DIY Naked Wedding Cake Tutorial

You may remember back in April, we teamed up with Hobbycraft to create an amazing DIY wedding dessert table. Well today I am back to share just how I made the statement DIY naked wedding cake creation. Layers of sponge, lashings of buttercream, sprinkled with icing sugar and with berries on top. Yum!

The humble naked cake isn’t going anywhere by all accounts and I can see why, it has rustic charm with the focus on taste and flavour. This cake is a single tier cake, with four layers of sponge. To create a taller version, simply make more tiers, either of the same size, or for stability with tiers gradually getting smaller the higher you go! The sky really is the limit folks.

Naked Wedding Cake Recipe

First up, you need to nail down a recipe for your cake. I am a coeliac and so a gluten free recipe was essential. Now, I have had highs and lows with gluten free baking, so I kept to a simple and plain Victoria sponge with vanilla buttercream filling.

On the gluten free note, have a think if you need to cater for any dietary requirements and chat to your guest about their specific needs if you’d like a cake for them to enjoy too. I do urge you to think about different flavours though, I have seen and heard of so many different flavours and different colour sponges can also look really effective. Or why not go bold and use food colouring for a rainbow or colourful sponge?

You will also want to consider just when to make your naked wedding cake. As it isn’t iced in fondant or buttercream, it may dry out quicker. So be sure to bake as near to the wedding as possible to keep your wedding cake lovely and fresh.

There are also recipes where you can freeze your sponge ahead, so you can defrost and decorate nearer the time as an alternative. This cake was simple, but it did take a fair amount of time and love, so be sure to dedicate a good amount of time to create and be sure to do a trial run too! I am sure you will have plenty of taste testers to give you a hand!

Wedding Cake Baking

Now it’s time to start creating your naked wedding cake! Be sure to buy the highest quality ingredients and make sure you have all the right equipment before starting your bake. It’s also worth thinking about buying spare ingredients to save popping to the shops if you have any baking mishaps. Also think about preparing your ingredients, for example leaving your butter and eggs out of the fridge to get to room temperature if your recipe guides you to.

Also heating up the oven to the exact correct temperature while you bake and having accurate scales will really help your baking to be a raving success. My beloved Kitchen Aid has been one of our best kitchen investments and makes baking a breeze, I think it looks pretty cool on our worktop too.

If you don’t have a mixer, why not ask to borrow one if you aren’t quite ready to invest? Baking in bulk will be so much easier! I also really recommend the layer cake tins that Hobbycraft gifted me for this project. Baking four layers in one go is so much more time efficient and the sponges turn out more uniform too.

Naked Cake Decorating

So you have your sponges all fresh from the oven? Make sure to cool them thoroughly before adorning with buttercream or your chosen filling. Be sure to evenly layer out your buttercream using a palette knife and using a rotating stand like the one I have will ensure your crumb coat is even and as uniformed as you fancy!

Buttercream really does cover a multitude of sins and to be honest my cake did become a bit of a semi naked cake after this stage, but I liked the rustic effect.

I then added an assortment of berries after washing and ensuring they were totally dry, plus sprinkled icing sugar over the top and added a cute bunting topper from Hobbycraft. There are so many naked cake wedding ideas out there though with different decoration ideas. Edible flowers, fun toppers and stands galore. Such fun!

Displaying Your Naked Wedding Cake

Now your cake is all ready, carefully transfer your cake to your dream cake stand. I used the cake stand gifted to me by Hobbycraft, which is chic and pretty, ensuring the cake is the star of the show!

Do think about where you will be displaying your naked wedding cake in your venue, the furniture you will use and the décor on the table too. It will all make a huge difference to the overall look of your cake and ensure suitable wow factor. You could go for a table, or a piece of furniture, decorate with flowers matching your other arrangements and choose fun props or backdrops too.

There are so many options, it’s time to go all out and have a real blast with this centrepiece to your décor. Also have a think about how you will package and transport your cake to your venue. One last top tip, don’t forget your cake cutting knife on the big day!

Where To Buy

• Wilton Easy Layers Round Set of 4 Cake Tins (Gifted Item)
• Glazed White Cake Stand (Gifted Item)
• Ginger Ray Mr and Mrs Kraft Cake Bunting (Gifted Item)

 

Happy naked wedding cake baking folks! xo Lou