The Amish Cook: Happy Five Year Anniversary to Gloria and Daniel an Amish Wedding Salad Recipe!

GLORIA SERVES UP AMISH WEDDING SALAD

THE AMISH COOK

BY GLORIA YODER
Dear friends both far and wide:

Would you join me for a moment as I step back several years and relive some of the most treasured memories of my life?

Five years ago, on March 19, I woke with an intense anticipation  yet I could also feel some butterflies fluttering in my tummy.

It was the day I dreamed of countless times; the day I spent so much time planning for. It was 5:45 AM. I knew my fiancé, Daniel Yoder, I would soon arrive. In a way it was hard to grasp that I, Gloria,  am actually the bride (of the day) and will marry my best friend. Both the ceremony and reception were to be held at my parents shop where Daniel now works.

After his arrival we headed for the cooler where we kept the roses for our bridal table.  Earlier that week Daniel and I had prepared our “eck” (Eck is a Dutch word used for “corner”).. This is what we call the corner with the bridal table.  In our eck, Daniel had put in paneling with a wooden look to be used as background.  On it we hung several pictures with frames that Daniel had made.  Grape and white table cloths covered the bridal table. On it, we had candles, a  fruit basket, China dishes, etc. In the center we placed a Bible on a stand made for us.

Gloria and Daniel Yoder's "wedding corner."

A Bible served as the "anchor" of their wedding table.

At 7 a.m., the cooks and servers arrived and worked on last minute details such as cutting the pies, making  mashed potatoes with potatoes that had been peeled and diced the day before and putting salads together.  Small cups of mints were also filled and spread over the tables along with candles.

We as a bridal party sat on Dad and Mom’s front porch as we watched the guests pour in. it was unreal. Many of them had traveled from out of state to show their love and support on our special day.

I’ll introduce you to our bridal party. Beside me were my brother Javin and his wife Regina and on Daniel’s side were two of his siblings, Tobias and Mary.  The men wore white shirts with black suit coats. I wore a light blue with Regina and Mary using the same type of fabric, only a shade darker than mine.

After the guests had been seated and had sung several German songs we as a bridal party filed in and took our seats up front.  Next a few of our uncles shared inspiring sermons on God’s plan for marriage.  At 11 a.m. my mother’s father, Roy Mast, rose to his feet, read a passage of scripture, then turning toward us he told us that if we still desire to be joined as husband and wife, we may step forward. Standing side by side, in front of grandpa, we vowed to remain faithful to each other and to the Lord as long as we live.

It was one of those moments when time seems to stop. How sobering, yet wonderful.

After the ceremony we filed out. The servers stood at one end of the reception and sang as fathers ushered in the guests to the tables that had been set several days before. Candles flickered everywhere across the table, on the window sills and our eck glowed with them as well. As I sat beside my new husband, my heart overlflowed with joy.  Is this it what it feels like to be a queen?

After lunch family and friends came over to our eck to shake hands with us as they congratulated us and wished God’s blessings on our future together. Someone shared a thought that especially stood out to me: It was something like this: “Today it doesn’t seem to you like you’ll ever have disagreements or struggles in your marriage but that time will come.” We were reminded of the importance of looking to God and keeping Him as the number one priority in each of our lives. We have found this to be so true. With God in the center, marriage is  a wonderful blessing, a gift from God.

I had planned to give you more details about our wedding but my space filled up too rapidly, so perhaps we’ll save the rest until later.  This is a standby wedding salad in our community.  Yes, it is absolutely delicious!

AMISH WEDDING SALAD
1 head lettuce

1 /2 head cauliflower

½ head broccoli

1 cup bacon bits

1 1 /4 cup shredded cheese

DRESSING

2 cups salad dressing

1 /3 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon prepared mustard

Put lettuce in a bowl, top with cauliflower and broccoli.  Spread dressing over top of it. Put cheese and bacon over it.  Cover.  Then set before serving. Wait to mix until ready to serve.