Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have selected a wedding menu featuring classic dishes and seasonal British produce, it has been revealed. The couple are said to have been hands-on in the development of their wedding menu, which will be created by staff from the royal kitchens at Windsor Castle over the next few days, and will use produce from the Queen's own estates.
Royal chef Mark Flanagan revealed that guests at Prince Harry and Meghan's first wedding reception, hosted by the Queen, will tuck into sweet and savoury canapés and bowl food that can be eaten standing up, offering a more relaxed alternative to a sit-down meal. And while details of the exact menu are yet to be revealed, some of the seasonal vegetables they may incorporate into the meals include asparagus, peas and tomatoes.
Mark Flanagan is the head chef in charge of creating Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding food
"The day of the wedding has fallen very kindly for us. All the British vegetables are just coming into season... and that's been a point of focus for us," Mr Flanagan said. "We know the couple wanted us to make sure we used all of the local seasonal produce as much as possible throughout their menu, and this recent good weather is really helping us to achieve that. (For) all their decisions, we purely made suggestions and the couple... they've tasted everything, they've been involved in every detail."
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The team have prioritised keeping as many ingredients as possible British and locally sourced, with much of the produce coming from the Home Counties and Windsor. "We are using produce off Her Majesty's estates and that features very much," the royal chef said. "We've really just been trying to let the ingredients stand proud within the dishes. There's no experimentation on Saturday whatsoever, tried and tested and predominantly classics."
Preparations are already underway in the kitchen at Windsor Castle
There is less than a week to go until the big day, but preparations are already underway for the reception, which will see the newlyweds joined by some 600 wedding guests at St George's Hall. In the next few days they will start washing and peeling vegetables, and getting other food ready so on Saturday "it's the minimum amount of cooking and maximum amount of presentation time".
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The dishes are likely to be accompanied by champagne and wine from the royal cellars, along with soft drinks. Prince Harry and Meghan will later have a wedding dinner with 200 guests at Frogmore House, in a second reception that will be hosted by the Prince of Wales.