"There was always a healthy cup of coffee for anyone who wanted it," said Renee Fry, a former Cabinet member.

"Cabinet dinner gatherings were not dry," wrote Douglas Foy, who also served in Governor Romney's Cabinet. "Although the governor and his wife did not partake -- which the governor often joked about, since he sponsored the gatherings and paid for the wine!"

Storing -- and refraining from -- food

The LDS Church advises its members to store enough food to feed a family for a year.

Food storage is viewed as a practical measure, one that can come in handy during, say, a crippling superstorm, massive power outages or unforeseen financial hardships.

The practice is rooted in Mormon history. The church's early pioneers, on their trek westward to what is now Utah, experienced great suffering and starvation. They also endured their share of persecution and couldn't rely on the help of others. So having resources squirreled away became a collective comfort.

Any chance that the Romneys would institute White House food storage?

Not because they would need it for themselves or likely anyone else at the White House, but Riess said in these uncertain times, it could be a good lesson in preparedness to showcase to the nation.

"I wouldn't be surprised to see that," she said.

Even if a family storing it doesn't need the food, by having it available that family is poised to help others. Serving those less fortunate or in crisis is big in the LDS Church, and it is a part of another practice that may find its way into the White House if the Romneys move in.

The first Sunday of every month is Fast Sunday, when committed Mormons who are able forgo food and drink for about 24 hours. Coupled with prayer, it has spiritual meaning. It also serves to instill compassion for those who are in need, and to that end Mormons are encouraged to minimally donate what they would have spent on food to the church's welfare fund.

Fast Sunday, or calls to fast at other times, can also bind Mormons together when they pray and fast for a common cause.

A Utah woman created buzz earlier this fall when an e-mail she sent out to friends and family, suggesting they fast to help Romney before the debates, began making the rounds in Mormon circles across the country. A new website, romneyfast.org, also the brainchild of private citizens -- and not a church-sanctioned effort -- asks people to fast and pray for Romney and his wife Ann this Sunday before America goes to the polls.

When he was governor of Massachusetts, and in general, Mitt and Ann Romney observed Fast Sunday and "always contributed very generously to the fast offering fund," said Bennett, who held church leadership roles with Romney in the Boston area.

What's more, Bennett said that when Romney served as their congregation's bishop -- the equivalent of an unpaid pastor -- it wasn't uncommon for the two friends to fast more than once a month. At the time, Bennett was one of Romney's two counselors, or advisers.

"Occasionally he would invite me and the other counselor to join him in fasting on a weekday for a specific purpose," Bennett wrote in an e-mail. "For example, one purpose would be to seek inspiration regarding an important decision, another purpose would be to express love, support and solidarity to someone who was ill or going through very difficult times."

Whether Romney would maintain this observance from the nation's highest office, we can't know. But it looks like the White House kitchen staff may be in for a little downtime each month, if they're lucky.

Honoring the Sabbath, going to church and other Mormon observances

Sunday is a holy day for active LDS Church members. It's a time when Mormons attend their local congregation - it's known as a ward, which in Catholic-speak would be comparable to a parish - and worship with their families and community.

The ward closest to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., and likely the one the Romneys would be assigned to, is the Washington D.C. 3rd Ward, which gathers in what Mormons call a "meetinghouse" or chapel on 16th Street NW. The Washington Post described this ward as consisting of mostly Democrats, half who are nonwhite (including plenty of Spanish speakers), and having openly gay members in its leadership.

Riess said while ward assignments are almost always determined geographically, sometimes there are exceptions. And the truth is there just isn't any precedent for how this would be handled for a U.S. president.

How much of his Sundays a President Romney could set aside for his faith is obviously uncertain. We already know he's been hard at work on the campaign trail, Sundays included -- though the senior aide we spoke to said he makes efforts to get to church when he can.

One need only look at President Jimmy Carter, who went so far as to teach Sunday school at his local Baptist church, to see how a sitting president can make room for faith, said Balmer of Dartmouth, who counts among his many books "God in the White House: How Faith Shaped the Presidency from John F. Kennedy to George W. Bush."

Romney faithfully showed up at church on Sundays while he was governor, unless an official function got in the way, Bennett said. And when Romney ran for U.S. Senate in 1994 against Ted Kennedy, Bennett -- then the ward's bishop -- assigned Romney to teach the weekly adult Sunday school class.

"He was in church virtually every Sunday teaching this class throughout the campaign, only occasionally arranging for a substitute teacher," his friend said.