Tuscan Cream Cake from the International Culinary Center’s Emily Luchetti
Wedding dresses may still be white (mostly) and the father-daughter dance is still a 2-handkerchief moment, but wedding cakes have come a long, long way since of days of cardboard-like towers topped with a plastic bride and groom. We asked Emily Luchetti, dean of pastry arts at the International Culinary Center’s California campus, to share some ideas for couples who want a reception dessert to remember. Warning: Don’t read this on an empty stomach.
[blankline]
1. Seasonal flavors. The most personal receptions are decorated for the time of year, and now they taste appropriately seasonal as well. Luchetti likes to treat wedding parties to summer pudding in the warm months, apple charlotte in fall, chocolate souffles in winter, and for spring, strawberry rhubarb ice wine ice cream.
[blankline][blankline]
2. Nostalgia. For couples who want to revisit the tastes of their childhood, Luchetti swaps out the cake for a big dessert buffet loaded with bite-size treats. (We’re thinking blondies, cream puffs, lemon bars, indoor s’mores….)
[blankline][blankline]
3. Dessert and wine pairings. You match your fish course with a wine; why not dessert? Luchetti recommends “a nice red wine saved from the main course” to accompany chocolate, but says strawberries call for something lighter. She likes a Moscato.
[blankline][blankline]
4. The apres-cake. Luchetti says that couples are getting creative and following the main cake—many still include it for the ceremonial cutting—with a sundae bar or candy display.
[blankline][blankline]
5. The trend of the year? The non-trend. According to Luchetti, “People will go for trendy desserts at a restaurant, but at a wedding they’re more traditional. They may incorporate comfort food ideas like Nutella,” but nothing too bizarre. Sounds like solid insight, any way you slice it.
Pumpkin cake
Peanut chocolate cake
