July 26th, 2004

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Mixed Bag
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Wedding Cakes

This weekend I was at a wedding in Victoria (at the lovely UVic Faculty Club). While kicking back by the duck pond after dinner, I got to thinking about wedding cakes.

At this wedding, one of the bride’s friends made a number of separate, tasty cakes. However, it’s my understanding that for much of modern history, wedding cakes have been dull, tasteless affairs. My understanding may be wrong, however, as I searched several articles for an explanation. I didn’t really find one, but I did learn some fascinating facts about wedding cakes. From this article:

Originally, the wedding “cake” was not eaten by the bride, but thrown at her. The wedding cake concept evolved early on in Europe from grains of wheat – long a symbol of fertility and prosperity – that were showered on the happy couple. Single women, so we are told, scrambled for the grains to ensure their own betrothals.

I also didn’t know that traditionally the top layer of a cake is saved and eaten on the couple’s first anniversary.

Comments: 7 Responses so far

Martin
July 26th, 2004
10:29 am

I always thought that the top layer was saved until the first child’s christening. I’ve been known to be wrong, though…

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alison
July 26th, 2004
10:49 am

i’ve always thought the saving of the toplayer to be a bit rediculous. as many people know , i am a lover of cake, but i have never had any desire to year year old cake.

but hey, to each, their own

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Sue
July 26th, 2004
1:23 pm

We did that “save the top layer” thing and had it defrosted for us on our first anniversary. Perhaps fruitcake, a more traditional form of wedding cake, tastes good after it’s been frozen for a year. I can tell you, however, that one-year-old, defrosted white cake with strawberry and lemon filling tastes absolutely VILE.

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Andrea
July 26th, 2004
2:16 pm

My one-year anniversary was in May. My cake is still in the freezer. I’m too terrified to try it. I should throw it out, but I feel guilty! My mother has since suggested that you’re meant to eat frozen cake that was first soaked in rum and wrapped a million times.

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Aaron L
July 26th, 2004
2:26 pm

We saved ours for a year.. and weren’t sure we should eat it.. So we called the place we got it from to ask their opinion. It turns out, if you save your top layer.. many places will exchange it for an edible cake.

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Jimmy
July 29th, 2004
5:33 pm

I love wedding cake. If you’re ever in New Orleans, you should definitely try a wedding cake-flavored snowball….

And, no, I have no idea why I felt compelled to say any of this.

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Directory
January 12th, 2010
2:32 pm

I just got married!! We had 3 levels/layers.. Top (smallest) was white chocolate. 2nd was Almond (yum) and last biggest layer was all chocolate. Was awesome, everyone loved it, we have so much left over… we had 150 people at our wedding and got a cake for 300 people!!

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