My First Wedding Cake

Oh my goodness, this was so exciting, challenging and nerve-racking all at the same time. About three weeks before I made the cake, the bakery got call about someone wanting a simple wedding cake. They were part of the family who got the eggless Mickey Mouse cake and the grandma insisted they get their wedding cake from our bakery.

At the consultation, I sat with the bride after she had picked her flavor, filling and frosting with my boss, and talked to her about what decoration she would like. She wanted completely simple, almost to the point of no borders, but we decided a pearl border with a few small pearls on the edges would be a good combo. She was going to use fresh roses as the cake topper. Baking the vanilla cakes was no problem, and they came out of the pans beautifully, so I didn’t have to worry about fixing messy edges. I also had to make the raspberry filling (great choice bride!!) for the cake. I have made a few fillings at work and I can’t believe how easy it is to make. Literally you add 1 1/2 cups of fruit, 1/2 cup of sugar and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to a pan and bring to a boil until the fruit breaks down and the sauce becomes “clear.” On Saturday I finished all of my other work and began working on the wedding cake. The first step was to level the cakes, as close to perfect as I could.

I was already nervous and a little shaky at this point and this coffee cup totally summed up what I was feeling! I mean, I am in charge of making someone’s wedding cake, which they are expecting to be perfect on their day. You don’t want to be the detail that didn’t turn out right for a wedding!

Next step, place first layer perfectly centered on the cake board, pipe the frosting wall in the middle and add the amazingly tasty raspberry filling.

Carefully place top layer and finish pre-icing your cake. I repeated these steps for the top tier of the cake and placed both tiers in the freezer to set the filling and frosting.

After they had set, I put the final icing on the bottom tier and got it as perfectly smooth as I could. Then I had to put a few dowel rods into the cake to support the top tier. Push the dowel all the way to the cake board, mark where it meets the top of the cake, remove from cake and cut on your mark. At this point, finish icing the top tier.

The scariest step comes next – placing the top tier on the bottom tier. Did I mention this was my first tiered cake as well?? Oh yeah, my nerves were going crazy! Deep breath, deep breath and set cake. Thanks be to God that I was able to place the top tier almost perfectly centered on the first try.

Take a few deep breaths, say thank you prayers and finish icing your cake.

I have to give my boss a big thank you for trusting me to make this cake and I am very glad for the experience of creating a wedding cake and a tiered cake. Wishing the newly married couple a lifetime of happiness!

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