I needed information from a trustworthy source so I went to my library. There were several books on the subject of Wedding Cakes. I browsed through several books but decided to take home Dede Wilson's "Wedding Cakes You Can Make". The first half of the book discusses everything you need to know, from tools and cake pans, to creating a schedule. I highly recommend this book because I learned a lot from it.
Another invaluable source of information was Rose Levy Beranbaum's website: "Real Baking with Rose". The forum is great with lots of cake experts willing to help out. One of the major contributors to the website and master cake baker, Hector, has graciously answered numerous questions of mine. I thank you sincerely, Hector!
After some experimenting, I finally decided on the cake to make: yellow butter cake from Rose's book, The Cake Bible. This decision came after baking several different cakes and having my husband, friends and coworkers give me their opinions on what they liked and disliked. This cake won hands down. After one bit of Rose's cake, my husband said: "this is the one". He said he didn't even need to taste the other piece cake on his plate, awaiting a taste test :o) The other thing I loved about this cake is that in Rose's book, the math for all the different pan sizes was already done for me. Piece of cake! :o)
For the filling I used my own recipe for a Strawberry Cream Cheese filling. The frosting needed to be white so I went with a buttercream frosting. Both were made in advance and frozen.
I used a floating tiers cake stand by Wilton. This way the cakes didn't have to be stacked on top of one another. This cake stand holds a 14" cake, a 10" cake and a 6" cake. To ensure there was plenty of cake fore everyone to eat, my friends wanted me to make an extra 8" cake (not displayed on the stand) and an extra 6" cake so they could serve one and save one for their first wedding anniversary.
The best part after completing my very first wedding cake project was that everybody loved the way the cake looked, and more importantly, how it tasted.
Without further ado, here are the pictures. Enjoy!
Roses and Baby's Breath for decorating the top of each cake
Bride and groom plus the wedding cake on the cake stand(I asked and they were OK with me posting this picture on my blog)
A close-up of the 14" cake with a total of 8 lilac roses and 5 white roses
This is the 10" cake decorated with 6 lilac roses and 3 white roses
Another close-up of the 10" cake
This was my slice of wedding cake - very tasty, if I say so myself :o)
Hanaa, that cake is stunning - super professional-looking! The crumb of the cake looks nice and fluffy, yum! Your husband and friends must have loved helping out with the tasting while you did the research.
ReplyDeleteTook my breath away Hanaa. It's a work of art...so beautiful that I wish I was getting married! I love the 3 tiers, each perfect & gorgeously done. Cannot believe this is your first attempt. Honestly I'm awestruck! I love the crumb too. Looks light & moist! WOW!!!
ReplyDeleteHanaâ, the cake is fantastic, it really looks and tastes more than professional, because you have meticulously selected the cake's recipe, super moist and super tasty,(I should add that the time you spent to research and experiment was truly rewarding,just as in "no pain, no gain" :). The cake's decoration was truly elegant. Finally, and most importantly the cake was made with too much love, a key factor that distinguished it from just a regular professional cake. Thumbs up Hanaâ.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations...!
You friend Wafae
I was one of the lucky people who got to taste the wedding cake and it was excellent.
ReplyDeleteHanaa, this is gorgeous! I can't believe this was your first ever wedding cake! You did a beautiful job, especially in the detail work. Do you mind if I ask how long it took you to make/decorate?
ReplyDeleteDid you say this was your first wedding cake?!?!?! Woman, that doesnt look like a first timer did that! My small teeny weeny lil 8" cake was a 1st timer's.
ReplyDeleteYours is gorgeous! Very professional!
What an amazing looking cake. Congrats on a wonderful work of art.
ReplyDeleteyou did a beautiful job and i'm very proud to have had anything to do with it!
ReplyDeletebest wishes,
rose (levy beranbaum)
Well, it may have been your first wedding cake...but I'm thinking it probably won't be your last! And how COOL that Rose posted a comment to you!! You really did a fantastic job. I love the roses on the cake, too. Congratulations!! And thanks for sharing. :o)
ReplyDeletehanna, you did such a nice writeout!
ReplyDelete"looks" professional or "very" good aren't terms for you! dearly hanna.
your case IS professional and IS good. don't let anyone tell you that this cake, been home made, and perhaps in a humble kitchen or without a 20 quart hobart, isn't great.
love the cake crumb, texture looks perfect, so white, and the pink filling, so delicious.
a wedding cake is considered a graduation for a home baker, so welcome to the crowd. and btw, my first wedding cake didn't look as good!
Wow!!! That is one impressive cake!!! Everything about it is beautiful - simple, elegant, just stunning. Well done.
ReplyDeleteHanaa, you've done a fabulous job! The cake looks very elegant! Congratulations to your friends!
ReplyDeleteHi Hanaâ!
ReplyDeleteOH MY GOODNESS! I'm speechless. Holy cannoli, that cake is simply perfection. I am SO proud of you, Hanaâ, I can't even tell you. I knew that your creation would be beautiful and equally delicious, but the finished product just blows me away- phenomenally gorgeous! You did a superlative job, and that couple were very lucky to have such a talented, generous, and dedicated cake baker and friend, who could make an edible masterpiece to grace their reception and impress/feed their guests. I am in LOVE with the detail piping work you did, and I wish you could give me a private lesson so I could learn your fabulous technique. WOW, I'm sending you my sincerest congratulations on achieving such a fantastic accomplishment. I know that this cake is just the beginning, and there are many more stunning cakes to come- I can't wait to see what's next! :)
Hope to talk to you soon dear!
-Joy
Hanna.. this cake looks SPECTACULAR!! Having made more than my share of wedding cakes, I can honestly say this cake is beyond "professional" - it's perfect! And it's your first one?! Really beautiful! I sure wish I could have a piece right now - Congrats!!
ReplyDeleteI think you did an absolutely stunning job! Really beautiful - congratulations!
ReplyDeleteYour cake looks so nice! I love that you made your own homemade cake. Most people emphasize so much on the decoration that taste becomes sacrificed. Rose's recipes are really good because they are so light and fluffy, although they turn out a touch too dry for me.
ReplyDeleteThe cake was perfect. It looked beautiful, very intricate design of beads, the flowers were so fresh and artistically arranged. The cake itself was very moist and had an amazing flavor. Loved the filling. If we did not know, we could not have guessed that it's made by a first timer. Hanaa, you are amazing. With a full time, and not an easy job, you made time to try out many recipes, try different frostings, get it taste tested, contact experienced bakers for queries......it's unbelievable. way to go!!!
ReplyDeletewhat an absolutely beautiful wedding cake!
ReplyDeleteWOWZERS! First off, that cake looks splendid! Amazing! Totally professional! Second, I've been asked to make my girlfriend's wedding cake as well this August! And with the same flavors! I'm anxiety ridden as I write this here. I was given MArtha's Wedding Cake book for tips and ideas. And for the cake, I too tried many vanilla cake recipes but nothing sufficed. I finally settled on one, but the nerves aren't any calmer. Wish me luck! haha.
ReplyDeleteWOW, just amazing,great job, you're hired!!! It's nice when a plan comes together so well.
ReplyDeleteThe cake was the crowning jewel of the reception (other than the Bride herself of course). I believe there was a round of applause and many pictures taken. As the groom, I was very happy to have a cake to match the lovliness of my wonderful new wife. It tasted "out of this world" as well. It really was a memorable creation by Hanaa.
ReplyDeleteAmazing, what an accomplishment. I am doing one for a friend in October and I will benefit from this great post, thank you.
ReplyDeleteHector is a good guy and great baking buddy! So glad you found him and the RBwR forum helpful. Your cake turned out great, and I KNOW it tasted better than most!!!
ReplyDeleteTake care,
ButterYum
(Patrincia from Real Baking with Rose)
Your cake is stunning. I love the Wilton floating tier stands and you couldn't have made a better choice than Roses yellow butter cake. Beautiful
ReplyDeleteHanaa...this is gorgeous! I'm planning to make 'the cake' for the facebook group...I hope I get in too...love your cakes..great job!
ReplyDeleteHanaa, You did a Beautiful job with research, design, planning ahead, baking, decorating and presenting this wedding cake! Just beautiful and what a great idea for using a floating cake stand. Cutting pegs and setting up tiers can be such a pain at times. I love how fresh and delicate the cake was along with using Rose's recipe. You would not have been able to pull this off without enjoying baking and decorating =)
ReplyDeleteWow, it's beautiful! What a wonderful piping job you did! For your next fondant project, you should check out stencils. They make decorating easy and beautiful!
ReplyDeleteFirst OMG that cake is gorgeous! The piping on it is fantastic!
ReplyDeleteI came to your site (now bookmarked!) as I will be attempting a wedding cake myself.
I tried a version of yellow cake this weekend and well found it a bit lacking. Bit too sweet for me (will most definitely be for my friends) and I didn't like the colour of mine either.
I wonder if you'd mind sharing your recipe? I ordered a couple of books but not sure I'll get them in time (there is a very short window for this wedding!)
Thanks,
This cake is gorgeous! I like the piping and the roses. Your friends must have been so pleased! I used Rose's books and forums too, and found her cake charts super useful. Great job!
ReplyDelete:)
WOW!!Hanaa , just saw the wedding cake and it,s absolutely beautiful and gorgeous and too ...p.s. would you have the recipe for the Strawberry Cream Cheese filling....Rosa Maggie.
ReplyDeletei totally agree PLUS the fluffy texture of the cake slice and the perfectly even filling is so enticing. hats off!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Rose. I could not have done it wihtout you. The Cake Bible was invaluable to this project :-)
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