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Traditional Wedding Cakes: Elegant, Simple, Buttercream And Fondant Frosting

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Published: June 4, 2007

Suspense is in the air. The groom has carefully sliced through the cake and is gathering a fistful into his hand. The bride nervously brushes curled tendrils of hair from her face and readies herself. Be nice, someone warns from the crowd. But there goes the groom, making his bride giggle as he decorates her chin with chocolate buttercream frosting and fills her cheeks with lemon cake until she looks like a chipmunk. Their audience erupts into laughter, and the photographer scrambles to click from as many angles as he can. This will be a prized moment in the couple's collection of wedding memories.

Selecting a beautiful and delicious prop for this time-honored wedding tradition is an important aspect of planning the big day. Although cheescakes, petit fours, cupcakes and dessert bars are now widely-accepted alternatives, most brides still chose to have traditional wedding cakes. Quintessentially traditional wedding cakes consist of white cake or pound cake with soft buttercream frosting, its layers tiered or stacked.

Fondant frosting is an elegant (and expensive) alternative the buttercream frosting used on traditional wedding cakes. It is rolled out flat, then smoothed over the cake for a clean finish. Buttercream frosting, which is teeming with delectable confectioner's sugar, is much sweeter than fondant.

The cost of traditional wedding cakes can be cut by putting small elegant wedding cakes on display, and serving guests slices from larger and less expensive sheet cakes hidden away in the kitchen. Many brides opt to offer several different cake flavors to their guests, making sure everyone enjoys the dessert. Small cakes, made with dairy-free or vegan ingredients, can serve as an alternative for high-maintenance friends or family. Groom's cakes are customarily offered alongside traditional wedding cakes.

Traditional wedding cakes made at home can be sentimental and are considerably less expensive than traditional wedding cakes bought from a bakery, usually priced between $3-$15 per slice. Sometimes a family friend or relative who is skilled in decorating traditional wedding cakes will generously donate a wedding cake as their gift to the couple. For the baker, prolific websites like All Recipes are a good resource, while Wilton.com has recipes specifically for traditional wedding cakes, fillings, and frosting . Gum paste cake decorations can be purchased online and shipped to fashion a simple wedding cake into a masterpiece; Diane's Cakes and More sells delicate dogwood, cherry blossom, and primrose sugar art flowers.

The appearance of traditional wedding cakes should blend in perfectly with the wedding's established motif. The variety of flowers used in the bride's and bridesmaids' bouquet (as long as they are non-toxic) would be well used as cake toppers, creating a sense of unity in the floral arrangement. The pattern of the bride's china can even be painted onto the frosting by expert cake decorators. Some brides take this a step further, creating elegant wedding cakes by incorporating the lace pattern of their dresses or the fabric pattern of their bridesmaids' dresses into the cake's decoration.

The amount of embellishment on traditional wedding cakes should also complement the level of formality and style of the event itself. Casual outdoor weddings are well matched with simple wedding cakes, topped with fresh roses and peonies or fruit to match the color schematic. On the other hand, black tie affairs with lavish evening receptions require traditional wedding cakes decorated more extravagantly; imagine pearls and fondant lace with red ribbon and chocolate-covered strawberries adorning each tier. Some bakeries accept photographs of traditional wedding cakes, and do their best to replicate. Maisie Fantaisie is one of many websites brimming with images of elegant wedding cakes.

Whether crafted by Aunt Sherry in her polka-dotted apron or purchased from a high-end designer bakery, traditional wedding cakes are a memorable highlight of many receptions and photo albums. As with all aspects of wedding planning, designing traditional wedding cakes should be seen as an opportunity to express personal taste as well as bless the families and loved ones gathered to celebrate.


Sources:
Briggs, Suzanne. “Wedding Cakes: A Big Expense.” BYU News Net. 12 Feb. 2003. 28 May 2007. http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/42182.
Cake Decorations. Diane's Cakes and More. 2006. 28 May 2007. http://www.dianescakesandmore.com/weddingcakedecor ations/weddingcakedecorations.html.
Everything You Need to Know About Wedding Cakes. USA Bride. 2005. 28 May 2007. http://www.usabride.com/wedplan/a_anatomy_cake.htm l.
Newman, Fee. “Simple Wedding Cakes.” Wedding Clipart. 2006. Letters and Arts, Inc. 28 May 2007. http://www.weddingclipart.com/guide/wedding-recept ions/cakes/simple-wedding-cakes.html.
Phillips, Sarah. “Decorating 101: Buttercream.” Baking911.com. 2000-2007. 28 May 2007. http://www.baking911.com/decorating/cakes_buttercr eam.htm.
Selecting A Wedding Cake. Martha Stewart Weddings. Marthastewart.com. 2007. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. 28 May 2007. http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menu item.3a0656639de62ad593598e10d373a0a0/?vgnextoid=5 />Wedding Cake Picture Gallery. Maisie Fantaisie. 2006-2007. 28 May 2007. http://www.maisiefantaisie.co.uk/wedding-cakes.htm l#weddingcakepicture4.
Wedding: Recipes. Wilton. 2003-2007. Wilton Industries. 28 May 2007. http://www.wilton.com/wedding/recipes/index.cfm.

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