Delishiously Defined

Let's continue on our journey through cakelishousness!

Your wedding cake is an investment of $3 to $9 per slice or more depending on what you choose. So to avoid wasting this money, the goal is to find the bakery that creates the type of cake you like. Isn't cake just cake? Nope! Just like there are many types of frostings, there are as many (more really) cakes!

If you are visiting a bakery, it's helpful to know the lingo. Not all bakeries will make the same type of cake as their standard wedding cake. And not all bakeries will make the same type of cake taste ...um...tasty! :) Like frosting, cakes are more or less defined by their ingredients. The main categories are 'butter cakes' and 'sponge cakes'. Within those categories are the specialty flavors.


Pound Cake: This dense butter cake is often used as a wedding cake because when done properly is moist and sturdy. Traditional recipes consist of 1 pound each of butter, eggs, flour and sugar plus the flavoring and leavening. This makes quite a large cake! Most recipes call for creaming the butter however I have found a recipe from the fabulous Cooks Illustrated to be the best ever and it's a little non-traditional in the mixing method. A membership will be required if you want to check out this recipe, but they'll give you a 2 week membership for free - a great deal! They have the best recipes ever! My husband particularly likes their equipment reviews and the taste testing so we have several (I think 6) of their cookbooks, many magazines and have not been disappointed with anything we've tried (which is really A LOT!) I'd recommend getting the full membership so you can start your marriage with an arsenal of great recipes!


(Side note: Obviously, you are not going to ask the baker their process for mixing and making a pound cake. But if you are looking for a consistently great recipe for entertaining at home or if you're adventurous enough to DIY your wedding cake, Cooks Illustrated has the best!)


Chiffon Cake: Chiffon cakes are not technically 'butter cakes' because they don't have butter. Instead, the fat in this recipe comes from oil.  This creates a moist light cake. They lend themselves well to refrigeration so fillings of fruit and custards work nicely with chiffon cakes.


Sponge Cake: This cake, as suggested by its name is like a sponge. It's got some squish to it but firm enough to bounce back. It's not overly sweet and a little on the dry side, so a sugar syrup is often poured over the cake. There is little or no fat (butter!) in this cake and most often the egg yolks are beaten separately from the whites. Sponge cakes typically don't have any fat in them... except the Victoria Sponge cake, brought to us by Queen Victoria of course who, was said to enjoy sponge cake with her afternoon tea.  BTW- she also brought us the white wedding gown!


Genoise Cake: from France, a sponge cake using whole eggs rather than separating the yolk from the white to be beaten separately. This can be a very dense batter, thick enough to be piped or spread on a flat sheet without running all over the place.  As you might imagine, this thick batter creates dry cake! But this variety that is really great for soaking with liquors or flavored syrups!

So that's what goes into the main types of cake that bakers will use as their basic wedding cake!  Which one is the best? Well, that's what you and your fiance have to decide. 

By popular demand, next week we'll talk MORE about cake but get into international delights and non-traditional wedding dessert options! Woohoo!