A wedding cake with fresh flowers is a trend in the 2018 culinary season. He will look great at a celebration dedicated to the wedding. In this case, the flowers will be truly alive, and not artificial. To design mini bouquets for a cake, you can contact a florist or create them yourself. Experienced confectioners have also developed options for candiing flowers in order to preserve their beauty for a long period. And the last exquisite design solution is to create sweet flowers that will resemble real ones. But the main rule that pastry chefs adhere to is minimalism in design and placing accents on blue, pastel pink and red shades.
The most beautiful wedding cakes
Let’s take a closer look at the popular trends in cake decorating for modern weddings:
- Classic option.
These are snow-white cream cakes that will never lose their relevance because they look luxurious and festive. Such cakes, as a rule, have several layers, covered with protein cream, decorated with various lace patterns and other decorative elements. On the top tier of such a cake there are always figures placed - either the bride and groom, or blues, or wedding rings.
- Cake with a fairy tale theme.
The choice that girls who have thought through their wedding in childhood always settle on. As a rule, such cakes look like a fairy-tale castle with carved windows, columns and decorations.
- Cake "Statue".
These are cakes that have some original shape - a heart, pillows for rings, doves, rings.
- Exotic themed cake.
These are cakes that look extravagant in appearance - they are black or neon in color.
- Naked cake.
These are cakes in which the cake layers are not covered with either cream or mastic. At the same time, they do not look boring and ugly, because they are usually decorated with fruits and berries, which add brightness and beauty to the dessert.
Why were such creams so popular among newlyweds?
There may be several answers, and the first of them can be called storage duration. If, according to GOST, a cake with custard or butter cream could not be stored for more than 24 hours, then a protein cake was given as much as 72 hours. At the same time, the jewelry stood like new, never leaked or cracked. A large amount of sugar made the recipe for this cream less vulnerable, since sugar itself is one of the best preservatives.
The second is the majesty of the cake, which was decorated with squirrels, and there were also birds (pigeons or swans) sitting on it, which were made from the same meringue. The combination of flavors was classic. Sugar was present in all decorations. The most basic quality of such cakes was that you could eat absolutely everything without thinking about preservatives and other thickeners, unknown elements and ingredients that were present in the decorations.
No matter how fashionable it was at a certain point in time, but now they have come to the point that they make environmentally friendly naked cakes for weddings, and, therefore, the cream in them is used only as an impregnation between the cake layers. But they are not perfect either, since not everyone is ready to put decorations made from natural flowers in their mouth, and everyone has liked protein custard since childhood.
Wedding cake recipe, without mastic
Recipe No. 1:
- Separate 4 whites from the yolks. First we will work with the yolks, and at this time the whites need to be placed in the refrigerator.
- Add 90 g of sugar to the yolks and beat everything with a mixer until you get a homogeneous mass (the sugar should completely dissolve).
- Beat 4 egg whites until fluffy. As soon as foam begins to form, add 90 g of sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form.
- Combine the whipped whites with the beaten yolks, pour in 190 g of sifted flour, mixed in advance with a pinch of baking powder. Mix everything with a spatula to form a homogeneous dough.
- Pour the dough into a baking dish. Bake the sponge cakes at 160° for 20 minutes until fully cooked. When the biscuit is ready, let it sit for 5 hours.
- During this time, you need to prepare the impregnation for the cakes. In this case, it will be sugar syrup, which is prepared simply - 0.2 kg of sugar is boiled in 140 ml of water. After the syrup has cooled, a little cognac is added to it (the amount is taken to taste), a pinch of vanilla and some kind of liqueur.
- Prepare the cream: whip 0.4 liters of heavy cream until it turns into foam. Separately, beat 0.2 kg of sour cream mixed with 0.2 kg of powdered sugar. After this, the cream and whipped sour cream need to be combined and mixed with a spatula to form a single cream.
- Cut the sponge cake into 3 layers, soak each one in syrup and spread with cream.
- Decorate the top of the cake with cream and berries. To make the cream look beautiful, fill a pastry syringe with it and use special attachments.
Recipe No. 2:
- First you need to prepare the meringue, because this is what will be used to decorate the wedding cake in this case. Beat 4 egg whites, gradually adding 500 g of sugar. Pour the resulting cream into a pastry syringe with a special nozzle. Pipe meringue onto parchment paper. There should be no more than 5 meringues on each sheet, because they will increase in diameter during cooking. Place the meringues in the oven for 2 hours to bake at 140°.
- Bake a sponge cake. It is prepared according to the same principle as in the previous recipe.
- To decorate the cake, prepare the buttercream while the meringues are baking - beat 0.8 liters of heavy cream with 80 g of powdered sugar and 2 g of vanillin. You also need to prepare 350 g of red and white currants. The berries should be washed and dried.
- Prepare the filling for the cake: mix 350 g of raspberries, strawberries and blueberries, pour 2 tbsp. cherry liqueur. Mix half of this filling with the buttercream for a variety of colors when decorating the dessert.
- Cut the sponge cake into several layers (at least 3). Soak each one with coffee liqueur and spread with berry cream.
- Decorate the top of the cake with currants, meringue and cream. In this case, the cream should cover the entire surface of the cake, so for the beauty of the dessert, use a pastry syringe with a “Rose” attachment.
Recipe No. 3:
- We are preparing a biscuit. The recipe for its preparation is standard (we described it in detail in recipe No. 1).
- Particular attention is paid to the preparation of other components for this wedding cake. Boil a glass of blueberries in a saucepan, mixing them with a third of a glass of sugar and a pinch of lemon zest. Cook for 15 minutes over low heat.
- In a separate container, mix 2 tbsp. water with 5 tsp. corn starch. Pour the resulting liquid into the blueberries and boil it again for 1 minute. Cool the berry preparation and place it in the refrigerator. This will be the impregnation that will need to be used to lubricate the sponge cakes.
- Beat 340 g of cream cheese with a mixer with 100 g of butter and 2 cups of powdered sugar. This way we will get cream for decorating and filling the cake.
- Lubricate each cake with impregnation and cream. Decorate its entire surface with buttercream, leveling it so that the cake has an even surface. Decorate the top of the cake with blueberries and cream designs, which can be made using a pastry syringe.
Protein cream
Regular protein cream for a cake can be made even tastier by adding cream to it. The taste of this protein-butter cream is delicate, pleasant and rich.
Pay attention to the quality of the eggs, since whipped whites will require raw products that will not be further heat-treated.
Ingredients:
- egg whites - 4 pcs.;
- sugar - 250 g;
- high fat cream (from 25%) - 200 g.
Preparation:
- Beat egg whites with added sugar until fluffy.
- During the process, it is necessary to pour a stream of cream into the whites. Try to keep both the whites and cream at the same temperature.
- Beat the mixture until smooth and nice thick consistency. This protein-butter cream is ideal for decorating and filling fruit desserts.
Delicious wedding cake, step by step with photos
- Separate 20 whites from the yolks. First, beat the protein component by adding a pinch of salt to it. When you get a thick foam, add 10 tbsp to the whites. sugar and a few drops of vanilla essence (to taste). Beat until you get a thick and stable foam.
- Beat the yolks with 10 tbsp. sugar, then pour the whites into them and beat everything with a whisk, moving it in one direction smoothly.
- Add 20 tbsp to the resulting mass. sifted flour, which must be mixed in advance with 1 tsp. baking powder.
- Pour the dough into a baking dish and place it in the oven for half an hour. The biscuit should be cooked at a temperature of 180°.
- When the biscuit is ready, you need to let it cool and rest. It is better to allocate at least 10 hours for this.
- Beat 200 g of butter with 50 g of condensed milk - you will get a cream.
- Cut the sponge cake into 3 layers. Level each of them and soak in syrup from canned peaches (you will need a 1 liter jar of this product). Soak carefully so that the biscuit does not get soggy. Its edges must remain dry.
- Brush each cake with cream and place a few peach slices on top of the cream. Form the cake in this way.
Important! To prevent the cake from sagging, be sure to insert wooden supports into the bottom cakes that are the same height as the cakes themselves.
- Grease the entire cake with cream, aligning all the edges. Place the dessert in the refrigerator for 3 hours to allow the cake to firm up.
- Roll out 5 kg of mastic in a 5 mm layer, and then cover your cake with it, leveling the mastic over the surface using a pastry iron.
- Make fondant decorations for your cake. They can be anything. In this case, you can also use fresh flowers.
Cooking secrets
Like any other, protein cream for decorating a cake is prepared in a special way. It is a little capricious, it requires compliance with the temperature regime and a certain speed and time of beating. Follow the recommendations:
- Be sure to wipe dry the container in which the protein mixture will be whipped. Also, there should be no traces of fat on the walls and bottom.
- When separating the whites, make sure that no drops of yolk get in, otherwise the foam will not be fluffy and stable, and you will not be able to prepare a high-quality cream.
- To check readiness, use a spoon or whisk to lift a small part of the cream. If the slide does not settle, the mass is ready for decoration. This method is also called “to lush peaks”.
- The temperature of the proteins should be approximately 10 degrees, that is, they must be placed in the refrigerator in the evening and taken out immediately before cooking. The container in which you will beat the foam should also be cold - place it in the cold for half an hour. If you just bought the eggs, and you need to make the cream quickly, beat the whites in a bowl placed in another container with ice water (ice).
Do not overdo it when whipping the foam, otherwise it will become “clogged” and lose its airiness. Depending on the power of the mixer, the process lasts about 5-10 minutes. Beating egg whites with a whisk at home is difficult and time-consuming: it will take you at least half an hour. You can use an immersion blender. In this case, it is necessary to constantly scroll it throughout the entire container or twist the bowl itself with the proteins.
We recommend: Video: cream cake basket
Master class delicious wedding cake
- Beat 4 eggs (in this recipe there is no need to separate the whites from the yolks) with 0.4 kg of sugar.
- In a separate container, mix 370 g of kefir with 1.5 tsp. quicklime baking soda. Mix everything.
- Add red coloring to kefir. You can take food-grade artificial juice, or you can use beetroot juice.
- Add 0.4 liters of vegetable oil to the colored kefir.
- In a separate container, mix 0.45 kg of sifted flour with 2 tbsp. cocoa powder, 3 tsp. baking powder and a pinch of fine salt.
- Mix all 3 preparations into a homogeneous mass, stirring with a spatula. You should have a smooth red biscuit dough.
- Pour the dough into a baking dish.
- Place the biscuit in the oven for half an hour. It should be baked at 180°.
- Cut the sponge cake into 4 parts and leave everything to cool for 2 hours.
- Meanwhile, whip 0.3 liters of heavy cold cream.
- In a separate container, beat 0.4 kg of mascarpone with 150 g of powdered sugar.
- Combine cream with cheese cream.
- Grease each cake with cream.
- Grease the entire surface of the cake with cream.
- Place the cake in the refrigerator for 4 hours, and before serving, decorate it with berries, mint leaves and powdered sugar.
Cream of protein and powdered sugar
The cream made from whites with the addition of powdered sugar has a lighter and fluffier consistency, since this ingredient allows the egg whites to rise even more and achieve greater airiness.
Protein cream with powdered sugar will be an ideal option for light and airy desserts and cake decoration, since cream with sugar will still be heavier and not so fluffy.
Ingredients:
- 3 eggs (whites);
- powdered sugar - 150 g;
- lemon juice - 1/2 tsp.
Preparation:
- Separate the whites from the yolks and cool. Then begin beating, gradually increasing the speed from low to high until stiff peaks form.
- While whipping the protein mass, gradually sift the powdered sugar into the cream.
- At the end of whipping, add lemon juice along with the last portion of powdered sugar.
Wedding cake decoration, photo
What types of flowers are there?
Flowers for a cake can be very different - waffle, sugar, cream or mastic. In addition to artificial ones, live buds are also used when decorating a wedding cake.
Jewelry made from mastic is voluminous and looks almost life-like. Their colors can be the most fantastic shades that do not exist in nature.
Even if you decorate the cake with cream, with such flowers it looks no less impressive than with “mastic sculptures”. Decorating the surface of a dessert with cream flowers can give it an elegant look and solidity. Although here a lot depends on the theme of the design. Representative roses are one thing, and modest daisies are another.
With thick cream it is easy to depict floral decorations in mint, lilac, peach and other shades on the cake.
The use of living buds imposes certain restrictions on the use of some plants when decorating a wedding cake with flowers. You cannot work with callas, lilies of the valley, jasmine and snowdrops. They contain toxic substances that are easy to poison.
Some fresh flowers are quite easy to turn into edible flowers. They can be eaten without any harm to the stomach. At the same time, they will retain their elegant appearance until they are used. Typically, roses, lavender, chrysanthemum or calendula are used for candying. Orchid and tiger lily are suitable for consumption.
The flowers are coated with a mixture of regular sugar mixed with an egg (for this you will need to work with a brush), sprinkled with powdered sugar and dried.
These blanks are stored in a jar before decorating the cake, and are used for their intended purpose when a real need arises.
Master class on decorating wedding cakes
Let's assume that we have a large wedding cake, consisting of 3 tiers, and already covered with fondant. In our case, we will decorate a cake that is covered with light fondant (ivory shade):
We present step-by-step instructions on how to decorate a wedding cake using the same mastic:
- Take a sheet of corrugated cardboard (it can have any pattern on it). Place a sheet of mastic on it and roll it out. You will get mastic with a pattern:
- Measure the circumference of each tier of the cake and cut the necessary pieces from the sheet of mastic with the pattern:
- Moisten each piece of mastic for decoration on the reverse side with water and attach it to the tiers you want to decorate:
- Roll out a white sheet of mastic and cut out small flowers from it using a special mold:
- Give each flower a shape using a special tool to make the decorations look voluminous:
- Make small balls of mastic, which should not be larger than a bead. Insert these balls into the center of each flower:
- Wet the back of the flowers and carefully attach them to the tiers of the cake:
- Cut the blue fondant into a wide strip. Attach a wire to each strip and make blanks for a bow from two strips:
- Attach the bow:
- Lubricate the bow with a special confectionery solution that gives a shimmering shine:
- As a result, you will get this beautiful cake:
Making small roses for decoration
These flowers are very popular. Roses are most often used in the bride’s bouquet, in the groom’s boutonniere and on the cake. In order to make such a decoration you will need a pastry bag and a special nozzle. You can cover the entire cake with roses or make just a few elements of the dessert.
This type of decor is not new, but incredibly successful. Most often, roses are made from butter or protein cream. The dessert will look especially impressive if you use the ombre technique. As you know, this is a smooth transition from one color to another.
This is interesting: How to choose the right mastic wedding cakes
If the cake has several tiers, then you can use a different color of rose for each individual floor. It will look not only impressive, but also unusual.
If desired, you can make not only roses, but also any other flowers from such materials. With a pastry bag and tips, even a beginner can create a whole work of art . Therefore, if you decide to decorate your wedding dessert yourself, stock up on these tools and patience.
Decorating a wedding cake with flowers, details with photos
As we have already mentioned, you can decorate a wedding cake with fresh flowers. No special knowledge is needed here. You simply take flowers in special cones filled with water and insert them in the desired places on the cake according to the composition.
It is much more difficult to make flowers yourself from mastic.
We present you with step-by-step instructions on how to make them and attach them to the cake:
- First you need to make a base for the flowers: a small ball of mastic is attached to toothpicks and cooled so that the mastic hardens. To ensure that the workpieces are smooth and not spoiled, toothpicks can be inserted into the sponge.
- From the necessary equipment that will be needed to prepare flowers:
- glass of water;
- powdered sugar;
- white mastic;
- 2 circles of different sizes (this could be a glass and a glass, for example);
- toothpick;
- a special stick with skewers;
- knife;
- brush.
- Roll out a layer of white mastic 2 cm thick and squeeze out small circles on it using a glass:
- Using a special stick with a skewer, roll one side of each mastic circle:
- Turn up the corner where you rolled it on both sides using a toothpick:
- Brush each petal of the future rose with water:
- Attach the petals to the blank on a toothpick:
- Make larger circles from the mastic and repeat the same procedures with them. Attach 3 petals to the rose bud on each side at once. The more times you do this, the more magnificent your rose will be:
Protein cream with mascarpone
Delicious protein cream with the addition of mascarpone cheese has a pleasant creamy taste, holds its shape well and is simply perfect as a filler for straws and waffle baskets.
This cream goes especially well with a sponge cake, which can be generously layered or made into a roll.
Ingredients:
- mascarpone cheese - 800 g;
- egg whites - 4 pcs.;
- powdered sugar - 200 g;
- high fat cream - 200 ml.
Preparation:
- Cool the egg whites thoroughly and beat, stirring in the powdered sugar, until stiff peaks form.
- Cool the cream and beat until thick.
- When the mass becomes strong, you need to gradually add whipped cream and marscarpone to it, beat the mass at low speed until it has a nice thick consistency.
- It is best to use it immediately after preparation so that the mass does not lose its shape.
Decorating wedding cakes with cream, step by step with photos
- First you need to whip the cream with a mixer so that it turns into a delicate cream.
- As soon as the cream is ready, divide the amount into several parts, and then add food coloring to each (if you need it for decorating ideas).
- Fill a pastry syringe with cream, select the necessary nozzle, and then carefully squeeze the cream over the surface of the cake in those places where you want the decoration to be.
Protein cream with syrup
The cream made from proteins with sugar syrup turns out to be extremely tender and is essentially custard. It is important not to let the syrup boil, but only to bring the mixture to an amber color.
Ingredients:
- sugar - 150 g;
- water - 100 ml;
- egg whites - 4 pcs;
- salt - 2 g;
- citric acid - 1/2 tsp.
Preparation:
- Prepare syrup from water, citric acid and sugar over low heat.
- Beat the egg whites until stiff and stiff, adding a little salt.
- Without stopping the mixing process, add sugar syrup to the mixture and beat for about ten more minutes.
- Use the cream to decorate or fill desserts.
Decorating wedding cakes with cream, step-by-step instructions
Seeing a wedding cake decorated with buttercream flowers is a classic of the genre. Most housewives who make wedding cakes at home use this, although outdated, but proven method of decoration.
If you are a supporter of the classics, then use these instructions when decorating the cake with cream:
- To begin, beat 150 g of melted butter with a mixer until fluffy.
- Add 10 tbsp to the oil. condensed milk and continue whisking. This way you will get a cream that can already be used for decoration:
- Give the cream the color you want:
- if you add coffee or chocolate, you will get brown cream;
- if you use saffron, you will have a yellow cream;
- cherries or beets will give you a rich red color to the cream;
- if you chop spinach and use the resulting juice, you will get green cream;
- if you need orange cream, just add a few drops of carrot juice.
- Fill a pastry syringe with this cream, select the necessary nozzle and decorate the wedding cake according to the intended composition.
Protein-chocolate cream
This delicacy can be prepared using either cocoa or chocolate, previously melted in a water bath. This cream looks beautiful in decoration, and tastes delicate, chocolate, with a creamy note.
Ingredients:
- cocoa - 2 tsp;
- sugar - 180 g;
- egg whites - 4 pcs.;
- water - 100 ml;
- citric acid - 1/2 tsp;
- salt - 2 g.
Preparation:
- In a saucepan, mix cocoa, citric acid, sugar and water. Place over low heat and prepare the sugar-chocolate syrup without bringing it to a boil.
- Beat the whites into strong fluffy peaks along with a pinch of salt.
- Introduce the syrup into the fluffy mass of whites in a stream, whisking the cream. Continue this process for about 10 minutes until elastic.
Wedding cake in the shape of a heart, photo
In conclusion, we would like to add one very important note: prepare your wedding cake with love, good mood and inspiration. This is a mandatory condition, the fulfillment of which guarantees your success and high quality dessert!
Practical advice for choosing
The wedding dessert must be selected according to the number of guests, on average 100-150 g per guest. If the cake is light, then it is likely that the guests will want more, in which case it is better to base it on the calculation of 200-250 g per person. Besides:
- You need to choose the “base”, that is, the filling of the future dessert: whether it should be sweet or sour, hearty or airy is up to you to decide.
- Decide on a design. The wedding cake should match the theme and colors of the celebration.
- Think about what time to order delivery and how the cake will be stored. Take care during transportation so that the roses are not damaged.
Important! It is advisable to order a tasting, since the final result may differ from what was planned.
Confectioner
When choosing fillings, you should only be wary of exotic filling options, such as lavender or pink, as not all guests will like them. Belorusov Andrey. If you have chosen long-lasting flowers for decoration and there is no fear that they will wither before the cake is served on plates, you can use a simpler solution
The stem of the bud is cut off, an ordinary toothpick is applied to it, which is tightly wrapped with tape. This way, only a skewer will fit into the cake, and the juice from the cut stem will not get into the sweetness
If you have chosen long-lasting flowers for decoration and there is no fear that they will wither before the cake is served on plates, you can use a simpler solution. The stem of the bud is cut off, an ordinary toothpick is applied to it, which is tightly wrapped with tape. This way, only a skewer will fit into the cake, and the juice from the cut stem will not get into the sweetness.
Typically, such a dessert does not require additional decorations, since flowers create a complete decor. In some cases, you can additionally add edible lace from mastic or glaze or create a relief texture for the base. Edible beads go well with flowers; they can be purchased ready-made at a confectionery store or made from cream.The taste can be anything, the bride and groom should focus only on personal preferences. The cakes can be vanilla, nut, chocolate or citrus, and there are even more filling options.
How to decorate a birthday cake for a man
Unlike a child, a cake for an adult looks a little different. The design is not as bright as children's cakes. However. The inscription is simply necessary, and then it all depends on your creative abilities and the birthday person’s sense of humor.
You can make it with just the inscription, decorating it with roses, berries and cookies, as in the option below.
The cake you decorate with chocolate will look original. And place a bottle of cognac or liqueur in the center.
A cake can be decorated in a variety of ways, but the main thing is attention. Therefore, even a simple inscription, a couple of roses or a heart will be quite good
It was not in vain that they talked about a sense of humor. The cake can be made not only as a dessert, but also with certain hints. For example, this wonderful cake in the shape of a stump with a “white” bottle.
Mastic is popular when decorating cakes. It can be sugar or marshmallow. Using figurines made from this mastic, you can give it an original look. Moreover, you can make complex figures and quite simple ones. For example, this cake with a bow.
Some may not find it very interesting, however, I repeat, the main thing is how to present your creation
What flowers can be used
It’s not for nothing that confectioners avoid using live plants. Not all flowers are suitable not only for food, but even for contact with food. But let's start with edible plants, they are much more interesting for decoration. It's nice to eat a cake with a rosebud.
Edible inflorescences
Rose, queen of flowers. In addition to the delicate aroma, it gives us a good taste. Petals and buds are edible. Orchid. Calendula
Has a medicinal effect, use with caution. Nasturtium. Cornflower. Dandelion. Chamomile. Violet. Clover. Chrysanthemum. Daisy. Acacia. Lavender. Lilac. Geranium. Jasmine.
This is an almost complete list of edible flowers. The most curious can study the list of medicinal plants, most of which are suitable for food and contain vitamins. For example, mint, rosemary, sage. This is the flavor the cake will have.
It is important to remember that in most cases only the petals are edible. The use of edible inflorescences is especially important at holidays where there will be children.
It is impossible to keep track of every flower and the child will eat at least one.
How to be
The first and obvious thing is to grow the flowers yourself. Then you will know for sure that they are not processed in any way and are edible. The second option, a little more dubious, is to buy flowers from “grandmothers”. Doubts lie in the lack of guarantees.
Maybe the flowerbed was watered with pesticides, maybe not. Familiar, trusted sellers will come to your aid. By the way, if the sale takes place near the road, then the safety of the flowers is also in doubt.
The safest option is to buy from ECO farms. The manufacturer guarantees that the flowers have not been processed in any way. Such plants are completely safe. The seller must provide certificates guaranteeing the safe cultivation of plants.
The seller must provide documents guaranteeing the safe cultivation of flowers. The pastry chef must provide the same documents when ordering a cake.
Another danger is an allergy to pollen or a certain type of flower. A guest's allergy attack can ruin the entire holiday. It is recommended to warn guests about the presence of fresh flowers.