Elegant Cakes, Realistic Planning

An elegant wedding cake requires realistic planning

Not all wedding cakes have to be masterpieces of fondant and sugar flowers.  Even Margaret Lastick agrees: "Whatever budget you are working with, you can still do something elegant. There are no rules, no right or wrong, just your dream of making this a very memorable event."

With that in mind, be realistic about your expectations for the wedding cake.  Is it important for the cake to be a showpiece, prominently on display at the reception? Or is it enough to have a pretty cake that will make a terrific dessert? Will the cake be the only sugary finale to the meal, or will there be other desserts or a sweet table.

"Some of our customers say, `This is the last thing our guests are going to eat, so the cake really matters,'" says Deborah Rivera, co-owner of Ambrosia Euro-American Patisserie in Barrington, Ill. "Most of our customers say the wedding cake is the dessert."

Here are some of the issues to think about while planning the reception.

• Determine how important the cake is in the wedding plans and how much of the overall budget can be devoted to it. Professional pastry chefs determine the cost based on the number of people served. Prices can range from $3 to $15 per slice, depending on the baker, the quality of the ingredients (e.g., butter vs. shortening) and time spent making the cake.
  
• Will everyone expect to get a piece of cake? If other desserts are offered, guests often share a slice of cake or forgo it altogether. At some weddings, though, the cake is not eaten at the reception, but slices are sent home in a box with each guest.
  
• How about a smaller cake for display?
  

Pastry chef Judy Contino of Bittersweet bakery in Lake View, Illinois says that one way to keep the cost down is to have a small cake on view for the toast ceremony, when slices are cut for the bride and groom. Additional, undecorated cakes are served from the kitchen. This way, a large number of guests can be fed without commissioning one giant, decorated
wedding cake.

• Look for hidden costs: Will the caterer charge a fee for slicing and serving the cake? If so, you might want to commission two members of the wedding party to do the honors (just be sure they have been instructed how to properly slice large cakes). Is there a charge for cake delivery, or can you pick it up yourself

Other ways to reduce costs

• If the services of a specialty cakemaker are beyond your budget, consider the following options, from "Priceless Weddings For Under $5,000," by food writer Kathleen Kennedy (Three Rivers Press, $14):
  
• Check with your baker: Bakers who aren't wedding cake specialists usually cost less.
  
• Ask at your favorite restaurant if its pastry chef would consider baking your cake.
  
• Investigate prices at a local culinary school near you. If students are baking and decorating cakes as part of their curriculum, the per-person charge may be greatly reduced.
  
• Keep the cake simple: Avoid labor-intensive decorations and skip having multiple tiers with fancy pillars.
  
  

 
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