I’m always surprised when people see some of my non-traditional wedding cakes and ask, as if in secret, “Do people really choose those for weddings?” Perhaps the Texan in me shouldn’t be so surprised, as we in the South have a harder time than most parting ways with long-standing tradition, but the creative in me continues to be left aghast. Cakes after all, are just as creative an expression of style and sentiment as floral, attire, paper and location. While the towering white on white embellished bridal cake will always have an iconic place in wedding history, it’s the new, the different, the perfectly unique that continue to charm and excite. But you don’t have to take my word for it — you can read for yourself in the pages of Vogue. The trendsetting mag’s Aussie outpost recently covered the ever-changing wedding cake trend in their March issue. I’d love to share a little bit of their piece on the history of the wedding cake — I think you will surprised to find out that what we think of as classic and traditional isn’t quite so. Perhaps it will give you that push of perspective to design a cake with fearless abandon, or even some ideas for a new take on the cake tradition…who’s up for a cake fight?
“The history of wedding cakes (like a lot of customs that began in the Roman Empire) is quite odd. The groom originally broke the (bread-like) cake over the bride’s head as a symbol of his dominance in the marriage.”
“During medieval times cakes were thrown at brides as a sign of fertility.”
“Later on in history the happy couple would kiss over a towering pile of baked goods – if the tower remained steady, wedded bliss would be guaranteed (this is where the idea for croquembouche came from).”
