2008 VegNews Vegan Wedding Feature

Interested in becoming a 2009 Vegan Wedding couple? Click here for details on how to apply for this special annual feature.

A California Dream Come True


Dawnielle Patino & Thomas Gerard Selden
August 11, 2007
Ceremony: Laguna Beach, Calif.
Reception: Fallbrook, Calif.
Guests: 180
Honeymoon: France, Seychelles, Kenya, and England

Their story:
When Tommy knocked on Dawnielle’s door after answering her ad on roommates.com, who would have guessed they’d find themselves standing side by side at the altar? As roommates, they were both busy looking for love in all the wrong places. But after a few months of getting jealous of each other’s dates, they realized that they had already found love and companionship—without ever having to leave the house. Tommy moved out so they could give their courtship a go in the more usual order, but maybe sharing kitchen clean-up duty before dating isn’t such a terrible prerequisite. Two years later, far from home on a tiny, uninhabited island off the Jamaican coast, Tommy proposed to Dawnielle as the sun set into the sea.

Wedding highlights:
Following an afternoon church ceremony, the newlyweds celebrated at a dreamy estate, the home of the bride’s close family friends, in the hills of southern California. After a poolside, lounge-style cocktail hour with passed hors d’oeuvres, guests enjoyed a candlelit dinner under a billowy tent. Most of Tommy’s large family (he’s one of 10 siblings) had never heard of vegan food, so what better way to introduce them to this new concept than to have their wedding catered by their favorite restaurant, Madeleine Bistro? Tommy’s brother Joey, who describes his family as “big meat eaters,” says he didn’t see too many plates go by that weren’t empty. He also noted how well the Garlic Mashed Potatoes went over with the family. “We’re part Irish,” he says, “so the potatoes are very important to us.” After dinner, they returned to the pool area to dance the night away beneath a canopy of stars.

Menu:
Hors d’oeuvres
Faux farmer’s cheese and caramelized onions in puff pastry
Tofu cheese-filled dates wrapped in crispy smoked portobello bacon
Chilled corn-lemongrass soup shots
Tomato risotto cakes
Seitan fingers with tamarind dipping sauce

Appetizers
Caesar salad
Red beet tartare atop a warm tofu-cheese crouton

Dinner
Classic Wellington with bordelaise sauce
Grilled lemon-rosemary mock chicken
Garlic mashed potatoes
Sautéed vegetable ragout
Seitan fingers with tamarind dipping sauce
Kids meals: Truffled mac ‘n’ cheese

Wedding cake
Chocolate and lemon with buttercream frosting

Resources:
Caterer: Madeleine Bistro, Tarzana, Calif.
Cake maker: Madeleine Bistro, Tarzana, Calif.

Best wedding gift:
“Rick and KC, the owners of the house, gave us the wedding reception of our dreams at their gorgeous estate. Rick, a contractor, even built a gazebo down by the pond, amongst other impressive renovations just for the event. And, unbeknownst to everyone, two of Tommy’s sisters and their husbands donated their airline miles to help cover the costs of getting all of Tommy’s family out to California from Pittsburgh.”


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Introducing the 2008 Vegan Wedding couples

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Interested in being a part of next year's wedding feature? Click here to download an application.

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