BTW, its easy to find chestnut trees in the springtime. Travel around your neighborhood and try to find trees that smell very sweet. These are usually chestnut trees. They also have very interesting pollen "strings". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:AmericanChestnutPollen.JPG

Or you could wait till the fall to look for the actual nuts and ask your neighbors if you can pick them.

If you live in the Buffalo area go to Chestnut Ridge park in Orchard Park, they have loads of chestnut trees.
http://www2.erie.gov/parks/index.php?q=chestnut-ridge

I like chocosphere too! I've used them and World Wide Chocolate (http://www.worldwidechocolate.com/) for my baking chocolate.

I think both of them are about the same in terms of prices and shipping. I think World Wide Chocolate has a better website and more non-baking chocolate variety while chocosphere has a better baking chocolate variety.

Eating stracciatella gelato in my dad's home town in Bagnoli Irpino! Probably my favorite ice cream memory is eating frozen custard dipped in cherry shell at the fair when I was really little.

I would like to add that you could probably use it for the water or milk in making bread. I have Peter Reinhart's whole grain bread book and there is a great potato bread recipe that uses potato and the water used to cook the potato. What you get is starchy water which is great for the bread.

With bean water you would get some starch and some protein so I bet that would make for some great hearty bread!

I usually use my bean water to make soup. I specifically like to make a really light soup for breakfast by watering it down slightly (if its super thick), adding some spinach and cracking an egg over the top.

Thanks for all of the suggestions. Some of these really might work for us!

The venue has been picked out and it does have a small kitchen but they will only allow for re-warming of food in it (there's only 1 oven/range). There is also a patio that they do allow grills on and I think I recall that they have their own grills we could use.

As for food requirements, myself and another bridesmaid are vegetarian so we already know of those issues. The only thing I will insist on is no crappy pasta primavera/alfredo! The past few weddings I've been to have had this as their vegetarian entre.

From what I've seen in our area it looks like the main option is buffets which I know would be fine and I know of some good restaurants in our area that would be willing to assist with that. The only problem is that our Italian grandmother is going to never let us hear the end of it if we have a buffet. But maybe we can get away with it if the food is amazing.

I personally thought it would be fun to have a pig roast (yes, I know I wouldn't eat it but I know the bride and groom would love it). How does that work out usually?

I forgot to add this, but for appetizers we were thinking of doing antipasti trays and maybe mini spinach pizzas. The drinks will be table wine and probably a keg or two and hopefully limoncello made by myself. And for the dessert we are doing various cupcakes and assorted Italian wedding cookies.

I agree with wadejay26 and tastefixation. Most tools are really quite useless (avocado slicers, etc) but some are really helpful.

Immersion blenders are great because you can do almost anything with them that you can with a regular blender but more easily. For example, pureeing soup in a blender is a GIANT pain in the you know where. Immersion blenders take care of that mess, blend in the pot you cook your soup in. The only thing they aren't good for are large amounts of slushy drinks (margaritas) which is just a lot of extra work.

I would also suggest an ice cream maker and/or a pasta machine if you want something you would not normally buy for yourself. The ice cream maker is definitely awesome if you love ice cream and can't find the exact flavor you want or don't like the weird chemicals in most brands. The pasta machine is a requirement in any Italian and Italian-american's house and fresh pasta is cheap but wayyyyy better than dried (don't even talk to me about frozen ravioli, etc, which are nasty by design).

I would say the best bet is go for the really nice pots and pans and knives though. These can be the most expensive tools so they are the perfect wedding gift!

@Adam from GrubGrade, Sahlen's are the best!! I haven't had them in forever because I don't get to visit my extended family that frequently (Lackawanna and West Seneca folks) anymore.

Sounds like some of you have some really generous family and friends!

@Peggasus, I am really jealous that you get mole! I have let to try making it and I really love the stuff. Its hard to find good mole where I live.

@jakey, that is so sweet and so terribly sad. It is hard to let things go when it means so much more than just what the item is. Maybe you can cook them in honor of him on his next birthday?

@Twistie, I wish I could have been there to knock that girl out! Kids can be so terribly mean and twisted. I'm glad that you were able to move beyond that, it shows a real strength of character.

Thanks for the iced coffee recipes!

Calamari fried + chicken wings = cthulhu! ("He" does have wings you know)
I would also think about maybe serving with beer from the new england area since thats where HP Lovecraft set most of his work on cthulhu.

As for Camelot I'm not sure, the only thing I can think of that is really stereotypical medieval is a giant turkey leg. If you want you could have mead instead of typical beer which would be more like Camelot. I think something that might work but might be more obscure would be a cheese plate.

Sounds like an awesome party! I wish I could attend.

I have made one from a really old copy of the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook and was not let down, really great! (probably this recipe: http://www.bhg.com/recipe/bars/lemon-bars/)

But I also have one that I have been dying to try: http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2011/02/whole-lemon-bars-recipe/

I haven't made it but they sound absolutely fabulous. I really like the idea of using the whole lemon.

Are you from Virginia? The best is homestead creamery double chocolate!! Just chocolate, no chunks (not that chunks are bad), best flavor ever. And its locally made with milk from happy cows.
http://blog.wholefoodsmarket.com/2008/11/homestead-creamery/