Wedding cake beach theme   

The First Anniversary Takes the Cake

Your first anniversary is the definitely the sweetest. After all, it's about cuddling up with your sweetie, reflecting on the first year of wedded bliss and� eating your wedding cake?!

Yes, it's true: the sometimes strange traditions surrounding weddings do not end when you hang the "do not disturb" sign on the hotel room door. One year later, those random rituals are still haunting you - in this case, it's been haunting you daily, every time you reach in the freezer for the pint of Chubby Hubby.

So where did this crazy custom come from, you ask? It originated in the nineteenth century, when part of the cake was saved for the christening of the couple's first child. Over the years the tradition has evolved to where it is today: the top tier of the wedding cake is saved for the couple to eat on their first anniversary.

Of course, not all couples follow this tradition - and, in fact, many of the country's top bakeries suggest you don't. After all, no matter how well you freeze the cake, by the time your anniversary rolls around it's still going to be a defrosted one-year-old cake.

Katrina Rozelle of the well-known Katrina Rozelle Pastries in the San Francisco Bay Area acknowledges it's a nice tradition - in theory. "Most likely, the bride and groom won't get a chance to enjoy their cake on their wedding day - other than that ritual first bite, of course," she says.

But instead of saving the cake for a full year, Rozelle tells newlyweds to "preserve the cake until you get back from your honeymoon. Then you can enjoy it as a romantic evening for the just two of you, or share it with your family."

Many couples, having seen the "Seinfeld" episode where Elaine pilfers a piece of the cake served at the 1937 wedding of the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson, call the bakery and have a small cake made just for the occasion.

For those couples who do want to save their cake for their first anniversary, Rozelle says the key to success is actually in the freezer. "A deep freezer is best, one that doesn't cycle on and off. You want a freezer that will stay at one good, cold temperature the whole time," she says.

To prepare your cake for the deep freeze, Rozelle gives the following instructions: "first take all the adornments, like fresh and hand-made flowers, off the cake. Then put it back in the box and freeze it overnight." The next day, she says, you should wrap it securely in Saran Wrap, not tinfoil. (Although tinfoil is OK for the final wrapping, it's important to use Saran Wrap for the first layer, as it will seal in the moisture of the cake). Rozelle recommends placing the snugly wrapped cake on a Tupperware lid (it will serve as a firm base for the cake) and fitting the Tupperware container over the cake. Lastly, she says, "mark it!" After all, you wouldn't want someone to flip the container over or toss it out.

That would really take the cake.

Cake news