We take you around the world in eight wedding cakes to find the perfect flavour and style for you!
From the beloved croquembouche to the lesser known kransekage and the ultra trendy doughnut tower, prepare to be tempted by this delicious itinerary…
Croquembouche
Originating in France, croquembouche towers are all the rage for finishing your sweet table with a touch of finesse. Each choux pastry ball is filled with cream before being stacked into a pyramid shape and secured with caramelised sugar. For your big day, you could adapt the recipe to feature flavoured creams, coloured icing or even have the pastry balls drizzled with chocolate.
Macaron Tower
Born in Italy as a single layer, the macaron was later filled in France to become the sweet treat we know today. A staple of the dessert table, you can add colour by picking out shades to match with your bouquet, bridesmaids or decorations. The arrangement of macaron towers can vary to show the shiny top or to display the delicious fillings. Many towers also have a cake at the top or base of the stand so that couples can still cut the cake.
Cheese Cake
For those among us who don’t have a sweet tooth but still want to cut their cake, cheese is the answer. Whole rounds of cheese will give the aesthetic of a traditional wedding cake, and you can cut into and feed each other a piece, a tradition that symbolises providing for each other. Decorate your cheese tower with flowers, foliage, grapes or apple slices to fit with your wedding theme.
Kransekage
This traditional Danish cake is one you may not have heard of before. Almond paste is shaped into rings and baked, then stacked and decorated. Icing can be used to create texture and patterns, as pictured here. To add colour, why not tuck some edible flowers into the layers? As the mixture is so sweet you only need to serve a small piece to your guests with their coffee.
Bundt Cake
The mixture for this cake originates in Europe but is hugely popular in the USA, giving the bundt cake quite the cosmopolitan history. With a hole in the middle, the top is typically decorated with icing. To make this style of cake a show-stopper, use a staggered cake stand with a different flavoured cake on each level. Decorate each of your bundt wedding cakes with drip icing and edible flowers or colourful fruits.
Doughnut Tower
If you want your cake to be a departure from the norm, then a delicious tower of doughnuts could tick all of the boxes. This American classic is easy to serve and offers a wealth of flavours. You could have each doughnut decorated to enhance your theme. For a neat arrangement, consider a tiered cake stand to pile them on, or go rustic with a towering stack.
Naked Cake
If you’re not a fan of icing, opt for a naked cake. This relatively new style of cake is all about flavour. Expect to see jam, buttercream or ganache on display, oozing out of the sponge layers. An adaptation is the semi-naked cake, which has a thin crumb coat layer of buttercream. You could also try a drip cake twist. If you are tying the knot in the height of summer, stick to a naked cake, though, so that you don’t have melting buttercream to contend with.
This is a relatively simple style of cake to decorate – why not give it a try yourself with our easy DIY guide?
Iced Cake
A traditional wedding cake consists of tiers of fruitcake. These are usually covered in a layer of marzipan and finished with icing. It is customary to save the top tier for the christening of the first born child, but nowadays different cakes and sponges are used to suit the couple’s tastes. Some of these won’t keep, so check with your baker first if you want to follow this tradition. If you like the idea of an individual cake or cupcakes, try a single tier cake at the top for the cake cutting moment. You can then display miniature cakes underneath.
Got a taste for one of these wedding cakes? These are the questions you need to ask your baker before you place the order!
