Sweet Talk: A Guide to Wedding Cake Terminology
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What’s the difference between buttercream and fondant? Are all decorations edible? And what the heck is a croqeumbouche, anyway? Learn how to “sweet talk” your baker with these common terms:
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Icings/Fillings
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Buttercream
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Popular off-white or ivory-colored icing made from butter, confectionery sugar and milk. The benefit is that it’s inexpensive and easy to cut through. It can be used to create decorative details or as a filling. On the downside, it may melt in extreme heat.
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Fondant
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Icing made of sugar, corn syrup and gelatin. Fondant is not applied with a spatula—it is rolled to uniform thickness with a rolling pin and draped over the cake. Although not as tasty as other icings, the porcelain finish makes it an ideal base for decoration, design and beading. Fondant cake can stay fresh for days (even in warm weather), but should not be refrigerated.
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Ganache
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Made of chocolate and heavy cream, this thick, sweet concoction can be used as icing or filling.
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Royal Icing
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Sugar and egg white mixture that is piped through a bag to create decoration. As it dries, royal icing turns from soft and pasty to hard and brittle.
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Whipped Cream
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The most delicious and most troublesome choice, since fresh whipped cream must be kept refrigerated.
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Decorations
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Dragees
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Sugar balls coated in gold, silver and sometimes pastel colors. Consumption is not always recommended, as some contain small amounts of metal.
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Gum Paste
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This paste, made from sugar, corn starch and gelatin, can be used to form flowers, fruits and other edible decorations. It’s long-lasting—perfect if you’d like a tiny keepsake.
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Marzipan
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This paste of almonds, sugar and egg whites can be rolled onto the cake as an icing (like fondant) or used for sculpting edible decorations.
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Piping
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Decoration created with a pastry bag and assorted metal tips. Techniques include basketweave (interwoven vertical and horizontal lines), cornelli (lace-like), dotted swiss (tiny dots in a random pattern), latticework (criss-cross), and shells.
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Pulled Sugar
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Decoration created with a pastry bag and assorted metal tips. Techniques include basketweave (interwoven vertical and horizontal lines), cornelli (lace-like), dotted swiss (tiny dots in a random pattern), latticework (criss-cross), and shells.
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Cakes By Category
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Anniversary Cake
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The carefully preserved top layer of your wedding cake or a small replica, to be shared on your first anniversary. If you want to save a portion of your cake, decide ahead of time. Otherwise, let the baker know that you’d like a smaller version made as well.
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Back-up Cake
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Don't ditch the idea of having your dream cake. A back-up cake makes it possible for you to have your cake and eat it too-literally. Order a smaller display cake and then serve your guests slices of sheet cake or a "back-up cake". You can do the traditional slicing of the cake in front of your guests and then have the sheet cake served from a back room. Don't want to have a small cake? The look of a larger cake can be achieved by using a "dummy" base or fountains. This allows you to have an extra large look without the cost of a very large decorated cake
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Croquembouche
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This traditional French wedding cake was popularized by royalty in the Middle Ages. More of a cone-shaped structure than a cake, the croquembouche is built out of profiteroles (a caramel-glazed cream puff).
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Groom’s Cake
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Still popular in the South, this more light-hearted confection reflects the groom’s interests. It can be in the shape of a football, a racecar…even a giant armadillo! (Remember Steel Magnolias?)
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Tiered Cake
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Includes layers of various shapes and sizes, stacked to form the finished cake.
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