Wonderful wedding cakes

Whoa, I didn't notice it's been quite a while since my last post. My apologies for not being able to post as much as I want to. It's been some pretty busy months.

But enough with the excuse.

Browsing through my tags, I realized I don't have an entry about wedding cakes. One of the most important and traditional elements of a wedding and I haven't talked about it yet?! Well, better late than never.

They say that the wedding cake traditionally symbolizes the couple's fertility and luck in marriage. It's also the symbol of their love and sweetness towards each other. The tradition of having a wedding cake predates to the ancient times: the Romans created cakes to be broken over the bride and groom's heads. Whoa! The crumbs that fall -- for the guests to pick up -- symbolizes good luck.

Also, do you notice that most wedding cakes come in layers? That's because during the olden times, the height of the cake is symbolic of their social status. The higher the cake, the more popular the bride and groom. Interesting bit there, huh?

The tradition of cutting the cake symbolizes the union of the bride and groom. This is considered the first act of the man and woman as husband and wife.

I've heard of a tradition wherein the topmost layer of the cake must be preserved for the couple to eat on their first anniversary. Not sure what that meant, but we never did that.

Traditionally, wedding cakes come in white, also symbolizing the purity of the bride. But nowadays, more and more couples are opting for multi-colored cakes, especially if they want their cakes to match their theme or motif.

They also include toppers for additional pizzazz to the cake. It can be figures, silhouettes, little buntings, or monograms.

Others have elements like crystals, edible beads, or even flowers, may they be real or fake.

Also, some weddings feature not exactly cakes, but cupcakes. This makes it easier to distribute the "cake" to the guests. Some couples who opt for wedding cupcakes but still want the traditional cake cutting ceremony include a small cake for cutting.

There may be lots of meanings and traditions behind the wedding cake, but one thing is for sure: the wedding cake is one of the main attractions of the festivity. That's why a lot of brides and grooms make sure that they're not just delicious to eat, they're also wonderful to look at.

Photo credits: Nevie-Pie Cakes, Vienna Cakes, My Sweet and Saucy, Kikuike (via Etsy), Perfect-Wedding-Day, and The Cake Parlour.