02 May 2017

"Naked cake"


When I saw the photo above I assumed it was taken before the cake was finished.  Not so.  Leaving the sides of a cake unfrosted is intentional.
Bakers these days are holding back frosting from wedding cakes for an exposed look that is popular with couples looking for a traditional wedding cake alternative. But is this frosting-free look right for you? These naked cakes will surely convince you.

As these couples will show, there's a naked cake for every celebration. Choose between shaved, striped layers or creative bases (think: pavlova, crêpes, or even cheese), sparsely placed icing or no icing at all, and décor that makes up for whatever frosting is missing. Even better, try new flavors, without the threat of finding a frosting to match. These naked concoctions are chic, sophisticated, and beautiful—not too sweet, but just sweet enough.
A gallery of 44 "naked cakes" is included at this Martha Stewart Weddings link.

Photo via a post at the Food subreddit, where the discussion thread hashes over the pros and cons of frosting and fondant.

7 comments:

  1. some cakes are so over frosted (and with such poor mouth feel frosting) that a naked cake is a blessing for the tongue.

    I-)

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  2. There is a practical reason cakes are frosted (or iced). It prevents the cake from drying out. The first I heard of his trend was a recent article by a baker bemoaning Pinterest's influence on wedding planning. He stated that it was very hard for a baker to prevent the cake from drying before being consumed.

    By the way, the etymology between frosting a cake and icing a cake...is it
    a colloquial thing, I wonder? Off to do a search here on the blog and then elsewhere.

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    Replies
    1. Good question. I don't think you'll find anything relevant here. Some places I looked at just now seem to indicate the words are interchangeable. Interestingly both imply a white color, and the terminology originated when granulated sugar was the coating used on cakes.

      If you find some other info, please report back to the class...

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    2. I thought icing was more sugar, and frosting was more cream?

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    3. In Australia (or at the very least Sydney, where I reside), the term "frosting" is unknown, except when encountered in American media. We exclusively use the word "icing".

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  3. Update: I found this link that includes glazing as well.

    http://www.seriouseats.com/2009/01/icing-vs-frosting-glaze-debate.html

    " Cakespy says the terms are ultimately interchangeable, but a little research in Cake, the new Williams-Sonoma cookbook, proves "an icing is generally thinner and glossier," while frosting is "a thick, fluffy mixture, such as buttercream, used to coat the outside of a cake." Then there's glaze (oy!) which is more slippery and thinner than the other two."

    There were a lot of different sites that used this exact same phrasing as if it were copied and pasted from one source.

    ReplyDelete