St. Louis, Missouri-based creative catering and event company Culinary Canvas exclusively serves event venues like The Noble and The Smith at Moto. The company recently introduced a new Head Baker, Laurie Lewis, who is shifting the narrative of wedding cake trends and what it means to fully personalize your wedding experience.
For 2024, Lewis shares the following trends she has recognized in desserts and wedding cakes.
Floral Trends
- Matching Florals: “Couples are looking to incorporate florals more intimately, matching their bouquets to the flowers on their cake and having bridesmaids’ florals coordinate with table settings. It brings such a cohesion to the overall aesthetic of the wedding decor and food.”
- Native Flowers: “We’ve also been utilizing native state flowers and wildflowers for cakes, exploring drying florals and using them for a pressed look (pictured above). We even had a cake made with flowers we handpicked from the groom’s grandpa’s garden to really play into that intimate connection between the couple's personal lives and coming together as one.”
- Highly Personalized Touches to Desserts: “We’ve made cakes with hyper-personal touches like a topper welded by the groom or decorating end-of-the-night cookies with the bride and groom’s silhouettes. We've also been playing tongue and cheek with the idea of something borrowed, old, and new to find eccentric ways to pay homage to the couples’ past. Clear acrylic tiers in cakes are a big part of this concept for us, storing items within the tiers creates a really unique look at the couple's personalities and journey together: Something borrowed, a family heirloom or sentimental item; something old, a movie ticket from their first date together; something new, flowers native to where they plan on honeymooning.”
New Flavors
- Vibrant flavor notes: “We’ve been playing with vibrant flavors like blueberry, lavender, subtle herbal flavors like chai, early gray, and black tea, as well as more acidic details with lemon, orange, and apricot.”
- Savory Notes: “We also think savory cakes will have their moment in 2024 as couples look for ways to make every aspect of their wedding memorable. Savory and cake usually don’t go in the same sentence, but there are approachable techniques to incorporate the idea, like fresh herbs (rosemary, sage, thyme, etc.), cheese (ricotta, mascarpone, etc.), apple and brie pairings, and caramelized onions.”
Vintage Cakes
“Vintage style wedding cakes are becoming more popular with decadent, layered frosting (often all white), intricate and varying piping tip patterns and luxe accents, like pearlescent details or lace-inspired decorating work (done by frosting or edible fabric sheets).”
