As far as wedding desserts go, cakes have and always will be a wedding reception staple. After all, cutting the cake is a tradition as old as time. For those who love cake, multi-tier cakes are still very much on trend with designs and flavors as unique as our couples. But what if you’re one of those couples who just doesn’t like cake? Do you really need to have a cake? The short answer is, “no”. There are still many wedding cake alternatives if you want to offer your guests something sweet that isn’t cake. Regardless of how sweet your tooth is, we’ve come up with some options to ensure you and everyone at your wedding can have their cake and eat it too!
If a classic buttercream three-tier isn’t your thing but the customary cake-cutting photos are, then consider a ‘show’ cake with multiple faux tiers and a real bottom tier for cutting. If you plan to serve guests cake, supplement the faux tiers with actual sheet cake (that catering can pre-cut) – perhaps in different flavors. Alternatively, a simple ‘cutting cake’ can do the trick. These petite cakes do a great job of providing you with a cake-cutting moment but without multiple servings. Note, typically, cutting cakes rarely offer more than 30-40 servings.
One big reason couples choose not to serve cake is preference and a desire to showcase their personality to guests by serving up some other sweet treat. If cake is not your go-to dessert, consider one of these seven sweet alternative favorites for your big day!
Sundae Bar
Everyone loves ice cream, so go ahead and offer a variety of flavors and toppings. We love a good sundae bar since you can also offer a variety of vegan and gluten-free options to ensure all your guests can indulge! Keep in mind this option should involve a server from your venue since this is an interactive station and can get quite messy.
Donut Walls and Towers
Donuts have made a big comeback in the last couple of years, including artisanal varieties to please even the most refined of palates. You can offer these vertically on dowels as towers, piled up on cake stands, or as a wall with pegs and donuts hanging on them.
Custom Sugar Cookies
Custom-created sugar cookies featuring your wedding colors and theme (one of our couples loved squirrels!) are all the rage, and often, these works of art look almost too pretty to eat. Almost! The great part about these is they can also be individually packaged for guests to take home as a favor.
Candy Buffet
The candy buffet trend has been around for quite some time now and remains a popular choice. (Personally, I’m a big fan of gummy bears!) For your sweet treats, you can customize your colors to your wedding theme, provide customized containers for guests, and provide an assortment of all your favorite candies!
Dessert Bar
Why choose one when you can have it all!? A dessert bar offers guests a large variety of sweet treats. You can include cupcakes, brownie bars, macarons, pies, candies, and whatever else you wish. No limits here! We recommend decorating your dessert bar with different stands, plates, and containers to create not only a tasty addition to your day but a beautiful one as well.
Chocolate Bar
Similar to a dessert bar, a chocolate bar allows your guests to simply grab a little something sweet without stopping the dance party and reception fun. After all, everyone loves a little chocolate, so mix it up with a variety of different flavors – milk, white and dark – as well as fillings including nuts, pretzels, and raisins. Just be sure to label the chocolate carefully so anyone with allergies can see what they are eating.
Pie Table
Pie is a classic rival of the cake! Select different flavors of full-size pies and have a server offer your guests slices “à la mode”. Another option is to have smaller, tart-sized pies. These can be easier to eat than slices, but it is all personal preference.
While the traditional wedding cake is likely always going to be here to stay, if you are not a cake person, don’t worry! There are still plenty of show-stopping ways to offer wedding desserts without an actual cake. Whatever dessert you end up serving, do make sure it’s a true reflection of your personality and tastes! To explore the many ways you can add a little sweetness to your wedding dessert station, connect with us here.