{Practical Planning} DIY Dessert Buffet Tips - Wedding Budget Booster

Gimme Some Sugar!

Photo by Marry You Me

Happy Day lovelies! Here at dLA, we love practical wedding planning - getting more, paying less, and having the celebration of your dreams. And every little bit helps, right down to the last bite! So move over wedding cake and say hello an always popular trend in reception sweets - the dessert buffet, a chic and cost effective way to offer a variety of confectionery delights sure to please the entire crowd without breaking the wedding budget bank.

Tips to get your DIY Dessert Buffet started:

• Determine your dessert budget and stick to it. Remember your head count and plan for more servings, not less. Plan for 3-4 mini desserts per person with at least twice as many options. Example: if you allot 3 desserts per person, maybe have 5-6 dessert options.

Photo via Wedding Salon  

• Is there a central theme, color or style, childhood favorite, or ethnic dessert you’d like to include? Choose sweets that are fun, easy to eat, and represent your personality as a couple. 

Photo via The Ultimate Bridesmaid Guide

• This shouldn’t be a last minute bake-a-thon but rather a well-coordinated effort in dessert delegation. Enlist stove savvy helpers early on and create a “who’s doing what when” plan; include a day-of coordinator.

Photo via Ruffled Blog

• Do it up DIY for a major reception focus: coordinate a colorful background, use interesting textures and linens, create a visually dynamic look with stands of varying heights, collect vintage service ware to add a touch of old charm, layer platters and plates using glasses and flower vases to create custom cake plates. Here is a super easy tutorial for creating budget tiered dessert stands!

Photo via The Natural Wedding Company

• If you run out of time, simply ask friends and family to bring their favorite dessert to share. Does your Great Aunt have a to die for favorite family cookie? Why not use it as a wedding favor and include the secret recipe? 

Photo via Love and Lavender

I absolutely LOVE this idea - using vintage, shabby chic furniture as a dessert display - easy to find, easy to customize with your colors and patterns, and it will look great in your home afterwards!

On a personal note, the dessert table at my wedding was filled entirely with traditional Brazilian wedding treats made by my mother-in-law. Our guests got a little taste of Brazilian culture and we saved money through her generosity. People are still raving about the pudim and brigadeiros.

Planning a dessert buffet for your wedding - what sweet treats will you be including? We are totally smitten with dessert in a jar; here are some awesome ideas and easy recipes - a big hit, small effort! And remember, we love seeing what YOU create, so send us some pictures of your DIY trials, finished projects and especially delicious desserts you create!

Have a yummy day,

Edible Wedding Favors: DIY Dessert in a Jar!

Happy Tuesday de Lovlies! Looking for an interesting, edible wedding favor?  How about these delicious mini treats that can also pull double duty as dessert? Hello we are talking mini-desserts in the super cute mini-jars! We love this practical planning idea because you cover dessert and create a personal gift to guests all in one fell swoop.

Cherry Almond Crumble, Photo via Lifetime Moms

These cuties would look great on a dessert buffet, and even better as take-home wedding favors! Plus they are easy create and assemble by you and your maid and moms DIY style, making it triply cost effective idea! The best part? They stack well and are easy to transport to your venue with no worries about smashing! Add that personal touch with wedding monogram sticker or a sweet message tag to your guests and you've got the perfect package.

Here are our top 4 choices for Edible Wedding Favors - DIY Dessert in a Jars.

Cupcakes!
Hello Red Velvet cupcake deliciousness....add some cream cheese frosting and you have pure heaven! But then again, I could be biased.  Wedding cupcakes are all the rage these days but we think they are just way more fun in a jar. We found the awesome recipe and DIY Cupcake in a Jar tutorial over at the super delicious blog Cakies. She makes it look SO easy. I simply love the Baker's Twine holding the spoon. This sweet treat has rustic, outdoor, summertime wedding written all over it

Photos via Cakies

Cake! 

Baked right into the jar, what could be easier? Transform your favorite cake into a deliciously-mini version of itself. We got a new take on old favorites poppyseed, pumpkin spice, and chocolate cake.

Recipe and DIY tutorial can be found at Delicious Days.

More DIY info can be found at Angry Chicken

Yummy chocolate cake couldn't be easier! Personalize your treat with a colored ribbon and a note tag to guests. There are so many easy ways to add a pop of color to match your wedding theme.

Complete recipe, tutorial, and photos can be found at Instructables

Pie!
What says whimsy, Americana more than pie? Apple pie deliciousness is should be a staple at any barn wedding or outdoor picnic reception. Does your Great Aunt have a killer pie recipe? Bake it into jars with love and then share the recipe with guests as part of your edible wedding favor.  Friends and family will love the personal touch.

Photo via Our Best Bites

Recipe and Tutorial found over on Home Made Simple. Photo via Etsy.

More pie and cobbler ideas and tips from Not Martha, who points out that you can make these in advance, freeze them, and then bake them on a later date so they’re fresh-out-of-the-oven.

Photo via Green Wedding Shoes

Cheesecake!
Can you imagine a delicious cheesecake in a small little jar? I totally can! What a fun little treat that would be for guests to dig into at the end of your wedding! Love this fabulous recipe and DIY tutorial from My Baking Addiction.

Photo via My Baking Addiction

This no bake strawberry cheesecake idea from Lloyd and Lauren might be an easier and less time consuming if you need to make a huge bunch to serve for wedding favors.

Pudding!
Ahhh pudding....the feel good yumminess that takes you back to childhood. Well, pudding has gone gourmet for weddings...add a fancy jar and you've got something pretty special. Any flavor would work but I think this banana dessert topped with meringue is delightful to the eye and the tongue. 

Found this super easy recipe and photo over at Rosemary and The Goat.

You know there are tons of fun options to choose when it comes to Edible Wedding Favors. We love the idea of DIY desserts because they can help reduce your cost, introduce a favorite childhood or ethnic dessert, and serve as a sweet to eat take away. Get creative! Combine the newlywed's favorite flavors for a totally unique, yummy creation! Include a long held family recipe so everyone can enjoy the good stuff.  Add personal touches likes color, tags, labels, use antique jelly and canning jars, use as part of your centerpiece design or the focal point of a dessert table. Practical planning at its very best. Enjoy!

If you like these goodies, check out our PINTEREST page for more delectable dishes and recipes. What other dessert can you create in a jar? We'd love to add to our list! 

Have a delicious day!

P.S. You can go here to buy jars for any of these baking projects.