Weddings: cheeses that mark them
Wedding cakes made of cheese wheels, sweets of chhena and the cheeses of the wedding feast.
Cheese has a place at weddings in many cultures, from the tiered cheese-wheel cakes of British and American receptions to the chhena sweets of Bengali weddings, Parsi topli nu paneer, Georgian khachapuri and the cheese pies of Balkan wedding feasts. Some customs are old and some are new, but all use cheese as food for many guests and a sign of plenty.
Wedding cakes of cheese
In Britain, Ireland and North America, a tower of whole cheeses, stacked from a large cheddar or Stilton at the base to small soft cheeses at the top, has become a popular alternative or companion to the iced cake since the early 2000s. It is decorated with fruit, flowers and herbs, cut for the evening buffet and served with bread, crackers and chutney. Couples often choose cheeses from the regions they come from.
Sweets and paneer in India
Bengali wedding feasts end with mishti, sweets such as rasgulla and sandesh, and sandesh pressed into shapes such as fish and conch shells is made for weddings. Trays of sweets are also part of the tattva, the gifts exchanged between the two families. Paneer dishes are standard on North Indian wedding menus. Parsi weddings serve topli nu paneer, a soft, salty rennet-set cheese moulded in small baskets and kept in its whey.
The Caucasus and the Balkans
A Georgian wedding supra, led by a toastmaster, brings khachapuri, sulguni and plates of fresh cheese with herbs to long tables. In Bulgaria, Serbia and North Macedonia, banitsa and gibanica, layered pies of cheese, egg and pastry, are baked for weddings and feast days. Banitsa is also baked for Christmas Eve and the New Year in Bulgaria, with small lucky charms, kasmeti, hidden inside for the guests to find.
Worth knowing
- Topli nu paneer: Parsi basket cheese of the wedding table
- Sandesh: Bengali sweet, shaped as a fish for weddings
- Rasgulla: Chhena balls in syrup
- Khachapuri: Georgian cheese bread at every supra
- Banitsa: Bulgarian cheese pie
- Gibanica: Serbian layered cheese pie
- Cheese wedding cake: A tower of whole cheese wheels
Sources and further reading
Original text by the EveryCheese desk, written with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Customs are described as tradition, not as advice. If we have something wrong, tell us.
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