Good Things to Eat

One-bite treats with seasonal ingredients have all the appeal of their Thanksgiving-size counterparts, minus the food coma. Set out an assortment buffet-style, or serve a trio to each guest in lieu of a slice of cake.

Here, we plated a Heart-Shaped Apple-and-Raspberry Hand Pie, Chocolate-Ginger Ganache Phyllo Cup, and Red-Wine Poached Plum Tartlet. You could also ask your caterer to make a mini-me version of your favorite.

These bite-size treats may be breakfast foods, but they make equally delicious late-night snacks for your wedding guests.

Clockwise from top left: Mini Croques Monsieurs; French Toast sticks with Hot Mapled Rum; Mini Quail Eggs in Prosciutto Nests; and Apple Cider Doughnuts, either glazed or with cinnamon-sugar.

A wedding is such a sweet occasion, it wouldn't seem right if the coffee were bitter. You can sweeten your guests' after-dinner cappuccinos by having a flower drizzle-drawn atop the steamed milk of each cup using warm chocolate syrup. Serve crisp ginger biscuits alongside.

At the cocktail hour, serve crunchy vegetables complete with their own dip: buttermilk-peppercorn, roasted pepper and eggplant, or toasted curry. Their bowls -- hollowed-out slices of baguettes in pumpernickel, plain, or everything -- are meant to be eaten, too.

Sweet marzipan acorns capture the beauty of fall. The marzipan is tinted pale green with food coloring to mimic the appearance of nuts just picked from the tree; a thin coating of bittersweet chocolate, decorated with sprinkles, crowns each one and balances the marzipan's concentrated sweetness. Place the acorns on pressed leaves for a lovely autumn display, and serve them on a dessert buffet or on platters at guests' tables.

Warm up an autumn cocktail hour with a comforting, colorful shot of savory vegetable soup in eye-catching colors. Guests can sip the harvest flavors of beet, butternut squash, and spinach-pea puree served in diminutive, finger-friendly sake or espresso cups -- no spoon required. With their free hand, they can either raise a glass of Champagne or reach for seconds.

Basic sugar cookies become elegant favors when stacked to resemble miniature wedding cakes and topped with sugar flowers. Each sugar-cookie cake was spread with royal icing, then assembled once the frosting was set. Small dabs of icing also secure each layer, holding the tower intact while still allowing the cookies to be pulled apart easily.

Take a cue from the Milanese, who serve panettone, a sweet bread made with dried fruit and citrus zest, on special occasions. The loaf is traditionally made in a large panettone mold, but we baked ours in attractive mini paper ones. Each treat is then wrapped in a cellophane bag tied with a letterpress tag by Austin Press. Bellissimo!

For a chic twist on bacon and eggs, serve crispy prosciutto cups filled with baked quail eggs, plus toasted rye cocktail bread, cut in half, on the side. These stylish appetizers work well at a post-wedding brunch or bridal luncheon.

For a finger-friendly take on classic beet-and-goat-cheese salad, serve fried beet chips topped with a dollop of the tangy cheese and vinaigrette-laced microgreens. They make perfect hors d'oeuvres -- crispy instead of juicy beets means no one will be caught red-handed.

At a cocktail hour, pass candy cups of sweet and savory roasted nuts for a delicious, no-fuss treat. Each paper bowl holds just the right snack-size amount. Our homemade mix is served with store-bought Marcona almonds.

Make an impression on guests by adding eye-catching detail to basic cookies with ordinary rubber stamps, which come in a wide range of designs, or ceramic cookie stamps. Since rubber stamps can be custom ordered, create your own, like our monogram. To yield the best results, use the stamps on cookie dough containing no leaveners, such as shortbread.

These marshmallows are imported from Paris and, as you might suspect, they're not your typical campfire fare. They are long (about 14 inches), pastel-hued, and quite pretty, especially when fashioned into love knots, time-honored symbols of commitment. Tie marshmallows into basic knots (to keep them from getting stale, don't leave them exposed to the air for too long), and place in cellophane bags.

These containers were made to look like humble brown-paper bags, but that's where the resemblance ends. Sweet and crunchy, they can hold fruit or candy and can be served as an individual dessert as part of a buffet, or offered as a take-home favor.

As the reception dinner winds down with coffee, give your guests one last delicious treat -- fresh cherries dipped in melted white chocolate. This fruit is at its best during the summertime, making it a perfect choice for a warm-weather wedding. A pair of cherries with the stems attached will perch daintily on a saucer.

Just as the coffee is being served, the dancing always seems to begin in earnest, leaving guests with cold coffee when they return to the table. At your reception, offer caramel wafers to rest across the top of the cup -- the coffee will stay warm and the caramel will soften, turning the wafer into a sweet, gooey treat.

Specialty vendors such as Translucent Chocolates make it easy to match your wedding favors with your decor. Just send them a fabric swatch, color chip, or other sample of your wedding colors, and they'll custom-mix candies in the same hues. Vendors generally offer a large assortment -- we chose candy-covered sunflower seeds, dried apricots, and mini chocolates.

It's what's inside that counts, but sometimes the outside is just as important. Two cases in point: Fresh salads can be easily reinvented as hors d'oeuvres when nestled in paper nut cups. And gooey-good desserts can be sent home with guests when cradled in old-fashioned jars.

Shake things up with a dish that's distinctive but doesn't abandon traditional flavors: fall-foliage lasagna. The secret? Pasta colored with beet and carrot puree, and shaped with cookie cutters. Your caterer can incorporate these tricks into her recipe; we layered fresh ricotta cheese between beet and carrot pastas, which were cooked, then sauteed in -- and drizzled with -- a brown-butter and sage sauce. The combination is hard to, ahem, beet.

Edible pansies give shortbread cookies texture and color as only nature can. They look catered, but these sweet treats can be turned out by anyone capable of turning on an oven: Bake sugar cookies, decorate with royal icing, and top each with a fresh pansy (or two).

Mixed pansies, Jansal Valley.

This clever update to the classic fall treat is the brainchild of New York City caterer Peter Callahan, author of the cookbook "Bite by Bite." He added wood twigs to tiny apples, dipped the fruits in caramel, and rolled them in sea salt. Offer these at dessert, or give them out as favors. Whatever you decide, have your caterer make extras -- guests won't be able to eat just one.

These charming spring sweeteners from Gourmet Sugar Company are a fresh alternative to plain old coffeehouse cubes. They're available in more than 50 styles, including leaves, shells, and hearts, as well as custom shapes, and can be served on individual saucer rims or arranged on a platter with dessert tongs.

These thin chocolate cookies with ganache icing dipped into grated coconut make the perfect nests for two or three miniature chocolate eggs.

Give the childhood treat a grown-up twist by pairing raspberry sorbet with lemon soda, and lemon sorbet with orange soda. To deck out a standard cart for your reception, tape colorful scalloped paper to the front.

Refresh your guests with layer after colorful layer of icy treats. Creating this stacked confection is simpler than making a sundae -- just spoon the slightly softened ice cream into a loaf pan (line the pan with plastic wrap first, and freeze one layer before adding the next).

Our stripes, from top, are cantaloupe sorbet, peach frozen yogurt, strawberry ice cream, and raspberry sorbet.

You've heard of chestnuts roasting on an open fire, but here's something even more delicious (and just as seasonally appropriate): chestnuts dipped in white or semisweet chocolate. To make them, coat chestnuts in melted chocolate, let cool, and garnish with a bit of edible gold leaf.

The Gold Leaf Company 23-karat gold-leaf sheets. Viking Importing Company Danish glassine cups #275C-DCS.

For sophisticated hors d'oeuvres in season for summer, pair ripe figs with gorgonzola dolce and sweet port sauce.

Spicy shrimp and avocado aren't just meant for sushi rolls -- they also taste delicious when placed atop white bread and topped with a dollop of sour cream.

This light and refreshing treat will leave guests feeling cool as a cucumber.