Talking About Wedding Cake ....

A few fun tidbits and tips to think about when choosing your wedding cake.

The multitier wedding cake that is so familiar at receptions is modeled after the spires of St. Bride’s Church in England.

The average wedding cake costs between $500 and $700 and onwards up to thousands of dollars. Figure on $4.50 per serving.

Most wedding cakes still are made of round tiers. Square-tiered cakes look very sophisticated, but they have not put much of a dent in the popularity
of the traditional round.

Bakers routinely offer back-up sheet cakes for the wedding reception to make sure there is enough cake for all the guests, no matter what the size of the tiered version at the center of the room is. But it is increasingly popular for brides to plan for a table of various desserts in addition to the wedding cake.

According to the The Knot.com. Red velvet cake is by far the most popular flavor among brides (especially in the south). Bakers suggest that there only be two flavors in a three-tiered cake. The sheet cake can be another flavor altogether.

Make sure the bottom layer is a flavor the bride and groom both like. That is the layer they will cut and serve each other symbolizing their pledge to work together and to care for each other.


Brides often save the top layer to share with the groom on their first anniversary. But you can also preserve it in brandy to be shared on your 50th (don't know how it will taste -- but it can be done.) Some bakeries will also offer to re-create the top of the cake for the first wedding
anniversary.

Sources: Various web sites, comments by bakers and wedding planners).

The Party Dress Cake ... Original

Wow is all I can say. Looking at wedding cake sites this weekend I came across The Party Dress Cake which was created by The Pink Cake Box for a cake contest sponsored by the Somerset Art Association. The “Let Them Eat Cake” contest. The theme was the celebration of spring. They created the “Bloom of the Ball” which was a nature inspired party dress adorned with sugar roses, vines, and leaves hanging on a dress form. The cake was a sour cream orange
zest cake filled with pistachio and white chocolate buttercream and 46″
tall.

The Pink Cake Box won the “Show Stopper” award.

P.S. They do wedding cakes too : )

Using Edible Flowers for Your Wedding Cake

"Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary, How does your garden grow?" Hopefully she has violets, roses and a nice assortment of edible flowers.

If you are looking for a fabulous conversation starter at your wedding and a unique approach to decorating your food; try using edible flowers as decor for your desserts or wedding cake.

After somewhat disappearing for many years, cooking and garnishing with flowers is back in vogue. You can decorate cupcakes, petit-fours, cookies; even the wedding cake with a large variety of edible flowers. Just make sure you research the flowers you choose because not all flowers are edible. Some edible blooms include: violets, naturtiums, scented geraniums and violets.

Using flowers as decorations and eating them is not new. The art of flower cooking can be traced back to Roman times, and to the Chinese, Middle Eastern, and Indian cultures. Edible flowers are known to have been popular during Queen Victoria's reign in the Victorian era . Today, many restaurant chefs and innovative home cooks garnish their entrees with flower blossoms for a touch of elegance.

The secret to success when using edible flowers is to use flowers sparingly in your recipes. You don't want digestive complications that can occur with a large consumption rate; and you do not want to add to many other flavors that will over power the delicate taste of the flower.

Although the concept of using fresh edible flowers in cooking is not new it is still awe inspiring to see. It is a nearly lost art that is enjoying a revival.

TIPS:

One very important thing that you need to remember is that not every flower is edible.

• Sampling some flowers can make you very, very sick.

• Make sure your flowers have never been introduced to pesticides

• Identify the flower exactly and eat only edible flowers, and edible parts of those flowers; or

• You can be like me and buy the edible flowers : ) If you are not sure how or what to do with flowers it's easier to let someone else to the work for you. One company is Sweetfeilds with offerings such as Edible Candied Pansies or the Sweetfields Silver Mixed Tray

• If you want to grow your own flowers and find recipes to candy them, try the book Edible
  Flowers by Kathy Brown, which has a wealth of information

• For more information and recipes, check out: What's Cooking America; Osage Gardens and the Hub Pages for a great Candied Violet recipe, or even Wikipedia.

Guess it's safe to say that when you are cooking with flowers, every time you scrape that bowl you are putting the "petal to the metal!" Sorry, couldn't resist the pun.