Back to Buttercream
Buttercream was once the traditional frosting for wedding cakes, but sleek cakes came into favor, and rolled fondant became the frosting of choice. Not anymore, thanks to advanced tools and techniques that allow buttercream to look as smooth as fondant, cakes iced in buttercream are again the norm. We love this trend, since buttercream frosting tastes better, has natural ingredients, and costs less than fondant. Now you can literally have your stylishly sleek cake – and eat it, too.
Chocolate Face
Brides have bucked the traditional white wedding cake for the last few years, but today’s brides are no longer hiding decadent chocolate behind a shield of white frosting for appearances’ sake. Dark chocolate is now front and center on the face of the cake, as chocolate wedding cakes are appropriately decked in chocolate mousse or whipped chocolate frosting. The result is a full-blown chocolate dessert that tastes as good as it looks.
Blue Rules
Shades of blue dominate the curent wedding decor palette, and your wedding cake is a perfect canvas to incorporate this hot shade. Consider a cake saturated in turquoise, periwinkle, or even navy, and embellish it with complimenting colors like silver, white, grey, lavender, or yellow.
Square Mini Cakes
Cupcake towers in lieu of wedding cakes have been around for awhile, but brides are making cupcakes interesting again by playing with shape and size. Brides are stacking square shaped mini-cakes (slightly larger than cupcakes) adorned with flowers or dressed as presents for a completely different take on the cupcake frenzy.
Think Pink
Pink – the perpetual hot color for weddings – had begun to fall out of favor as brides experimented with more non-traditional hues like browns, grays, orange, and even black. But pink is back in a big way, and brides are incorporating the hue into their wedding cakes. Pink instantly freshens up classic white. Tone down an all-pink cake with white floral or lace details, or dress up a white cake with pink embellishments.
Scripted Text
Wedding cakes adorned with calligraphy-style motifs and writing is one of the year’s hottest trends. Create an antiqued look with black writing on a white or ivory cake, and get creative with the text. Some options? Write a favorite poem or verse, your wedding vows, or words representative of your wedding theme such as names of flowers for a garden wedding or types of shells at a beach wedding.
Groom’s Cakes
The old Southern tradition of the groom’s cake is shedding its regional trappings and growing in popularity throughout the nation. And no, it doesn’t have to be the iconic red velvet armadillo from “Steel Magnolias.” Today’s groom’s cakes, now just as elaborate as the wedding cake itself, often reflect the groom’s interest in a dramatic and whimsical expression: a deer grooms cake for an avid hunter, shaped like a race car for an diehard Nascar fan, or decked with his favorite sports team logo.
Need Help in Selecting Your Wedding Cake?
We’ve narrowed the process of selecting wedding cakes into three easy steps. Get wedding cake ideas, factor cake prices, and choose your baker. Follow these, and you will have a confection that suits your personal style and budget.
Step 1: Determine Your Wedding Cake Design
As the centerpiece of your reception, your cake should represent the theme of your wedding and reflect your overall vision. Consider the style, shape, color and adornments. Make a list of qualities you like and don’t like, and browse and collect photographs of cakes that inspire you. You can get 4 million + images by goggling "Wedding Cake images."
NOTE: Don’t forget to consider the longevity of your cake when making your selection. It may look like a work of art, but it is still food, and certain types will hold up better in extreme climates. If you will be holding an summer outdoor reception, opt for fondant wedding cakes over buttercream. While buttercream is tasty, it doesn’t keep well in heat or humidity.
Step 2: Factor In Wedding Cake Prices
Cake cost is based per slice and is determined by the complexity of the overall design. The typical cost per slice can range anywhere from $2-$15 per slice. There are 2 easy ways to keep your cake within budget.
- Simple wedding cakes are obviously less expensive, so choose a simple design with minimal adornments. Fresh fruit and flowers are inexpensive options, while handmade gumpaste or sugarpaste decorations cost more because they are difficult to create.
- If you have your heart set on an intricate design you saw in a magazine, don’t worry that the associated cost will break your budget. Many brides opt for a smaller, intricately designed cake to showcase at their wedding, while simple sheet cakes are held in the kitchen to be served to guests.
Step 3: Choose your Wedding Cake Baker
First determine whether or not your wedding site allows an outsider baker; if so, pick a few local cake bakers and book appointments to view their portfolios. The WeddingsNorthValley.com directory of local wedding cake and dessert services is a great place to get started; we have twenty top bakers and chocolatiers recommended by northstate brides to choose from. When meeting with potential bakers, consider both look and taste. The one you choose should be able to create the beautiful masterpiece you desire, and it should taste scrumptious as well.
Sweet dreams!
Carol Thomson, The Wedding Lady
WeddingsNorthValley.com
SimplyLittleWeddings.com
ChicoBridalShowcase.com
RedBluffBridalShowcase.biz
Wedding Wishes 2010 Blog
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