Gluten Free Wedding Cake Guide

As a fellow gluten free person I know all too well what it’s like to attend a special event and not be able to enjoy the festivities and a slice of that beautiful cake. It’s even worse when its your own wedding and you need to have your “special cake” kept to the side! However now we have some truly talented cake makers who can create a divine gluten free wedding cake that not only looks incredible but tastes even better. So why not serve just one cake at your wedding and leave your guests non the wiser! As a specialty Gluten Free Wedding Cake maker in Perth here are my Top 9 Tips to help make planning your special cake, well… a piece of cake!


Gluten Free Wedding Cakes, Really?

These days the world of gluten free has come an awfully long way and we really do have the ability to create cakes, cupcakes and desserts that taste incredible. So good in fact that if you never told your guests it was gluten free they would never even know! So in stead of worrying about booking two cakes, or your “special” cake just for you or your Coeliac guests why not create one show stopping cake.

As an exclusively gluten free cake maker (that’s also married) I’ve seen this industry from both sides of the table. I see the same questions and problems arise time and time again so I thought it high time to share my tips to make the whole process so much smoother. So before you book your wedding cake tasting and consult read my Top 9 Tips to planning a Gluten Free Wedding Cake.

WeddingStunning image by Bird on the Wall Photography

1. Know Your Menu

The biggest attributing factor to the cost of your wedding cake will be size. But how much cake you need completely depends on not only how many people you plan on serving but HOW you plan on serving your gluten free cake.

Traditionally, the wedding cake is served after dessert with coffee. These pieces are what we call event or finger serves. They are thin, finger slivers of cake, perfect as just a taste. But that’s not the only option; these days brides are opting for a show stopper cake that acts as dessert as well! But in these cases you will need a lot more cake. In fact dessert portions of cake are twice the size of an event serve.

So before you head to your consult know how you’d like to serve your cake and how many serves you’ll be needing!

2. Know Your Baker

When you start to search for a wedding cake maker it can be incredibly overwhelming. There’s so many out there, how do you even choose! Being limited to cake makers that offer gluten free does limit the field some what. But I highly recommend taking it another step further.

Not all gluten free wedding cake makers are made equal. Some cakers are standard bakers that offer gluten free options, some are gluten free themselves and some are exclusively gluten free, like me. Be sure to do your research first, pop them a quick email and ascertain their knowledge on cross contamination. Are you/your guests Coeliac, intolerant or gluten free for other reasons? All of this plays a part into creating you not only a gorgeous and tasty cake but one that is safe for you to eat.

3. Research

Along with Tip 2 be sure to check out your potential bakers styles! There are so many different cake decorating techniques around that many cake makers choose to specialise in just a few. Whether it be on their website gallery, Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook, be sure to have a look through their cake images and see if their style is fits yours!

4. Preparation and Timing is Key!

In terms of timing, booking your cake is actually fairly far down the list on priorities. Easy Weddings recommends you book your cake maker a minimum of 6 months out from the wedding, but this can also come down to your cake makers availability. So be sure to check with them!

Before locking your incredible wedding cake in be sure to know a few things before you do. Having a your theme, colours and flowers all locked in before sitting down with your cake maker will make the process so much smoother.

5. Book a Tasting and Consult

Once you’ve looked at all your gluten free wedding cake makers and made your choice it’s time to book a taste testing. This is the best and delicious part! Some will only do them a few times a year or offer packs to be collected and tasted at home. So give your cake maker a call and book one in. An in person consult is the easiest way to design and bring your vision to life.

Don’t forget to ask whether the consults are included in the cost of the wedding cake or are an additional fee!

And don’t forget to be prepared for your wedding consult too by having as much information with you. Bring along any fabric swatches, images of your flower choices, cake toppers, invitations. Anything you’d like to use as inspiration is handy at this point.

6. Budget

Planning a wedding can be incredibly stressful, one thing that helps organize the chaos is having a very clear read on your budget. Knowing your budget for your gluten free wedding cake is great, but sharing it with your cake maker can be incredibly helpful!

Even if your dream cake design is out of your budget, there may be a way for them to design you something spectacular that falls within it. So don’t be embarrassed to share your budget. Our job is to help make your special day the best it can be!

Don’t forget to ask whether the consults are included in the cost of the wedding cake or are an additional fee!

And don’t forget to be prepared for your wedding consult too by having as much information with you. Bring along any fabric swatches, images of your flower choices, cake toppers, invitations. Anything you’d like to use as inspiration is handy at this point.

7. Not Everything Can Be Done Gluten Free

Even though the gluten free range has come incredibly far, unfortunately some aspects of cake decorating haven’t. The vast majority of wedding cake styles can be recreated gluten free but every now and again there’s something that’s not quite possible. Don’t forget to keep an open mind here, often your cake maker can recommend different options instead.

Be sure to be clear on your level of intolerance as well! Quite a few decorating elements and ingredients are gluten free by ingredient but it can be hard to confirm whether it has a chance of cross contamination. So sometimes we can come up with options to suit you.

8. Don’t Forget The Little Details

Weddings are such a personal experience and we want to help you create a truly bespoke day. So don’t forget to think about all the little elements surrounding your wedding cake.

Where and on what will your cake be displayed? Would you like a cake stand? Or are you having a dessert bar with tiered levels and stands of decadent sweets. Be sure to ask your cake maker if they have elements you can hire to pull the whole look together!

9. The Tasty Part

The best part of planning a wedding cake is the taste testing! With so many flavour choices and combinations it can be hard to select just a few. Be sure to stay true to you and your partner though and pick something that you both love. But always try and keep your guests in the back of your mind too.

A fabulous part about selecting a multi-tiered wedding cake or cupcakes is you can select different flavours for each tier. A quick tip! Make the biggest tier the most popular flavour. Nanna June might not like chocolate and salted caramel as much as you both do. So don’t forget, the more polarizing a flavour less of it will get eaten.

There you have it, my 9 tips to make planning and booking your gluten free wedding cake a breeze! There’s no need to feel worried or intimated, just sick back and enjoy the process.

If you’re looking for a fabulous Gluten Free Wedding Cake in Perth or the Wheatbelt, Western Australia then be sure to pop over to my Wedding Cake page for more details.