Cakes & Desserts: Confections for any budget
Traditionally, the cake cutting ceremony is the first task a bride and groom perform as a husband and wife after celebrating their wedding vows.
Today, however, creativity takes center stage with many options available for this momentous occasion. Whether you have a traditional, three-tiered wedding cake or a collection of pies, it’s all about expressing the bride and groom’s personality.
Maria Sargent, owner of Sweet Maria’s Confections in Petoskey, said, “In addition to our three- or four-tiered cakes, which can be round or square depending on your tastes, our most requested cake is the tuxedo cake. The ribbons match the color of the groom’s tux and they make for really nice pictures at the reception.”
She added that the fastest growing trend she has seen lately is the addition of a groom’s cake. Typically, they are much smaller than the wedding cake and are decorated in a less traditional theme.
Sargent said, “For these, we’ve created simple chocolate cakes with strawberries as the topper to a large replica of the Michigan State ‘S.’”
When deciding on wedding cakes, cost is an issue. A simple way to cut corners and still get a delicious cake is to use a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting rather than a fondant style of frosting.
Sargent suggested, “Due to the expense of gum paste flowers, many brides use real flowers on the cake to save money. We work directly with the local florists to ensure the flowers match the centerpieces or the bride’s color theme.”
If a large cake isn’t to your liking, why not try individual pies on each table or a simple tart at each guest’s seat?
Suzanne Beer, owner of Suzie’s Pies in Harbor Springs, noted, “I am working on a wedding where they are having five different kinds of fruit pies for a total of 22 pies. There will be one placed in the middle of each table. I have done pies placed on cake pedestals to offer a wide selection for the guests. I also have a sheet pie, which can serve 40 to 50 people.”
Pies, cakes, tarts and truffles make interesting wedding favors and provide guests with a memento of the big event. Wedding favors are offered from the bride and groom as a way of saying thanks. Early on, a small offering of almonds were the traditional gift; however, today’s brides are thinking outside the box.
“Our most requested favors are our lemon sugar cookie in the shape of the bride and groom’s initials. They are individually packaged with a nice ribbon and placed at each seat. We also get a lot of requests for our handmade truffles, too,” said Sargent.
“We offer individual tarts as an interesting favor. Instead of cupcakes, I make cup-pies which are fun and come in all different kinds flavors. They can be fruit filled, cream filled or full of pecans,” said Beer.
With the growing popularity of the cake competitions on cable TV, Sargent receives a lot of requests for exotic cakes. These are usually an expression of the bride and groom’s personality and quite unique in their presentation.
Sargent added, “Though exotic cakes are expensive, you can build just about anything that can be made with cake. We’ve created a pig cake for a pig roast and a basset hound cake, too. Our largest request was a full-size motorcycle that had a removable seat and tanks serving as the cake.”
Up North Bride Home » Fall & Winter 2010/2011 Edition » Cakes & Desserts: Confections for any budget