We recently came across a post that's entire purpose was to eradicate the existence of cake at weddings. Yes, you read that correctly, a mass genocide of wedding cakes if you will. Some wrongs just have to be righted and so, in this post, I will explain exactly why you should always and forever serve cake at a wedding.
Liz made a good point in saying how irritating and not to mention unfair it is when someone tries to pass off their own bad experience as "good advice". Is every wedding cake in the world delicious and moist as it should be? Probably not. Does that mean all wedding cake should get a bad rep and be eliminated as a timeless tradition? Absolutely not. That would be like saying because you leave a hair salon with a bad cut, color or manicure that you should never go to one again and they should all be eliminated. I mean really? You can not blame the whole for one small bad piece. As in everything, you have the good and you have the bad. It is outrageous to say that every wedding cake ever has been bad and that is just a fact of wedding cakes.
My first bit of advice is to do some research and make sure you're getting what you want out of your wedding cake. Delicious wedding cakes do exist, you just have to be sure to find them. Checking reputation and doing a taste test yourself are great ways to ensure you will have a delicious cake at your wedding. My second bit of advice? Home bakers or smaller scale bakeries and cake artists may be more likely to yield a moist, delicious cake. I am not saying a large bakery cannot because that also would not be fair, but they are more likely to take on more orders and have the need to make their product further ahead of time and use straight commercial mix and shortening based frosting. Again, no matter where you are thinking of getting your wedding cake from, take the time to know what you're getting before your special day.
Delicious wedding cakes do exist,
you just have to be sure to find them.
The next point I would like to make is what a unique centerpiece and dare I say work of art wedding cakes have become at weddings. Most everyone, especially the bride, looks forward to seeing the wedding cake and it adds a beautiful element of awe to a wedding that cannot be replaced by a chocolate fountain. Just look at the face on this bride as she sees her wedding cake. That, my friends, is irreplaceable. I for one have never been that excited to see a chocolate fountain.
From sculpted masterpieces to perfectly themed pieces of art, wedding cakes can add a personal and/or elegant touch to your wedding that will not be forgotten. I'd like to see anyone do any of the following with pie and ice cream.
It was hard for me to stop at five photo examples but the point is, no, passing around cookies like hors d'oeuvres will not be as memorable as a gorgeous cake that, as I have mentioned, can also be delicious.
Next on the list of wrongs to right is the naked wedding cake. Clearly the writer of the other post is not a baker and does not know what goes into making a naked cake. While she was correct in saying that the frosting keeps in the moisture, it does not automatically mean that naked cakes are dry and insufferable. Some naked cakes are "half dressed" with a thin layer of buttercream which is enough to hold in the moisture and naked cake layers should be treated with a simple syrup to ensure moistness. Once again, make sure to do your research and choose a bakery or cake artist that knows what they're doing and produces a cake that tastes as good as it looks.
So hey, if you want to have additional desserts at your wedding as well, by all means go ahead! I've had many brides serve several desserts at their wedding with my cake. I also have renowned reviews for the moisture, taste and artistry of my cakes and my brides have been thrilled with their wedding cakes. Take it from a successful cake artist/baker and not a disgruntled consumer, don't eliminate the wedding cake from your wedding lineup, let them eat GOOD cake.