Wedding Cake Glossary of Terms

If you will be getting married, you may want to be familiar with wedding cake terms before you visit the baker or confectioner who is making your cake. Here are some of the more common wedding cake terms and their meanings:

Wedding Cake Parts and Shapes:

Tier: This is one level of the cake-(i.e. a 3 tier cake.)

Layer: A horizontal piece of the cake. Often the wedding cake layers are baked in separate pans and then one or more are combined to make a tier.

Round: A cylinder shaped cake. This is the most traditional shape for a wedding cake.

Square: A more modern shape for a cake-very geometrical-tiers can be placed at odd angles for an even more modern touch.

Hexagon: A six-sided wedding cake can be very trendy and fashionable.

Scalloped: The edges of the tiers are shaped much like flower petals for a very casual look.

Molded: The cake is shaped like a football or some other object-this is often used for the groom’s cake.

Frosting and Filling Terms:

Fondant: A sheet like sugar “dough” that hardens over time and is good for an outdoor wedding cake because it will not melt. It is very smooth in texture and can be made in one of three forms: rolled into sheets, poured over the top, or sculpted into shapes.

Buttercream: The traditional wedding cake favorite made of butter, cream, and eggs. It is very soft and easy to flavor with chocolate, fruit or liquor, but should only be used at indoor events.

Ganache: A chocolate, butter and cream sauce or filling that will melt in the heat.

Chocopan: This is basically a chocolate version of fondant-but better tasting.

Marzipan: This almond based substance can be used as a filling or to make colored shapes to put on the cake.

Royal Icing: A very hard icing that is used for decorations that need to be solid-such as lace.

Decorations:

Basket weave: This looks like a wicker basket.

Swiss dotted: Random dots are placed all over the cake.

Piping: Lines are made on the cake with a pastry bag and tip.

Pulled or Spun Sugar: Sugar is cooked until it is liquid and then shaped into bows, ribbons or thin strands. This must be done on site because it will not transport.

How to Decorate a Wedding Cake

Learning how to decorate a wedding cake is not difficult, but it is a bit complicated, with a lot of techniques and tools that you’ll need to know how to use. The best way to learn how to decorate a wedding cake is to take an online cake decorating course, which you can do entirely on your computer, on your own schedule and from your own kitchen. With some instruction on the recipes, tools, and techniques you’ll need, anyone can learn how to decorate a wedding cake.

Steps To A Beautiful Cake For A Wedding

Most wedding cakes are elaborate creations with several tiers and layers and extensive decorations. Regardless of the style and complexity, even these spectacular creations come down to a few basic steps and components.

• Planning
• Preparing Ingredients
• Assembling, Decorating, & Transporting
• Serving

Planning How To Decorate A Wedding Cake

In the planning stage, you’ll want to decide your icing and filling flavors. You’ll need to make at least general decisions about how it will be decorated, including whether you will build it in tiers. Your online cake decorating course will have all the information you’ll need for building tiers, but the process will be fairly complicated, so it’s something to consider carefully.

This is also a good time to consider not only the design of the cake decorations but also the materials and ingredients the design will require. Will you use buttercream icing or rolled fondant? Handmade gum paste flowers, icing flowers, real flowers, or no flowers at all? If you’re not sure, review these sections in your online cake decorating course to see which techniques will work best for your design and skills.

Preparing The Cake & Icing Ingredients

Your online cake decorating course will include lots of recipes for cake, icing, and fillings, and even more recipes can be found in books and on other websites. If possible, test the recipes for your top choices to be sure you get good results and find flavors you like.

Well before the wedding date, review the guidelines for preparing ahead and storing cake, icing, and decorations, and make a schedule. The cake can be made ahead and frozen if you have the freezer space. Gum paste flowers will last for weeks. Knowing these things early in your planning will help you make the best use of your time and save stress as the wedding day approaches.

Assembling, Decorating, & Transporting

You may think that assembling, decorating, and transporting are three very separate steps, but the order you’ll do these things depends on the type of design and where it will need to be transported. With a tiered cake, you may want to assemble it after you transport it to the reception site, which will mean you’ll also need to be prepared to add a few finishing touches to the decorating at that time too.

Serving A Wedding Cake

Depending on the services provided at the reception, you may not need to worry about serving. If you will be responsible for the serving, make sure you’re aware of portion sizes and how to slice large, complicated cakes by reviewing these topics in your online cake decorating course.

Learn How To Decorate A Wedding Cake

Learning how to decorate a wedding cake will likely require much more detail than you can get from reading this article. Taking an online cake decorating course will fill in those details and many more, so you’ll know exactly how to decorate a wedding cake or any other type of baked dessert. When you decorate your own desserts, you’ll get the design you want while saving money, enjoying a hobby, and impressing your friends and family.

Wedding Cake Prices

The wedding cake is a big part of the reception, let alone the wedding itself. That said, it’s always a good idea to know where you stand by finding out the average wedding cake prices and what you’ll be expected to pay.

First and foremost, you should realize that most bakeries charge per “slice” rather than per “cake. This system will allow you to easily determine how much the whole cake is going to cost, not to mention how much money you can spare for custom designs and cake icing.

Here is a Rundown of Wedding Cake Prices:

Simple Cake: A simply made cake with just a few decorations, cheap icing, and a basic design will cost about 1 to 2 dollars per slice. If it’s a small wedding with only about 100 or so people, you can spend about $250 to $300 and get a elegant cake that’ll please everyone.

Not-So-Simple Cake: A wedding cake that has multiple tiers, better icing, a nice design, and beautiful decorations will run about $4-7 per slice. If the guest list is long, the total cost will climb quite quickly: $5 per slice multiplied by 500 equals a massive $2500.

Complicated Cake: A 3 or 4 tier cake with the works — tasty icing which won’t bleed, elegant designs, fabulous decorations, etc. — can cost anywhere from $8-12 PER slice. If you’re on a budget, then this is pretty much out of the question. Then again, if it’s a wedding of only about 50 people, you can spend $10 per slice ($500 total) and really dazzle your guests.

3 Easy Ways to Get Lower Wedding Cake Prices

1. Sacrifice some of the fancy-schmancy designs & decorations to get a lower cost per slice.

2. Choose a cheap, easy-to-manage icing like butter cream rather than fondant.

3. Use an online step-by-step guide to bake & design the cake yourself. Rather than paying dollars per slice with a private bakery, you’ll pay just PENNIES!

Now you know exactly what to expect, as well as how to save, when it comes to wedding cakes & wedding cake prices.

Guide to Wedding Cake Frosting

Next to the bridal gown, the wedding cake is perhaps the most detail intensive element of planning your event. It will take days if not weeks before the future bride can choose the exact design and color of her cake. On top of this, it may take her forever to decide the cake frosting to be used by her baker.

This is the reason why you need to get a reputable baker so they can make intelligent suggestions as to which frosting would be best for the chosen cake design. You may know a thing or two about cakes but only those who have experienced in decorating them can tell you the pros and cons of using a specific frosting. Here are some of the types of cake frosting commonly used today.

Butter cream

Butter cream is a very versatile ingredient because it can be used both as a filling and a frosting. Bakers prefer this frosting because it is easy to color depending on the motif of the wedding. It is also easy to come up with various designs using this frosting. The only problem is that it can easily melt especially if the temperature is not controlled so watch out for butter cream if you are holding an outdoor reception.

Fondant

If you have seen satin smooth cakes that look perfect even if shaped like a gift, flower or anything at all then most probably it has been designed using fondant. Fondant icing is picture perfect and no one can argue with that. However, it does not taste as delicious as the other icing and some would even say it tastes bad. Some bakers however have a trick of using butter cream beneath the fondant to give it a really nice flavor.

Marzipan

This is a favorite among bakers as it tastes good and can be made to look like fondant icing. Marzipan contains sugar, eggs and crushed almonds making it a very tasty topping. However, using marzipan can be very expensive so be prepared for your wallet to take a hit.

Royal icing

This is perhaps the cheapest frosting anyone can use for a wedding cake. It can also produce picture perfect cakes with very intricate designs. Royal icing is actually a very hard frosting so there is seldom need to refrigerate it. You can have your baker create miniature cakes for you using some of the frosting you are interested in and then you can taste them and decide which one will look and taste the best.

Scrumptious Seaside Wedding Cakes

Whether you are having a wedding by the ocean or just love the water, there are all sorts of fantastic ideas for seaside themed wedding cakes. From classic to whimsical to nautical, there is a cake available to suit any style of wedding. These are some ideas for scrumptious seaside cakes for your wedding.

One of the best motifs to use on a seaside cake is a seashell. Shells can be done in all sorts of ways. If you want an understated hint of oceana for your cake, think about a white on white seashell design. An elegant variation on this is blush pink shells tinged with gold edges. The most formal arrangement is to have the shells evenly spaced on each tier of the cake; if your style is a bit more modern, opt to have a variety of sugar shells cascading down the side of your cake.

An accent that works really well with shells is pearls. Especially if the bride is wearing a set of pearl bridal jewelry, it would be a fun touch to have a frosting oyster open to reveal a “pearl” as part of the cake design. You can also run with the theme by having strands of sugar pearl bridal jewelry wrapped around the base of each cake tier.

There are many other wonderful motifs for a Seaside Wedding Cake. Fish and coral are great design elements that can easily add lots of beautiful colors to your cake. Imagine a cake iced with fondant “waves” in a watercolor effect with a school of bright red fish swimming around the circumference. Top it off with red faux coral sculpted into your initial. Or you can use line drawings in the shape of a fish in multiple colors across a smooth white fondant cake for a fresh and whimsical take on a tropical cake.

Consider other seafaring creatures to use as part of your cake design. I personally have always loved a seahorse motif, which would be enchanting dancing around a wedding cake. You can also think about a pattern of frolicking dolphins for a seaside cake; a preppy bride could even go with the classic green whale silhouette on a bright pink cake for a touch of the 1980s at her reception.

Any shade of blue looks great for a seaside inspired cake. Turquoise and aqua are great for painting ocean waves. Navy blue looks crisp and formal with white anchor or shell decorations. The pretty blue of the sky on a summer’s day is another wonderful option. For a soothing palette, mix in medium greens, or go high contrast with pops of red or orange.

Don’t forget about the groom’s cake; this can be the perfect place to carry out a seaside theme. If the groom is a passionate sailor, ask the baker to create a cake that replicates his sailboat. Another fun groom’s cake would be a large sea turtle in beautiful shades of green. A cute idea for an intricate groom’s cake is a scene with a sailor (the groom) and a mermaid (the bride).

The ocean offers so many great ideas for your cake design that you may find it hard to narrow it down to just one. Whether you want a wedding cake that is timeless or outrageous, there is a seaside motif that will be perfect for you.

Your Wedding Cake Topper Should Be a Reflection of You

Your wedding should be uniquely you. You will choose your wedding dress, the time of year and the theme of your wedding. There is absolutely no need to have a “Traditional” wedding if that is not what you want. Your wedding can take place on the beach in your bathing suit if that’s what you choose. Likewise, the Wedding Cake Topper can be a very “Personal” addition to your wedding cake. It can be a reflection of your life in either a serious or comical way. It’s entirely up to you what you choose, after all, it is Your Wedding.

You have certainly seen the traditional wedding cakes with the stern and solemn husband-and-wife-to-be standing on the top layer. The bride always wore white and the groom was dressed in a black tuxedo. Surely, unless you really look like “Barbie and Ken”, this traditional wedding cake topper is not a reflection of you and your partner to be. You are no longer forced to conform to this stereotypical wedding couple.

The Wedding Cake Topper of today is a welcome break from tradition and if you wish, you can have your life or passion truly reflected for your reception guests to see.

Probably the most significant modern change that has occurred in wedding cake toppers is the wide variety of options available to reflect the culture and ethnicity of the couple. You no longer have to have a Caucasian Wedding Cake Top if you are Asian. There are Hispanic, African-American, Jewish and even Interracial wedding cake toppers. Yes, you can choose two girls or two guys if that’s what you’re looking for. Pretty much the sky’s the limit.

Do you have a special interest or hobby that you are passionate about? Then if you choose, you can have that reflected as the center piece of your reception. I have seen Golfer Bride and Groom Wedding Cake toppers, Hunting Couples, Scuba Bride and Groom, Snowboarder, Motorcycle, Hockey and so many more unique wedding cake tops, that only your imagination is needed. Many suppliers will take special requests.

You can also elect to go with a comical wedding cake topper. There are selections such as the Runaway Bride, Ball and Chain, Cold Feet Groom and even a Frankenstein Bride and Groom cake top. Pretty much anything and everything is possible if you search for it. Maybe something along the Beauty and the Geek motif would be appropriate? These types of wedding cake toppers are great conversation pieces at the reception and tend to show that the couple can laugh at themselves and not take life so seriously.

Are you an animal lover? Have you always pictured yourself as a bunny? Does your significant other refer to you as his little Panda Bear? Well if that’s the sentiment you want to project, then you are in luck. There are many animal related wedding cake toppers available. There are kittens and puppies, love birds and lady bug cake toppers. There are also others available, that I wouldn’t have as my wedding cake topper like pigs, elephants and even skunks, but to each his own.

Anyway, the point is that today, wedding cake toppers can be as elegant as a monogram in crystal, if you are trying for an elegant formal wedding, or as personal, special and unique as your creativity and imagination can take you. Spend a little extra time choosing your wedding cake top and show your guests the true you!

Selecting and Buying Your Wedding Cake

One of the most crucial and important parts of planning one’s wedding is finding the best wedding cake. If your idea of a wedding is pleasing your guests, as well as yourselves, then a wonderful cake is one of the aspects of a wedding that guests remember.

Finding the perfect wedding cake is a task that should be given adequate time and attention. There are many cake decorators available in the industry which offer a variety of offerings that anyone can choose from. Buyers can go directly to their shops and browse through their catalogs to find the one that they want. If the catalog does not contain a preferred choice, you can even ask for a personalized one with their own design and preferences.

In order to get the best value though, you must first know your budget limitation or how much of the wedding expenses are allotted to the cake itself. The budget would determine what kind can be available for you to choose from. Prices vary depending on their ingredients particularly what kind of base it would be decided upon. The icing also varies from one to another.

Knowing this information before consulting providers would save an individual a good amount of time and money as well. With these preferences ready, wedding cake decorators would already have an idea which to offer an individual client. However, this does not mean that what a buyer wants would always be the final product. Buyers should be open with suggestions from the makers and decorators since they know the issues better than anyone else! They would be in the right position to determine whether what a buyer wants is feasible, practical and pleasing.

How To Choose the Perfect Wedding Cake

With that in mind there is enormous pressure on the couple to have the perfect cake. No one will remember anything about the food served at the reception after five years, but chances are if the cake was not picture perfect or it did not taste fantastic, it will still be talked about at your twenty fifth wedding celebration!

Factors to Consider

Taste

The taste of your wedding cake is to a certain extent a matter of personal choice, in the sense you may take into account the groom loves chocolate and the bride is allergic to strawberries. It is not rocket science to come to the conclusion that a strawberry topped cake is not the best choice. However other practicalities must enter the equation.

Weather and time is an important factor. How long before the wedding will be the cake be completed, strawberries go soft and mushy looking very quickly, they will look pretty bedraggled after about three hours depending on the weather and the humidity. Humidity affects the choice of icing, glaze or frosting. Whipped cream does not hold up well in hot weather it goes rancid very quickly.

The European wedding cake made with fruit is typically decorated with Royal Icing, but the more typical American wedding cake will use a type of butter-cream. Fortunately as prevailing weather conditions are different there are many types of butter cream icing. If you are planning to marry in the height of Summer a recipe using all butter is not a good choice, the properties of all butter, butter cream icing is no different from that of butter, it melts when it is warm. However if you have your heart set on butter cream icing then make sure that you have a recipe where the sugar is cooked to the soft ball stage.
Italian butter cream is someti8mes referred to as meringue butter cream, as it is more stable in hot conditions. Egg whites are whipped to peaks and then combined with hot sugar syrup; once this has cooled butter is added withy any desired flavourings. This example of a type of butter cream is softer and lighter than the regular butter cream and is used in Europe for genoise sponges.

Design

Choosing a wedding cake should be fun; it is a perfect opportunity to make a statement, it is your party and you can have what you want. However there are once again practical constraints. In Europe a layer of the wedding cake is traditionally held back for the christening. If you like this idea then you have to choose at least one layer of your cake to be a fruitcake, as it preserves well, drenched in brandy.

Theme

If you have a theme, talk to a baker, there are many props that can change the basic design of a cake. Use your imagination flavourings can add color as well as flavor, avocado icing or filling is a wonderful delicate color. A well-designed cake will enhance your theme and bring the whole concept of the design together as the celebrations culminate with the cake.

Don’t be Boring

The typical American sponge is not your only option, before making a final choice; think out of the box, if only to dream! Consider cupcakes building them to a pyramid, or the traditional French wedding cake the croquembouche, an iconic creation of choux pastry bound by carmellized spun sugar, and violets. Make the cake worrk for you, if you have a lot of children coming to the wedding it may be worth having two cakes as adult and children’s tastes are markedly different. The tradional Italian wedding cake, celebrates all tastes as ti is layers of biscuits or cookies inerwoven together.

Freezing Your Wedding Cake

If you need to freeze a wedding cake it is an excellent idea to make a dummy layer, before hand, it should be decorated exactly as your wedding cake will be. If it freezes successfully then you have no problems, but if it does not then you can make design adjustments. It is not necessary to have baked and iced more than one layer, because what happens to one layer will happen to the rest.

Tips on Ordering Wedding Cakes

The wedding cake is one of the most important parts of the reception. It will occupy a place of prominence, and you want your cake to be fabulous. These are some tips on how to work with a baker and order a fantastic cake for your wedding.

The typical time frame for ordering a wedding cake is three to six months before the wedding. If you are considering hiring a celebrity baker in a big city, plan on extending that lead time to a year or more. To book the baker, you will be required to give them a deposit ranging from 25% to 50% of the total estimated price of the cake. Of course, first you have to figure out which baker to use and what type you would like to have!

The best possible way to find a baker is through references. If you know any newlyweds, ask them who they used, and if they were pleased. You can also seek references from the other wedding vendors that you have already chosen. Venues that do not have an in-house baker will be happy to give you a referral, as will your florist, your bridal shop, and even the photographer. These people will know who is considered to be the best in the area, as well as who may have left a bride feeling disappointed.

Once you have narrowed it down to a few bakers, it is time to take a look at their portfolio of work, either online or in their shop. This will give you a good idea if their talents match up well with your vision of the perfect cake. For example, if you want a stacked rectangular fondant cake with a modern edge to it, you would probably be wise to eliminate the baker who specializes in traditional buttercream cakes with pillars.

At this point, you will be ready to meet with one or two bakers to discuss style, price, flavors, and of course, whether they are available on your wedding date. The price of your wedding cake will be based on the flavor, how elaborate it is, and how many people it needs to serve. The cost of a cake is presented as a price per person, often ranging from around $3 per person and up (sometimes way up!). A good way to lower your cake cost is to have a smaller decorative cake to display at the reception, and a sheet cake in the same flavor that can be sliced up in the kitchen and brought out on plates.

As for the design itself, there are many great places from which you can take your inspiration. Some brides like to replicate the cake that their mother or grandmother had for their wedding. Others may love the look of a cake bedecked with fresh or sugar flowers. You can also have a cake created based on one of your hobbies or shared passions.

One of the most popular ideas in wedding cake design is to have a cake made based on your wedding gown or bridal jewelry. The idea is to pull a favorite detail from the bridal gown or the wedding jewelry and replicate on the cake. For instance, if your gown is accented by a beautiful lace, your baker could reproduce the pattern in frosting on the cake. Brides who are wearing crystal bridal jewelry often like to bring that same sparkle to the cake in the form of a crystal monogram cake topper.

After you have nailed down the taste, design, and price of your wedding cake, all that is left is to wait for its unveiling on the big day. A great looking cake will be a wonderful focal point at your reception. And don’t forget about the old custom of saving the top tier of your wedding cake for your first anniversary.

Find Customized Wedding Cake Toppers!

Adding a wedding topper to your cake is like putting on a diamond necklace or a jewel encrusted tiara on your head. It is the last detail that makes all the difference. Placing a custom made wedding cake topper on your cake will make it personal and individual.

To order a custom wedding cake topper you need to know what it is that you want. You may have an idea in mind already and can search that way, or Google custom wedding cake toppers and see what ideas pop up. If you are having a themed wedding, western, or tropical, have a topper made that will reflect that feeling. Perhaps you are having a truly unique wedding in a castle on Halloween weekend, you can your groom can be made to look like a little witch and wizard, or a wedding close to Thanksgiving could have a topper of a small man and woman dressed as pilgrims. Little versions of you and your spouse can be made wearing western wear or grass skirts. The figures may not look exactly like you, but will be similar enough that your guests will know they were made just for your wedding. It may be that there is a certain artist who you would like to feature on your cake. Your topper doesn’t have to be of a bride and groom at all.

Order them early, custom doesn’t always guarantee perfect, especially if you are ordering over the Internet and will not see the topper until it is done. Wherever or from whomever you purchase this custom cake topper, find out about return policies or if satisfaction is guaranteed. They could be clay, ceramic, pottery, wood, or etched crystal toppers. They can be people, your initials, a symbol, or crest to represent you and your groom. Whatever they are, they are customized to fill your needs.