Wedding

The Perfect Dessert for Your Wedding, Organized by Personality

June 29, 2015

Are you having your wedding at Four Seasons or at a campsite? No matter the vibe of your big day, we've got a dessert for you. 

You and your partner have everything planned for your wedding: the rings you'll exchange, the first song you'll dance to, and the pajamas you'll put on as soon as the last guest has left. You've even made sure the friend from college—the one who'll inevitably get a little sloppy and distract from the tension between your extended family members—has RSVP'd yes.

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But the detail that can sometimes be hardest to finalize—the same detail that will leave a lasting, and hopefully sweet, impression on your guests—is dessert. In so many ways, we're living in an era after the reign of the standard three-tiered wedding cake with two figurines on top. Today, there's more room for creativity—to serve pudding or milkshakes or trifle as the last course, depending on the mood you're going for.

To celebrate the start of wedding season and the launch of Food52's registry, we've organized 24 desserts by wedding personality. If you serve any of these, we expect an invitation. 

Luxe

  • You want your guests to leave impressed
  • You told the wedding planner you were fine with crystals, sequins, and gold leaf
  • The expression "YOLO" speaks to you
  • You spent a lot of time thinking about the wedding favors

    Triple Chocolate Ombre Cake, Champagne Cake, Olive Oil-Saffron Ice Cream with Burnt Caramel-Orange SwirlLate Summer Trifle

 

Classic

  • The thought of a mocha-colored dress makes you raise your eyebrows 
  • You picked out your borrowed, blue, and new items five years ago
  • You want your wedding to feel timeless
  • You're exchanging family heirlooms along with the rings

    
Strawberry Short Cake, Alice Medrich's House Truffles 4.0, Perfect Chocolate CakePeach Tart

 

Minimalist

  • You instructed your mother and your future mother-in-law that they could absolutely not wear Betsey Johnson dresses
  • The color scheme includes grays, blues, and gray-blues
  • Your dream house is "simple yet elegant" 
  • You love Muji

      
Maialino's Olive Oil Cake, Flourless Chocolate Cake, PalmiersBrown Butter Raspberries

 

Rustic

  • You're having your wedding at a barn, cabin, farm, or campsite
  • There will be dogs running around (and they will not be wearing bow ties or veils)
  • You are serving artisinal beer out of mason jars decorated with gingham ribbons
  • The bouquets and corsages are made of wildflowers

    Blueberry and Rye Slab Pie, Blackberry Cornbread Buckle, Mable's Texas Sheet Cake, Apricot Oat Crumb Bars

 

Indie

  • You're having a friend play guitar as a you walk down the aisle (or, if you're really going for it, he's playing banjo)
  • Vanilla cake with vanilla icing makes you yawn 
  • You're putting Polaroid cameras on each table
  • You hired the bartender because of his handlebar mustache

    Mango-Lime Trifle with Brown Butter Cake, Pecorino Romano Cake with Candied Tomatoes, Chamomile-Lemon Cupcakes with Honey ButtercreamRoberta's Parsley Cake

 

Retro

  • You always had a hunch you were born in the wrong decade
  • There will be a jukebox at your wedding programmed with "Twist and Shout"
  • You considered wearing a poodle skirt (or pastel-colored suspenders), but your friends advised against it
  • There will be a high number of "old timers" attending 

  
  Roasted Strawberry with Buttermilk and Mint, Icebox Cake, Funfetti CakeRhubarb Upside-Down Cake

See what other Food52 readers are saying.

  • Alice Kruse
    Alice Kruse
  • Nancy
    Nancy
  • Hermione
    Hermione
  • AntoniaJames
    AntoniaJames
  • Annie stader
    Annie stader
I used to work at Food52. I'm probably the person who picked all of the cookie dough out of the cookie dough ice cream.

6 Comments

Alice K. June 14, 2016
OMG, you totally forgot the Cookie Table! Something for everyone, and the more cookies/varieties, the more impressive. Every wedding has a cookie table in my area!
 
Nancy June 30, 2015
Fun story, spot-on insights by type, great recipes. I bet you could extend this to other occasions - the personality types continue after the wedding, so republish under a new heading. and-or do similar stories for thanksgiving or other big holidays.
 
Hermione June 30, 2015
What a wonderful selection. When my sister got married five years ago my Grandma made her wedding cake and I catered the rest of the wedding when I was 21. It was wonderful helping to make her day so special. If it had been a summer wedding I would have loved to have made my Vanilla, Apricot and Raspberry Cake with White Chocolate Frosting for one of the desserts as it is delicious!
www.hermionespantry.com
 
AntoniaJames June 29, 2015
Best ever wedding cake was the one I enjoyed this past Saturday: Rocky Road ice cream cake from Fenton's Creamery! That's what the groom wanted, and although arguably iconoclastic, it was, seriously, perfect. ;o) P.S. A lemon custard ice cream cake was also offered, but the Rocky Road was clearly the guest favorite.
 
Annie S. June 29, 2015
My wedding cake was based on the flavor profile of Capritada the Mexican bread pudding. I was married in 1976. I made this cake for a friend's wedding at her request and spent a couple of weeks customizing an applesauce spice cake from the Fannie Farmer Cookbook. The frosting was a cream cheese variation. There was not one crumb left. It was such a satisfying feeling to feed my friends something I had made to celebrate that day. Btw I made it a week before and froze it and it thawed beautifly!
 
Sarah J. June 29, 2015
That's such a sweet story! I'm sure that some of best wedding desserts are those with personal connections behind them. And what a feat to have made a cake for your friend!