It's a tricky decision, when like many other couples, you've never been asked this question before planning your wedding. Rest assured your cake designer is there to offer all their expertise and advice to help you make the best choice.
Let's chat fondant. Or also called, icing or sugar paste.
A comment I often here when I chat to my couples is "we would like a buttercream cake, as we don't like fondant" and I agree with that statement if it's in reference to the cheap, thick fondant you get on a supermarket birthday cake (I put that in the bin too!).
The fondant I use on my wedding cakes is top quality from Switzerland, that isn't overly sweet, I roll it to 3mm thin and it's absolutely delicious. As my cakes are tall and each portion you serve to your guests is a tall finger portion, most of your servings are in the centre of each cake and most likely won't have much fondant on at all.
So once I have explained this to my couples, they are usually more open to a fondant covered cake.
Buttercream is a gorgeous soft covering that does lend itself to more relaxed, informal designs. There are so many things you can do with buttercream and I love working with it as much as I enjoy making fondant cakes too.
In my opinion the covering of your wedding cake is merely controlling the style and the design of the cake, not the taste.
All my cakes whether they be covered in fondant or buttercream have 4 layers of sponge (I have 12 delicious flavours on my menu) with 3 layers of complimenting buttercream, curds, compotes etc.
The only difference is buttercream cakes are finished in a covering of buttercream and fondant cakes have a covering of delicious Belgian white chocolate ganache (a lot of guests will enjoy that bit) under a thin layer of Swiss fondant. The ganache gives a smooth foundation to the fondant on your cake - it's how I get those sharp lines!
To help you to decide I've listed some pros and cons of each fondant and buttercream wedding cakes....
Fondant covered Wedding Cakes
Pros;
Flawless finish, which creates a modern, sleek look.
Much more stable in the heat than buttercream and easier for your cake designer to transport to your venue.
Brilliant white in colour but also easy to colour deep or vivid colours.
Creates a super smooth finish that can be decorated in so many ways.
A perfect supportive base for beautiful sugar flowers.
Cons;
Needs a skilled cake designer to execute the perfect smooth finish with sharp lines.
Cannot be piped like buttercream so all decorations have to be made separately.
Costs more than buttercream designs due to work involved and the cost of the ingredients.
Buttercream covered Wedding Cakes
Pros;
Delicious & Creamy
Can be flavoured to compliment the filling.
Can be coloured by edible food colourings.
Can be piped to create many different effects; borders, patterns & flowers.
A perfect style for more rustic venues, like barns or rural venues.
Textures and shapes can easily be applied to the buttercream like the combed effect (see picture to the left)
Perfect for adding fresh flowers
Cons;
Melts in the heat and not stable during the hotter months
Slightly restricted on getting the more vivid and deep colour like you can with fondant.
It will never look as smooth as fondant, this means it looks a little less "finished".
I hope this has helped you decide on the covering for your wedding cake!
Have fun at the cake tasting, it's the best bit - but I'm biased!
Danielle