Hottest Cakes For Northern California Brides

Filed under Cakes, Expert Advice, Receptions, Wedding Ideas

Cakes that make a statement

Cake Do’s & Don’ts

Flowers can play another important role by separating the tiers. Plastic pillars are way pass, but a cluster of yellow rose buds between layers? Bellisimo! Another faux pas is the traditional topper. Be it a bell, dove or a plastic bride and groom, nix the chatzkes and use flowers instead. If you really want a topper, consider having it constructed as part of the cake design, such as Have Your Cake’s comical jack-in-the box with the bride and groom popping out of the top. Katrina Rozelle often crowns her creations with a silvery standing monogram of the couple’s initials. Another exception to the Topper Ban is if you’ve found something truly lovely and vintage, such as an antique picture frame, or a pair of expertly handcrafted statuettes from your parent’s wedding. In that case, the nostalgic theme should also be woven into the rest of your event.

Good Enough to Eat

articles_alt Back in the olden days, wedding cakes were meant to be seen but not necessarily eaten—guests would take a bite or two of the dry slice with the sickeningly sweet frosting to be polite, then hastily set it aside. Of course, post-millennial Bay Area partygoers have much higher expectations. “When you bite into your cake, your mouth should say, Wow!” asserts Sam Godfrey. For many, the best way to guarantee such exuberance is by using chocolate. Sonya Hong reveals, “I have people come in all the time and ask me, ‘Is it okay to have a chocolate cake?’ I tell them to order whatever they really like.” Kay Dillon says half of the orders she gets at Beaux Gateaux are for rich chocolate cake with chocolate mousse filling. Chocolate isn’t just hiding on the inside—it also makes a bold showing in the frosting. In the hands of an artist like Susan Morgan, chocolate takes on whole new identities, and she is known for her exceptional use of a white chocolate blend to create her lifelike roses.

Naturally, Morgan’s company specializes in all varieties of cheesecakes, customized to suit particular tastes. Maybe it’s our inner child expressing itself, but she says candy add-ins are all the rage, like Butterfingers, toffee, or Heath bars. Katrina Rozelle agrees: “People are really going a little wild, adding all kinds of fruits and nuts, too.” Kay Dillon doesn’t keep a menu of flavors because she’s always making up new combinations for her clients. One of her most inspired creations was a Mandarin Orange Mousse Chiffon Cake, delicately scented with the rose petal wine the bride was serving with dinner. What if you like vanilla toffee crunch and he insists on carrot cake? No problem—you can choose a different flavor for each layer. “A cake should be as adventurous and interesting on the inside as on the outside,” Bob Doxey of Theobroma reminds us, and his company offers exciting versions of European classics.

For those who still want a touch of the Victorian in their wedding, why not choose the “Chocolate Lavender Cake”? Lavender was traditionally added to give chocolate a delicate sweetness, and in Theobroma’s adaptation, two layers of rich chocolate cake join three layers of chocolate lavender souffl pastry and lavender buttercream, with a side of lavender syrup.

If there are any Mediterranean elements in your wedding, be it setting, cuisine or heritage, wrap it all up with one of Theobroma’s enticing Modern Mediterranean offerings. The always-delicious chocolate/hazelnut duo makes their “Giandua Cake” simply irresistible, especially when it’s flavored with frangelico and finished with chocolate ganache. Or make your guests an offer they can’t refuse with the Sicilian Wedding Cake, three tiers of polenta filled with chocolate buttercream, accompanied by warm galliano caramel sauce.

Wait, There’s More

If you’re planning an intimate reception, there’s nothing like presenting your guests with their very own miniature wedding cake. Katrina Rozelle bakes tiny three-tiered desserts and says, “I love to watch the guests’ faces when they’re served this charming, completely unexpected jewel of a cake. It simply takes their breath away!” How about a special sweet for your sweetie? Groom’s cakes are making a major comeback, especially when they’re uniquely his—shaped like a soccer ball, a tackle box or even a laptop computer!

Wedding orders at Elegant Cheese Cakes also include a “Day-after Cake,” a small present of a dessert with an edible gift card bearing the names of the bride and groom. When the last handful of rice has been tossed and you’re alone at last, share this petite pastry together as husband and wife, and savor the success of your celebration and the brightness of your future.

Mmmmm…how sweet it is!

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Hottest Cakes For Northern California Brides

Cake Do’s & Don’ts

Good Enough to Eat

Wait, There’s More

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