Who doesn’t remember the quintessential multi-tiered wedding cake of classic fairy tale renown? In my story, The Forever Flavor, Bijou is an artist busily planning her upcoming wedding. For decades, she has dreamed of celebrating with an exquisite tall cake taking center stage. Though Queen Victoria’s wedding may have popularized the towering confection, its history can be traced to a far more modest morsel.
Bijou, our fictional heroine, cares deeply about the beauty and taste of her wedding cake—and we’re not surprised. But before the era of elegant, fanciful, delectable wedding cakes, a wedding—or bridal—cake was not typically any of the above. Originating in ancient Rome, a simple wheat or barley cake was crumbled over the bride (and groom sometimes) for luck in fertility and finance. The newlyweds would share the crumbs as their guests gathered pieces from the floor or ground, hoping for their own share of good luck.
Fast forward to the Middle Ages, when we are introduced to the bride pie, the somewhat pretty centerpiece of a typical English wedding celebration. The not-so-tasty ingredients were a far cry from the confections that would come later.
By the 1600s, the bride pie had evolved into the bride cake. These were sweet fruit cakes, which remains a popular flavor even today. Our seventeenth-century bride would enjoy her slice and then toss the remainder over her head—reminiscent of the Roman tradition of the barley cake crumble. As we approach the end of this century, we begin to glimpse white meringue-type icings on bride cakes.
Late in the eighteenth century, we see what may have been the origin of Bijou’s delectably dreamy, tiered cake. Legend has it that a young baker’s apprentice in London was in love with his boss’s daughter. As he looked across the street to St. Bride’s church, which consisted of a number of tiered spires, he imagined presenting the girl with a tiered wedding cake in a remarkably sweet proposal. He proceeded to bake his novel, elaborate creation. The girl of his dreams was duly impressed and agreed to marry him.
By the nineteenth century, formal wedding cakes were growing in size and popularity, especially with the debut of the tall wedding cake, covered in white icing symbolizing purity, introduced at Queen Victoria’s 1840 wedding. This cake, influenced by the highly decorated, tall confections popular in France, set a new standard in England. In 1882, the first completely edible formal tiered wedding cake was enjoyed at the wedding of Prince Leopold and Princess Helene Freiderike. The creative pastry chefs securely stacked the tiers on top of each other using hardened layers of royal icing between the layers.
Since those times, tall wedding cakes have been popular in many parts of the world. In recent times, some brides have opted for creative, modern variations. The beautiful, sometimes colossal, cake creations, though soon consumed by many, share a common objective: To be a lasting memory for all, but especially for the bride and groom.
Sources:
“The Hidden Secrets Behind the History of Wedding Cakes,” by Marissa Laliberte, in Reader’s Digest, October 26, 2017
“The Strange History of the Wedding Cake,” by Abigail Tucker, in Smithsonian Magazine, July 13, 2009
“Queen Victoria’s 300-Pound Wedding Cake Set a Big New Trend for Brides,” by Ines Anton, in National Geographic, June, 2021
