Wedding Cake - Fondant or Not?

[SarahLovesJS]

Inspired partially by Gypsy - For all of those who have picked your cakes or had cake tastings, did you go with fondant or not? Haha. I had a fondant cake a wedding recently and I thought it tasted bad, but that might have been that specific cake. It tasted almost...gritty for lack of a better term. I know that buttercream wouldn''t work well in outside weddings during the summer for example since it would melt, but that won''t be a problem for me. Fondant does create more options. So anyway, any advice? And does fondant usually taste better than the one I tried? I personally love buttercream since it''s so sweet tasting.

 

[SarahLovesJS]

I saw this cake on Weddingbee and I think it is so cool! It''s from The Cake Artist. It''s just not buttercream, so that''s part of why I asked.

 

[FrekeChild]

No fondant sucks! It sucks to work with and it sucks to make. There are very few people who actually like the taste of fondant. Plus, it's seriously expensive. Mostly because any speck of anything other than white WILL SHOW UP ON IT. I hate fondant.

Ok. Rant over. I'd say since you don't like to eat it, don't get it for yours, but listen to people who like it too!

(BTW I don't know anyone who doesn't like buttercream

)

ETA: Ok. Fondant's one redeeming factor is that it is pretty. But still expensive....

 

[SarahLovesJS]

This is also from The Cake Artist.

 

[SarahLovesJS]

Date: 2/28/2008 10:12:17 PM
Author: FrekeChild
No fondant sucks! It sucks to work with and it sucks to make. There are very few people who actually like the taste of fondant. Plus, it''s seriously expensive. Mostly because any speck of anything other than white WILL SHOW UP ON IT. I hate fondant.


Ok. Rant over. I''d say since you don''t like to eat it, don''t get it for yours, but listen to people who like it too!


(BTW I don''t know anyone who doesn''t like buttercream

)

Wow okay, so it isn''t just me!

 

[blondie23]

I vote for buttercream!!!! Soooooo tasty. Fondant may look nice but the flavor is not.

Another option may be to have a fondant cake but only one tier of your cake be real (for the cake cutting part of the reception) and the other tiers be fake and then have sheet cakes in the back with the same cake flavor but iced in buttercream so people get to view a beautiful fondant cake but also taste the cake that has yummy frosting

 

[sumbride]

fondant is gross. buttercream all the way!

by the way, have you priced one of those fancy fondant cakes? Doing so may lead you running and screaming the other directions. Fresh flowers are prettier than sugar flowers any day. Of course, sugar flowers can be placed on buttercream too.

 

[sumbride]

Also, white chocolate can be tinted and formed to look like fondant and tastes a lot better, but it is also very delicate and can crack very easily.

 

[FrekeChild]

sumbride is right! Seriously if I had to make that first cake I''d charge at least $20 per slice. Not including the gum paste flowers. Each one can take up to an hour to make, not including color/airbrush.

 

[happy in love]

I personally HATE the taste of fondant, but totally love the way fondant covered cakes look so smooth...
We went with buttercream, because for me function was more important than form. I looooove me some buttercream!

 

[Future Mrs Polka Dot]

I agree with everyone else! While fondant is so beautiful and smooth, I don''t like the taste/consistency at all! It''s not as yummy as buttercream, and not to mention that fondant is more expensive!

Hopefully you can find a buttercream one that is aesthetically pleasing to you if you go that route!!

 

[CrownJewel]

nooooooooooooooooooo fondant. NO.

 

[brazen_irish_hussy]

I HATE fondant. It tastes like the paste it is. We are going buttercream all the way.

I liked the idea of luster which can only be done in fondant and our cake ladies said they could do buttercream with a thin layer of fondant over it for the apperance. I decided I didn''t care enough for the extra cost, but if it is that important to you, it moght be an option.

 

[ladyciel]

Fondant falls into that category of "technically edible...but why would you??". I don''t think it became popular for wedding cakes until brides started planning their weddings primarily from photos (magazines, the internet, pictures shown to them by their planners...). Does it look pretty? Sure! Is there any way it''s going to make your cake taste good? Nope!

Honestly, you have to decide what is most important to you - looks or taste. Fondant has a great chance of having your guests ooh and ahh over the cake when they first walk in, but, personally, I''d rather hear them raving about the taste. I appreciate great dessert, and so to me a well baked cake with the perfect buttercream icing is heaven.

Also, don''t think that you can''t have as pretty a cake if you go with buttercream! There were photos in our baker''s binder that I thought were fondant when I first looked at them - she had to tell me otherwise!

 

[Gypsy]

Sarah, I prefer buttercream by a mile. USUALLY. The baker today had me try both. Their buttercream was litterally REPELLANT, don''t ask me what was in there or what was wrong with it but I can a small mouthfull and NEVER WANTED TO GO THERE AGAIN. So for the first time EVER (and I''ve actually had a lot of cake tastings and only ONE place where I''ve loved the cake, and that was in DC) I actually chose fondant for TASTE.

It never tastes good it''s always gritty and sugary, and the best that you can say about it is that you can peel it off and avoid it easily. But it does make for pretty designs. And it''s easy to add ribbon (real ribbon) to a fondant cake, and I think I want ribbon. With a buttercream cake, I''d have to do a fondant ribbon cause the oil in the buttercream leaches into ''real'' ribbon. But that''s what my PREFERENCE is. If I find a cake I like with buttercream.

I''m not holding my breath. And I am thinking of importing Freke. LOL.

 

[Gypsy]

Date: 2/28/2008 11:13:24 PM
Author: ladyciel
Fondant falls into that category of ''technically edible...but why would you??''.

ROFLMAO!

SO TRUE.

 

[bbbhug2001]

I would recommend a cake, look on the net for ideas. Here is a tiered cake with strawberry''s and chocolate, hummmm

 

[Missrocks]

Speaking as a former baker/ cake decorator I vote buttercream all the way. I did try a fondant ONCE that I felt tasted pretty good, but the price was outrageous. I went wedding cake tasting with my friend and she ended up almost crying... So I got suckered into making the cake, even after I had originally declined when asked. She got comments "that was the best tasting wedding cake" from a lot of her guests, so I felt pretty good. As a guest (and a dessert lover!) I would rather have a good tasting cake than a super elaborate one. I just did some basic deco with the buttercream and added touches of real flowers- simple and elegant. Seriously, most wedding cakes are gross tasting from my experience. Even with the buttercream, a lot of times bakers tend to "overbake" the cakes so they are less "flimsy" and stand up better.

 

[SarahLovesJS]

Wow, overwhelming no! Haha. Okay, well thanks everyone you definitely answered my question. The word expensive also makes me run! Haha.

 

[FrekeChild]

Just say the word Gypsy!! (And give me about a month''s notice)

 

[Gypsy]

Date: 2/29/2008 1:16:06 AM
Author: FrekeChild
Just say the word Gypsy!! (And give me about a month''s notice)

You may regret the offer. John wants to, and I qoute, "Outsource the cake tastings" LMAO. Me too.

 

[goldenstar]

I actually like the taste of fondant ::runs away::

 

[SarahLovesJS]

Date: 2/29/2008 1:58:01 AM
Author: goldenstar
I actually like the taste of fondant ::runs away::

You better run!

Just kidding. Hey come back!

 

[Gypsy]

Date: 2/29/2008 1:58:01 AM
Author: goldenstar
I actually like the taste of fondant ::runs away::

There''s always one...

 

[monarch64]

Love the look of fondant, but hate the taste. MUCH prefer buttercream frosting by miles. Mmmmm....frosting....

 

[goldenstar]

I know, I know, I'm a freak. I'm embarrassed to admit that I like fondant. I wouldn't eat a huge ball of it but I don't mind it on cake. Provided that its good cake.

 

[gwendolyn]

I don't like the taste of fondant either, but it is fun to make sculptures out of it once I've eaten the cake inside it.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Blegh, fondant is gross! I''m a buttercream gal all the way.

 

[Courtneylub]

This is all great information for my cake tasting next Thursday. I didn''t like the fondant cake I had a wedding a couple of weeks ago, but I ate around it and the cake was GORGEOUS! I will probably go with buttercream depending on the designs available. I will probably spend more money on the groom''s cake! The baker can make a Shell gas station cake and that''s where he proposed to me. It will be a great story at the reception!

 

[violet02]

Date: 2/28/2008 10:16:41 PM
Author: blondie23
I vote for buttercream!!!! Soooooo tasty. Fondant may look nice but the flavor is not.

Another option may be to have a fondant cake but only one tier of your cake be real (for the cake cutting part of the reception) and the other tiers be fake and then have sheet cakes in the back with the same cake flavor but iced in buttercream so people get to view a beautiful fondant cake but also taste the cake that has yummy frosting

I like this idea. My wedding is outdoors during the day. I'd like a buttercream cake but I'm not sure how that will work. Do they just deliver it later or store it somewhere cold when it's buttercream? With the buttercream I probably won't be able to display it for long. So the mixed cake idea is cool.

My 17yo cousin Rebeccah makes cakes as her hobby. She made one as part of her senior project. Anyways my aunt was taking cake making classes with her and she sent me this info when I was curious about fondant:

A lesson on fondant. The British like sugar so they eat fondant,
Americans like fat so we eat buttercream frosting. Fondant was developed
by the British to seal fruit cake and prevent the growth of bacteria.
It is mostly sugar, gluecose(super super thick corn syrup), and crisco.
Fruitcakes were made and hot liquor was applied. This killed the
bacteria. Then it was covered in Marzipan (almond paste)and then
fondant. Even today they still use fondant generously. While we in
America use fondant in thin layers, in Britain it can be up to 1/2 inch
thick. Professional fondant makers add flavoring to the fondant so it
is edible. A layer of buttercream is applied to the cake and then the
fondant is layered over that. So you could remove it and still eat the
cake with some buttercream frosting. The frosting is usually just to
"crumb coat" the cake so no crumbs get in the fondant. So there is very
little frosting under the fondant. Wedding cakes with fondant and
gumpast flowers can run anywhere between $10 and $20 per slice. Gumpaste
is similar to fondant except it drys very hard and is generally, while
made of edible ingredients, it is not eaten. We figured if Rebeccah's
cake was real and not made on styrofoam dummies it would cost about $110
to make and could be sold for $2000.
Fondant recipe so you can see what's in it.
http://www.wilton.com/recipes/recipesandprojects/icing/rolledfondant.cfm?section=wedding&subsection=recipes

Peeling off the fondant to a buttercream layer is an interesting idea.... Here's a photo of the cake my cousin made, and no she's not making my wedding cake (she'll be in college in hawaii by then anyways).