. Ive never heard of the cookie table before. This is something my dear grandmother and I just discussed over the phone. She didnt give me alot of imformation about it and why it must be done. She says its an old tradition.Can someone please explain or direct me somewhere to get more information! Im lost! I asked FI he says we have to have cake, cookie table, and candy buffet! All I could think in my head was "Wow, out guest will be on sugar overload with all of that!"

Er&JerLem

Cookie table is basically just a Pittsburgh tradition.  Not everyone does it, but I don't think I've ever been to a Pgh wedding without it.  It's a great addition to the cocktail hour.Lots of people have friends and family help make them, or others buy them.  If you're getting married in Pgh, your reception venue will know what you're talking about.There is a short story about it - I printed it out and framed it and placed it on the table.  I'm sure someone here has it available and can post it (I don't have it available at the moment.)

FutureMrsMF

Ok that makes sense. Now I know why my granny and FI insist on this. Are there any other Pittsburgh traditions I should know about?Wow, I feel so retarded! LOL

Nunu&Eddie

No worries on the sugar high. we had cake, cupcakes and baklava that MIL insisted on, a candy buffet, and our caterer included cookies. It was insane!

KRMac

We had a full cookie table and a dessert buffet - bring on the sweets!    I'm always a little sad when I go to a wedding elsewhere and there isn't one!  And - not to flame you - but can you please refrain from using words like retarded negatively?  I'm sensitive to that because my DH works with special needs kids, as do other ladies on the board. 

LaFemmeRousse

Don't worry, I had never heard of the cookie table before either until I got to this board!  Truthfully, I have never seen it done, even at a Pittsburgh wedding, but I think it's a fun tradition and I'm planning to have one at mine, along with a cake and a candy buffet too   Ditto PP- ask someone to post the article about the cookie table; it will help explain things!

dreamalotmp

I agree with KR. 'Retarded' isn't an ok term to use flippantly.

FutureMrsMF

Im sorry for using that word!Fi jokes we should serve ham bbq at the reception as well. I laugh just because hes a goofball! As far as the cookie table, are there certian cookie that should be laid out?

Er&JerLem

As far as the cookie table, are there certian cookie that should be laid out?Nope - whatever you want to buy or have people make.  I know we had pizzelles, buckeyes (these are usually pretty popular), chocolate chip and sugar cookies, eclairs, peanut butter cup, thumbprint I think, and tons more.

KRMac

Ham BBQ is one of my favorite meals.    My mom always made it on my birthday!

FutureMrsMF

Ok so the cookie table might not actually be that big of a hassel then! whoop!Ham bbq is something I never heard of until I was around FI family. And not to be judgemental but at first I refused to try it! It didnt look all that great! Im use to KC bbq (and no we do not use the KC masterpiece stuff sold in grocery stores, haha, not sure why its even named KC masterpiece because that is so not like the sauces used here) anyways, FI made it 6 or 7 times before I actually tried it and once I tried it, everytime he asked what I wanted to eat it was ham bbq and usually I say sushi. LOL.

SweetieD21

I framed this... You can have a designer wedding gown and tuxedo or hand-me-downs. You can have an “A-list” guest list or just the closest of kin. You can receive your guests at the fanciest restaurant or at a potluck at the firehall. But you aren’t truly a Pittsburgher unless you have The Cookie Table. When we first moved here and a bride-to-be mentioned The Cookie Table, I was puzzled. “What do you need cookies for?” I asked. “At a wedding, you eat cake.” Little did I know. The Cookie Table is as much a part of Pittsburgh as the Pirates and the Steelers and the Penguins. We may bleed black and gold, but at any event worth writing home about, we have cookies. And most of these cookies are homemade by the mother of the bride, sisters, aunts, cousins and grandmothers. Sometimes both sides of the extended family get involved. Friends are also called into the fray. Happy to do it, in fact. The Cookie Table is, indeed, the gift of love. Nobody knows the exact origin of the tradition, which has been exported to other parts of Pennsylvania, other states, too. It may be Italian or Slovak or Polish or Croatian or Greek. The Scandinavians may get involved, and the Indians, too. The Germans do cookies, and so do the Irish. If we’ve left anybody out (like the English), add them to the cookie equation. There may be no greater tribute to cross-cultural friends and marriages than The Cookie Table. It’s what makes America great; a medley of cultures taking the best from each. The best being favorite family cookie recipes. Remember, in Pittsburgh, people don’t wonder, “How was the wedding?” They ask, “Were the cookies good?”

slm13

We did cookies and cake - no "formal" desert, and that gave my MIL heart palpitations (she's not from Pgh). No particular cookies are on everyone's tables, but usually it's what is eaten often by the families. If you go in my bio, there are pictures of my cookie table in the reception photos. My sister did the cookies (she's a baker) and made way too many. But, the picture would give you an idea of the variety of cookies that we served.

skybluejen

I actually never realized the cookie table was a Pittsburgh tradition until I joined this board. Not everyone does it, though it does seem pretty popular!We had cookies, candy, and cake and our guests loved all of the sweets. I looked over at my candy table about 10 minutes into our reception and there was a HUGE line for it, haha.  There is no such thing as too many sweets I think the adults enjoyed it more than the kids!

Pirata13

Sweetie thank you for posting that.  I saved it to my computer already!! FI will actually be making most of the cookies--he is a baker!

brivb10

I didn't know what a cookie table was until I joined this board either. I'm doing a cookie table at my RD since the wedding is not in pgh. It's our way of bringing pgh to our wedding!

king26

I'm with the rest of the ladies here, it's a Pittsburgh tradition and it bums me out to go to a wedding somewhere else and there isn't a cookie table.   Generally family and friends help to make the cookies and just make some old favorites:-) (Thanks to the girls taking a stand about using the word "retarded".  As a special education teacher, I hate to hear that word thrown around)

Globugf

Can someone locate the poem or a description of the Cookie Table?  I'm going be married is southern california but my Mom's family has strong PGh roots and the cookie table is a must.  Most guests won't understand the cookie table tradition and I thought a framed poem would helpThanks!Gloria