Design Trends: The Groom's Cake

I admire anyone who can mix their passion with their profession, and that's exactly what Kristin Kato did with her cake making business, A Cake Life. After graduating from the University of Oregon, Kristin returned home and began work as a paralegal at an employment and labor litigation firm. In a couple years' time however, she came to realize that law wasn't the quite for her. Yet, as cool new shows like Ace of Cakes began airing on the Food Network, Kristin found a new interest in cake making and decided to take classes at a local craft store as well as at Cake Creations Dessert Haven in Manoa. From there, she studied up on cake design, sugar artistry, and starting a business...and in 2009, A Cake Life opened! Gaining inspiration from fashion as well as from her clients themselves, Kristin is able to create beautiful cake designs that have won A Cake Life numerous praises and awards.

On A Cake Life's blog, Kristin recently wrote about an emerging trend in weddings, the Groom's Cake. The blog post in its entirety can be found here.

This was a surprise grooms cake of a red Audi convertible. We handmade a replica of the couple's 2 dogs sitting in the front seat. The dogs were wearing a black top hat for the groom and a white veil for the bride. The bride asked us to integrate their special inside joke "MKT PRC" on the front license plate and their wedding date on the other. All the guests got the inside joke and the groom was stoked to see his surprise cake.

More often, couples are having two wedding cakes – the traditional cake and a groom’s cake.  As weddings often tend to be “all about the bride” a nice way to honor (or surprise) the groom is with his own personalized cake.

Accounts of the history of how the groom’s cake came-to-be often differ.  Some say the tradition dates all the way back to the 17^th century where the cake was originally was a rich, dark, fruit cake made without icing.   Others say it was the top layer of the bride’s cake that was not served to guests, but rather drenched in brandy to preserve for the couple’s first anniversary.  Another story says the groom’s cake was a edible treat packaged individually in decorated boxes, often monogrammed with a couple’s initials and given to guests to take home.

While some wedding traditions have evolved (from groom’s cake to wedding favors, or celebrating the first year of marriage with the top layer of wedding cake) so has the groom’s cake.  It is usually presented at the wedding, and sliced and served just like the traditional cake.

Most often the requests we get are to create a fun “manly” cake reflecting the groom’s hobbies or interests.  They often choose a different flavor from their wedding cake ranging from Red Velvet with Cream Cheese filling to Devils Food Chocolate Cake with Cookies N Cream filling.  This offers guests a nice variety to choose from when it comes to cake.

Some of the most recent groom’s cakes we’ve created are as follows:

 

Lakers themed Basketball Cake and handmade figurines of the couple in their Lakers jerseys

New Jersey Devils Hockey Puck Grooms Cake

 

One of our brides sent us this photo which served as the inspiration for the cake to follow:

 

Michael Godard "Shoot the Wad" Print

Grooms Cake inspired by the print

 

While groom's cakes can be a bit more challenging to create, it definitely brings an air of personalization to a wedding.  People remember details like this, and that's what makes a wedding special!