Drips cakes are one of 2017’s hottest wedding trends, and these gloriously sweet structures are not just any old pieces of confection–they’re borderline art, and will make your wedding the spiffiest event around. Not only do they look amazing, but they taste amazing as well. We couldn’t have asked for a better wedding trend! Don’t get us wrong, we love wedding decorations, stationary, dresses, etc , but the ones you can eat are our personal favorites!
We’ve decided to give you the rundown on why this delicious trend is dripping with allure, and have also dug up some of the internet’s most amazing drip cakes. Get ready for a sweetness overload.
Cake History
Where do drip cakes come from? A quick internet search shows that they have a history in traditional British cuisine (we know, don’t worry). Known as Drippers or Dripping cakes, these baked goods were mainly comprised of flour, brown sugar, spices, currants, raisins, and, of course, drippings. Keep in mind that the drippings here aren’t the velvety ganaches seen on current drip cakes, but rather, a fluid created by cooking the joint of a piece of meat.
Although they share similarities, we’re not entirely sure if the current trend of drip cakes has anything to do with the ones in British cuisine. In any case, we’ll take the ganache over the meat drippings!
It’s fairly safe to say that Katherine Sabbath is the pioneer of current drip cakes, and her artistic prowess has allowed her to create some truly incredible pieces. Her cakes took the internet by storm when they came onto the net a few years back, but now Katherine has inspired thousands of bakers all over the world to try their hands at this versatile platform of baking.It’s a trend that’s been buzzing on the internet for a little while now, but has finally exploded.
From private bakeries to gifted solo cake decorators, everyone has been making their own and putting their unique spin on it, and we’ve been loving the results.
Why has this trend caught on? We have a few ideas. Namely, the drip cake is a sight to behold that stands in stark contrast to more traditional wedding cakes. The dripping is aesthetically pleasing and these cakes are often elaborately and artistically decorated. Single or multi-tiered, drip cakes offer a lot of room for creative possibilities. Just think of them as playgrounds that can be decorated with all sorts of delicious accessories: chocolate bark, garishly colored macaroons, geometric chocolate shapes, etc. Like most works of art, you’re only limited by your imagination, and some of the best drip cakes out there feel more like edible sculptures than mere cakes.
It’s all about the Drip
You might have already guessed that the dripping or icing is the central part of the drip cake (Duh!) so let’s take some time to talk about this crucial aspect. Most of those oh-so-wonderful drippy effects you see on these cakes is created using ganache. For those not in the know, ganache is made by heating heavy cream and pouring it over pieces of chocolate and then blending the mixture until smooth. The pouring of the ganache over the top of the cake gives gives this wonderful dessert it’s signature look.
We really shouldn’t use the word pouring because that would give the wrong impression. You see, application of the ganache icing is a little more deliberate than you might think, and according to Katherine Sabbath, it’s better to spoon the ganache on the sides of the cake first. After you’ve achieved the desired drip effect, you can then fill in the rest of the top with the ganache. She also recommends putting the cake in the refrigerator for some time before you apply the icing, that way, the ganache will cool as it drips down the side of the cake, preventing it from overflowing and creating a drippy deluge. If you want to add cool colors, try adding a few drops of gel food coloring to the mixture.
Keep in mind that ganache isn’t the only dripping you can create. One of our other favorite drippings is caramel. The consistency is a little different than the ganache, but with a little trial-and-error, you’ll be able to get it to work.
As for the cakes themselves, they can be made of virtually anything you want, including box cake recipes or super-secret cake formulas. Some basic drip cake building blocks include the usual suspects of cake ingredients such as fondant, buttercream, and ganache of course.
Gallery of Drip Cakes
The internet is absolutely bursting with information on this topic, so if you don’t know what to do or how to go about making one, then you can rest easy knowing that a ton of info is only a few clicks away. Just do some more research, find a recipe, and have at it. However, before you dive in, check out these amazing drip cakes that will pique your interest and your palette. You’ll immediately see why drip cakes are the latest baking thing.
Katherine Sabbath’s cakes are one-of-a-kind. With her signature neon color schemes, she manages to create incredibly whimsical pop designs. This melty ice-cream cone cake with neon-blue icing may just be one of the best things ever.
We feel that this drip cake is the definition of elegant. Sometimes you don’t need to go crazy with elaborate decorations and flourishes to make something beautiful. The gold sheen on this cake not only captures the light incredibly, but it gives the icing a pop that just wouldn’t have been possible on a matte surface.
This sweet monolith is by Unbirthday Bakery, one of the arguable pioneers of the modern drip cake. It stands it stark contrast to our previous cake, and is a perfect dance of ordered chaos–plus chocolate! We love the amount of decoration stuffed onto this thing, and it doesn’t look too cluttered either. The accents of blue are great as well.
Remember the caramel icing we mentioned? It’s used to a good effect here, and the color of it harmonizes well with the cross section of the cake. The white macaroons and other pieces of decoration add that elegant wedding touch. The bits of green drive the whole thing home. Besides drip cakes, didn’t you know that simple greens are the new thing in weddings?
Decorated with mini donuts, caramel corn, and candy bark, this cake is another example of a pleasing cake composition. Everything about this piece just screams “eat me!” and that’s exactly what we want to do. Did we mention that we love those little candy donuts? They’re so cute and the sprinkles just add the smallest touch of color.
Now this is a cake! The thing with drip cakes is that they can be single or multi-tiered. This is just an example of how far you can go. We love how each layer has it’s own color and the light hues are easy on the eyes. The colors also go well with the pink and white decorations. The sky’s your limit when it comes to making drip cakes, although we would warn you about structural integrity. We still have yet to see the Leaning Tower of Drip Cakes, but this one is close.
We just love gold, and that’s probably we why we love this cake. It’s also a good color to use for weddings, because it provides that gorgeous decorative look. The awesome arrangement of flowers gives this cake the pop of color that it needs, and lets everyone know that this bad boy is for a special occasion
We’re definitely intrigued by the unique pattern on this drip cake. It’s an example that goes to show you how different in style these pieces can be. Little needlelike drips accented with circles create an eye-catching pattern that’s just too irresistible to not stare. It looks so pretty. We almost wouldn’t want to eat it–almost.
This is probably the best boho wedding cake we could find..well, one of the best, anyway. There are just so many good drip cakes out there! However, we think this one is the perfect balance between decorative wedding elegance and down-to-earth appeal. The partially exposed layers give it that rustic, unfinished look that we just love.
