My Wedding Cake
By Donna Everett (Creative Cakes by Donna)
Q: How Can I Decorate My Cake Table?
A: Your cake table is opportunity to reflect your wedding theme and personal style. Start with the tablecloth, white is always a safe choice. For a more dramatic touch, use a bold shade from your wedding colors. Add texture by draping tulle or organza along the sides of the table. For an air of classic romance, sprinkle rose petals on the tabletop and complete the look with pillar candles.
A great way to personalize your cake table is to display photos, such as your engagement photos and even photos of your parents cutting their wedding cake. Use heirloom lace and linen, or a special tablecloth that represents your cultural background. If your wedding has a specific theme, surround your cake with items reflecting that theme. For example, seashells and starfish are perfect for a seaside theme. Roses and Victorian lace present a beautiful and romantic setting.
Your cake table is also the best place to present your toasting flutes and cake serving set. You could tie ribbons, silk flowers, or other beautiful embellishments around the glass stems. Place your knife and cake server alongside the champagne flutes. Engrave the crystal and silverware for an extra special touch.
Q: What Is Butter Cream Frosting? Fondant?
A: Butter Cream is a light, creamy frosting made with softened butter, confectioners' sugar, egg yolks, and milk or light cream. This uncooked frosting is beaten until light and creamy. It is soft and smooth, and is used to ice the cake, for fillings, and to create decorations, such as piping and small roses.
Fondant is a simple sugar-water and cream of tartar mixture cooked to the soft-ball stage. After cooling, the mixture is beaten and kneaded until extremely pliable. It is sweeter than butter cream and can be rolled out like a piece of dough. It is then draped over the cake, providing a very smooth base for intricate decorations. Bakers also use fondant for cutting candy shapes, such as ribbons and hearts, which can then be stuck on the base fondant frosting.
Tip: Butter Cream frosting has a tendency to melt, so if you are getting married outdoors in the heat, a wise choice would be to use fondant.
Q: How Can I Save Money on My Wedding Cake?
A: If you are a budget-conscious bride who wants an expensive-looking cake at a reasonable price, you can have your cake and eat it too! Read on for ways to make your confectionary dreams come true.
Double Duty: Find out if your caterer works as a baker too. Many hotels, country clubs, and larger catering companies have a pastry chef on staff. Often, if you use the staff pastry chef versus a designer from an outside bakery, you'll avoid cake cutting fees, service fees, additional tips and delivery costs.
Something For Everyone: Order several smaller cakes in different flavors, and serve them together on a dessert table. You will spare your designer major assembly and decoration time; this will cut your costs tremendously. And just think, you’ll get a bite of tiramisu AND cherry chocolate cheesecake!
Flower Power: Flowers one of the most beautiful ways to decorate a cake, and they are also one of the least expensive. To cut costs even more, adopt a "less is more" motto, keep sugar decorations to a minimum and let your fresh blooms take center stage.
Nice Sheets: Your fantasy cake costs a fortune, but the look and taste is just what you want. What should you do? Order a smaller-size cake and have your baker make sheet cakes from the same recipe. After you cut the cake, pose for pictures, and feed each other the first bite, your caterer can whisk the cake behind the scenes where it will be supplemented with sheet cake. Your guests will not know the difference.
The Satellite Discovery: A satellite cake is created when an upper layer of separate cakes is tiered on top of a lower layer of separate cakes. The lower layer serves as the cake's "base." Essentially, satellite cakes are used when the cake needs to be built "out" as well as "up," and when the cost of creating a tall cake is prohibitive to the wedding budget. If you're a bride in need of a towering multi-layer cake, ask your baker about adding satellites instead of tiers. It's a beautiful solution to an otherwise pricey problem.
Square Edges: Boxy cakes are modern, but difficult to build and frost. It takes time and patience to even out all those edges. So if money's an object, go for more traditional, round layers.
Something Borrowed: Your cake is new, so why not borrow from the past for accessories like cake toppers and cutting knives? After sifting though Grandma's hope chest or Mom's china cabinet, you might just find another way to honor brides of the past, revive the life of an heirloom, and save money while you're at it!
Donna Everett
Creative Cakes by Donna
www.cakesbydonna.com
|
