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Croquembouche, kransekake, Caribbean black cake, korovai and the British fruit cake. How wedding cakes differ around the world, and the cultures that skip cake.
The tiered white cake is only one kind of wedding cake. France has the croquembouche, a cone of cream puffs bound with caramel. Norway and Denmark build the kransekake from stacked almond rings. The Caribbean has black cake, dense with rum-soaked fruit. Ukraine, Russia and neighbouring countries bake the korovai, a decorated wedding bread. And many cultures never had a wedding cake at all, celebrating with sweets, bread or rice cakes instead. What a wedding "cake" looks like depends on where your families come from.
Wedding cakes by country: Britain, Fruit cake with white icing, Rich fruit cake, historically called bride cake; France, Italy, Croquembouche, A cone of filled choux puffs held together with caramel; Norway, Denmark, Kransekake, Concentric almond rings stacked into a tower; Caribbean, Black cake, Dark cake made with fruit soaked in rum or cherry brandy; Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Korovai, Large round decorated bread given to the couple as a blessing; Korea, Tteok, Rice cakes served at the wedding feast.
The cake most people picture has British roots. English Heritage traces it from the bride pies of the 16th and 17th centuries, through sweet yeasted breads, to iced cakes. The same source credits Elizabeth Raffald with icing cakes in almond paste and sugar in 1769, and reports that Queen Victoria's 1840 cake weighed 300 pounds. White icing was expensive, so a very white cake showed off a family's wealth. Traditional British wedding cake is still often a rich fruit cake, though English Heritage notes that lighter sponges are now more common.
A croquembouche is a tall cone of cream-filled choux puffs bound with threads of caramel, traditionally served at weddings, baptisms and first communions in France and Italy. Its invention is often credited to the chef Antonin Carême, who included it in his 1815 cookbook. The name means "crunch in the mouth". It is best assembled on the day, since caramel softens in humid air, so talk to your baker about timing.
Kransekake (kransekage in Danish) is a tower of 18 or more almond rings held together with white icing, served at weddings, baptisms, Christmas and Norway's Constitution Day. At weddings the couple may lift off the top ring, and the number of rings that stick to it is said to predict how many children they will have. See Scandinavian wedding traditions for more.
Black cake is a dark, dense cake made with dried fruit soaked in rum or cherry brandy. In Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica it is especially tied to Christmas and weddings. The fruit is soaked well in advance, so if a family member plans to bake it, give them plenty of notice. Caribbean wedding traditions covers more of the day.
The korovai (or karavai) is a large round braided bread decorated with dough birds, suns and wheat, traditional in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Poland and Bulgaria. The couple receive it as a blessing, and the top is shared between them before portions go to parents and guests. It also appears in the bread-and-salt welcome ceremony.
Many wedding traditions have no cake at all, or treat it as a recent Western import.
Serve two cakes. A conventional cake plus a croquembouche, black cake or kransekake is common and gives both families something familiar.
Have you made this cake before, and can we see photos of your own work? How far ahead can it be made, and how should it be stored on the day? Does it travel well, or should it be assembled at the venue? How many guests will it serve, and will we need a second cake for cutting? Can you label the allergens, especially nuts and alcohol?
The croquembouche, a cone of cream-filled choux puffs held together with caramel. It is also served at baptisms and first communions in France and Italy.
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