Fresh flowers atop a cake are definitely something spectacular. My own wedding cake was adorned with lavender and herbs, and anytime I see a cake with fresh flowers on the internet or in real life, I can’t help but want to use the heart eyes emoji.
Where do you begin if you want to design your own cake with fresh flowers? Is all that needs to be done to pile them on top of the frosting? Here’s how to make a cake into a show-stopper by adding a flurry of fresh flowers.
Know Which Flowers You Can and Cannot Use
There are many lovely flowers in the world, but not all of them may be used on food—like a cake—without risking contamination. Despite being common in bouquets, hazardous flowers like hydrangeas and baby’s breath should not be used. It is better to stick with edible flowers because even if you aren’t eating the real flowers, even touching the buttercream you will eat could be harmful.
“Among the flowers that are both lovely and delicious are roses, calendulas, nasturtiums, hibiscus, violets, and sunflowers. Herbs like rosemary, thyme, and chamomile are one category that is also quite secure from top to bottom, according to Susan Reid, food editor of King Arthur Flour’s Sift Magazine.
How can hydrangeas on a cake stay fresh?
A fantastic tip for larger floral arrangements is to make a tiny (1-2 inch) fondant ball and insert your stems into that before arranging the entire arrangement on top of your cake. This will prevent the cake from becoming contaminated. That technique has absolutely been utilized by me for bigger floral arrangements, and it is wonderful.
What types of fresh flowers can be safely placed on a cake?
Cakes are necessary for celebrations, and cakes, in my opinion, need decorations. One of my favorite methods of cake decoration is the use of fresh flowers. You may create a huge variety of appearances by including flowers, grass, or dried petals. It’s simple to match the cake decorations to the wedding bouquets and the overall concept of the celebration, or you can design a singular masterpiece that stands out on its own.
Many individuals start by utilizing a professional when choosing a cake and work with their neighborhood florist for the flowers. However, if you decide to go it alone, you must be aware of the types of flowers, floral accents, and methods that are acceptable to use when decorating cakes with fresh flowers, particularly when it comes to food safety.
What
You should be aware that many fresh flowers are deadly rather than edible while working with floral goods and fresh foods like cakes. You should also be aware that flowers cultivated for sale might be exposed to pesticides and other toxins through spraying. Now, don’t let that deter you from creating your ideal cake; there are many secure choices available.
It could be preferable to choose one of the edible flower and organic flower growers. Choose flowers that were cultivated expressly for eating, and search online for certified local farmers in your area. Keep in mind that not all flower parts are edible, and that you should always check fresh flowers for pesticides before using them.
List Of Flowers For Cake Decorating
- Roses, calendulas, nasturtiums, hibiscus, violets, sunflowers, and herbs like rosemary, thyme, and chamomile are just a few examples of attractive and delicious flowers.
- Carnations, Queen Anne’s lace, primrose, sunflowers, chrysanthemums, day lilies, hibiscus, peonies, chamomile, freesia, gerber daisies, lavender, violets, roses, marigolds, and cornflower are examples of non-edible flowers that are nonetheless suitable for flower arrangements.
- Flowers to stay away from include—but are not limited to—Mistletoe, Poinsettias, Holly, Sweet Peas, Lilies of the Valley, Daffodils, Azaleas, Calla Lilies, and Hyacinth. While incredibly popular, flowers like hydrangeas and baby’s breath are poisonous.
Be aware that some people may have allergies to flowers, just as they do to some foods. In order to place unique orders, be sure to speak with your florist in advance. If you’re still unsure, you might choose to use fake flowers to get a similar result.
Techniques For Decorating Cakes With Fresh Flowers
Fresh flower cake decoration can be done in a variety of ways. These methods aim to separate the cake from the flowers by constructing a barrier that is safe for food.
- Make a little bundle of flowers by wrapping the stems in tape or Parafilm, activating it with a slight stretch, and then wrapping the tape in aluminum foil.
- Use Parafilm to wrap the flowers as described above, but add a fondant ball to the end of each stem to help prevent contamination and contain moisture.
Are flowers safe to put on a cake?
Wedding cake decorations with edible flowers are becoming more and more common, and for good reason—they’re simple to apply and look stunning.
But first, a word of caution before you start piling handfuls of flowers into your wedding cake. Flowers are not always edible. Even our favorite gastronomic gurus appear to fall victim to the dangers of utilizing flowers in cooking and decorating—some flowers can even be severely deadly.
When Deliciously Ella, a wellness blogger, posted a picture of her wedding cake on Instagram in 2017, it drew criticism. She chose to decorate it with potentially deadly flowers, which botanist James Wong quickly pointed out.
When choosing a naked wedding cake or applying flowers directly on the cake or filling, it is recommended to pick flowers that have been grown with eating in mind. Search online for nearby producers or locate a licensed flower farm that sends edible flower petals directly. You’ll be astounded by the variety of flowers you can discover, from violas to pansies and roses. See our guide on edible flowers for more details.
Of course, one of the best things about using flowers to decorate your wedding cake is that there are countless design options. There are a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors available, especially in the summer. Comparing edible flower decorations to sugar flower decorations, edible flowers are also a more affordable choice. See our best advice on using flowers to decorate your wedding cake.
- If in doubt, leave it out when using edible flowers in cooking. This is the cardinal rule. Never consume flowers unless you are very certain that they are safe to eat. For ideas, refer to our list of edible flowers.
- If you want complete assurance that your edible flowers are safe to eat, make sure you get them from a certified grower.
- Make sure to give edible flowers a good wash before using if you have harvested them yourself. Don’t pluck flowers near the road or in areas where they may have had pesticide treatment.
- Make sure to remove the calyx, pistil, and stamens of larger flowers (such as roses, hollyhocks, and hibiscus), as well as the base of each petal, as most edible flowers only have petals that are safe to eat.
- Be brave! Don’t be scared to utilize color; even the brightest flowers will appear delicate when arranged on your wedding cake. Before decorating your cake, include edible flowers into the frosting for a confetti-style effect.
- Since edible flowers have a short shelf life and can wither in the heat, wait until the very last minute to add them on your cake. Until you absolutely need them, keep them in the refrigerator.
- Not everyone can consume edible flowers, even when they have been produced for human consumption. Various people may have allergies to the flowers, just like they do to some foods.
Using fresh flowers on your wedding cake is, in general, safe as long as you abide by these straightforward rules:
- Only for decorative purposes should you use fresh flowers. The majority of flowers grown for commercial purposes use pesticides or fertilizers, making them unfit for human consumption.
- The crucial point to keep in mind is that there needs to be a partition between the cake and the flowers. Fresh flowers go better on iced wedding cakes than on naked or almost-naked ones for this reason. If a florist is creating the cake flowers, they will take special care to prevent the blooms from touching the cake.
- Never poke cake with flower stems. You don’t want to introduce chemicals or bacteria from your flowers to your wedding cake if they were delivered in water.
- Before cutting and serving the cake, remove the flowers.
- Foxgloves, gypsophilia, hyacinths, Calla lilies, and Lily-of-the-Valley are among the toxic flower kinds that should be completely avoided.
Can you eat hydrangea flowers?
Hydrangeas can be poisonous, but seldom to the point of death. We worry about little children consuming things that could make them ill whether they have two legs or four legs. With kids, we worry about tiny toys, prescription drugs, and other things like plants. We worry more about our four-legged furry children eating our plants since they are curious animals and while many plants aren’t dangerous to them, there are still plenty that can result in serious illnesses or, sadly, death.
In addition to being poisonous to cats, dogs, and horses, hydrangeas are not edible. Due to the presence of cyanogenic glycoside, the plant is poisonous in all parts. You may experience depression, nausea, and/or diarrhea as some of the clinical symptoms. Even if they are not exhibiting any symptoms of illness, you should always seek the counsel of a veterinarian right away. Cyanide intoxication is often uncommon but can result in more stomach problems.
Which plants are safe for cakes?
We frequently have a tendency to overestimate the size of the leaves required when choosing foliage and greenery for cakes, even though a smaller leaf size frequently looks much better on the cake. The majority of regular flora and greenery typically has leaves that are too large to effectively decorate a cake.
Herb leaves frequently function ideal for cakes due to this and the fact that they are ingestible and unquestionably food safe. For instance, rosemary, thyme, sage, and bay leaves all look fantastic on cakes.
Olive leaves, fig leaves, and citrus leaves from lemon trees are also suitable options that are thought to be food-safe foliage.
You don’t have to worry about putting water tubes or florist’s vials into your cake because all of these may last for hours without water.
(If you require instructions on how to utilize water vials for fresh flowers on your cake, visit our Baby’s Breath Wedding Cakes feature here.)
A lovely and secure cake decoration is small white jasmine flowers and leaves. See a picture of it in our recipe for Croquembouche Wedding Cake.
The following plants make excellent edible leaves for cakes: blackcurrant leaves, fennel, lemon verbena, purple sweet potato leaves, pineapple sage leaves, Peruvian marigold leaves, and mint leaves. And all are successful in producing the pressed flower wedding cake in the very popular bohemian design. Here is a link to our tutorial: Wedding Cake Tutorial with Pressed Flowers and Wildflowers
If you need to enter greenery stems into the cake rather than just place them on top of it, poke a hole through the cake with a cocktail stick first, then completely cover the stems in sarin wrap or cling film before inserting them.
Can you put eucalyptus on a cake? is one of the most often asked topics at Cake Geek, presumably since it’s a bridal favorite. Are cakes OK to use eucalyptus?
Eucalyptus is not regarded as safe for consumption. But there is a workaround. After thoroughly cleaning the stems and leaves, mist them with edible glaze spray to create a barrier between the greenery and the cake.
Similar rules apply to common ivy. It’s not food safe, but if you apply the aforementioned method, you can still use it to decorate a wedding cake in a secure fashion. Just be sure to take it off the cake before serving.
To be clear, laurel, mistletoe, privet, yew, horse chestnut, broom, laburnum, cherry tree, plum tree, peach tree, elder leaves, and bracken are common garden flora and foliage that are toxic and should never be used on a cake in any way.
It’s also important to keep in mind that there are some excellent artificial plant and foliage options available right now that might work as well.
How far in advance can you decorate a cake with fresh flowers?
Although cake layers and icing can be prepared ahead of time, I do not advise adding fresh flowers to a cake.
Water is necessary to keep flowers from wilting. They can definitely lose their appeal if they are added to cake more than a day before an occasion.
Cakes that will be consumed the same day often have fresh flowers added. Although this solution makes things a little more difficult, you must believe me on this. You will regret adding them the day before.
On the morning of my wedding, I intend to decorate my own wedding cake with fresh flowers. Unfortunately, there is no way to avoid this.
Which cake flowers are poisonous?
Flowers are a creative and entertaining way to bring life and color to cakes. This floral accent, which is frequently employed as a decoration technique for huge celebration cakes, is a simple and reasonably priced way to make them seem polished and stand out.
But it’s crucial to keep in mind that not all flowers are edible. In reality, some flowers are extremely toxic and can be fatal if consumed.
There may be risks that home bakers, even those who have just launched their own business, are unaware of.
Cakes can be easily and inexpensively decorated with flowers, but in order to protect consumers from injury, it’s important to know which flowers offer a risk and which don’t.
There are a few terms you should become familiar with:
- Edible This indicates that the meal is safe to consume and will be digested by your body similarly to other foods.
- Non-edible
- This is used to describe foods that should not be consumed because the body cannot digest or break them down.
- Toxic
- This refers to substances that are poisonous and would be extremely harmful to consume.
- Non-toxic
- This indicates that the object is not hazardous, but use caution because it does not imply that it is always safe to consume.
Which Flowers are Toxic?
Many plants and flowers are poisonous and unsafe for ingestion by humans. Not all are listed here, but here are a handful you should never eat or drink:
- Daffodils.
- Poppies.
- Bluebells.
- Foxglove.
- Oleander.
- Clematis.
- Rhododendron.
- Hydrangea.
- Lily-of-the-Valley.
It is very simple to get edible glitter on a baking website because it is made specifically to be that way; however, finding edible glitter for flowers is more difficult. Knowing exactly what is edible and what is harmful when entering a florist is a little more challenging.
For further information on which flowers are edible and which are poisonous, see the poster below.