Tasting different cake flavors for a wedding is a favorite on the To-Do List. From popular choices to unconventional ones, your tastebuds are in for a sweet treat! While unique flavors are tempting, the more common ones are best for a wedding cake. Your guests will appreciate biting into a familiar cake flavor.
Cake Flavor Decision
If you're having a large wedding, it's polite to keep your guests' preferences in mind when you choose a cake flavor. Although it's your wedding and arguably your tastes that matter most, you run the risk of ending up with a lot of wasted cake if you choose to go with an unpopular flavor combination.
You know your guests best, so first consider the types of flavors they might pick out. If you're inviting mostly people who are hip and adventurous, it may not be an issue to have an unusual cake recipe or frosting flavor. However, if you expect your guests' tastes to tend toward the traditional, it may be best to stick with classic flavors.
If it's important to you that everyone try the cake, you'll also need to know guests' dietary restrictions or food allergies so that you're able to choose a flavor combination that everyone can have the freedom to enjoy.
Popular Wedding Cake Flavors
Some of the most popular wedding cake flavors are also the most popular flavors in birthday cakes and celebration cakes all over the world, and for good reason: they're familiar, lend themselves well to almost any accompaniments, and are likely to please a crowd of any size.
- Vanilla-vanilla: Soft vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream or fondant frosting is the most common flavor combination for wedding cakes. Most vanilla cakes are pure white, making them well-suited to traditional wedding ceremonies and receptions.
- Chocolate-vanilla: Many engaged couples have a soft spot for chocolate but don't want to sacrifice the classic look of a white wedding cake. Asking a baker to concoct devil's-food layers filled with chocolate mousse, chocolate ganache, berry filling, or buttercream and top them with white fondant or vanilla buttercream is one way to strike a balance. More rarely, the combination is reversed, with a white vanilla cake and chocolate frosting.
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Yellow cake: A yellow cake tastes richly of eggs, butter, and sugar, and it's a definite crowd pleaser. Yellow cakes are also one of the most versatile choices, since they pair well with vanilla frosting, chocolate frosting, berry flavors, or other combinations.
- Lemon: The zesty, bright flavor of lemons lightens up a wedding during a cool season and tastes refreshing in summer or springtime. Lemon is a flavor that's palatable to the vast majority of guests, but it's not the most common choice and can be especially unique if it's paired with a spiced frosting or assertive berry sauce.
- Nut cakes: Hazelnut, almond, praline, or pecan cakes are some of the most popular nut-based flavors. Often, nut cakes will have more interesting textures than more traditional varieties, with solid nuts or nut slices included. They may be a bit grainier or sandier, especially if they're made with nut flour. They have a mild flavor that goes well with any classic frosting flavor.
- Coconut: Coconut cake is an unconventional choice for weddings, but it's just common enough that it's not likely to put off too many guests. Coconut has the added advantage of tasting good with nearly any type of frosting, from chocolate to vanilla to berry to citrus.
- Banana: Banana cake can be quite popular among guests but remains one of the more unusual flavor choices for weddings. Some banana cakes end up tasting more like banana bread, so if you're considering banana as a possible flavor, make sure you like the taste of the sample you get from the baker.
- Berries: The flavor in most berry cakes shows up in the filling, which typically consists of jam, preserves, or macerated fresh berries. However, some cakes are swirled with berry syrup or baked with fresh berries inside, which can lend a lovely moist texture and tender crumb to the final product.
While many brides and grooms focus on the outside decorations of the wedding cake, it is important to remember that the flavor on the inside is what will truly make guests' mouths water. Choose a flavor that you and your loved ones will enjoy.
