Melanie Ferris Cakes Essex - Frequently Asked Questions

What size cake do I need for my number of guests?
Assuming a portion size of 1" x 1" x 3" finger the number of portions that my cakes will supply is between 150 - 250 for those shown in the pictures. The bottom tiers are between 10" and 12" in diameter.

I have a specific dietary requirement, can you cater for this?
I can make eggless sponge and chocolate cakes for Hindu weddings, and gluten free cakes for those with allergies. All my cakes are vegetarian but I use real butter and cream unless requested not to.

I am on a really tight budget but want a WOW cake beyond my means?
Have you thought about dummy cake hire. I have some dummy cakes which I will hire you to put on display at your wedding and supply you with a chocolate cutting cake to feed 100 guests, all for £100. So you can have your cake and eat it. Click here for more info....

Can I serve my cake as dessert?
You can, if you wish, decide to eat your chocolate wedding cake as dessert, either on the buffet table for the evening guests, or served up more formally as part of your sit-down meal. Most venues or caterers are happy to cut up the cake and put it on the buffet table, but if you choose to have it on your formal menu there are several things you must check.
If your meal is a set price menu for a set number of courses your caterer may be prepared to use the cake as the dessert and just charge the same price, or even, if you drive a hard bargain, provide some canapés to make up for the fact they are not providing the dessert within the set price. However, if you are paying separately for each course and you provide the dessert in the form of the cake you must be prepared to pay the caterer to cut and plate the cake, and possibly provide cream, or ice cream, to accompany it, rather as you pay corkage if you bring your own wine.

I want a WOW cake but am having a very small wedding.
I can make your cake as large as you want, and if you do not want to be left with a lot of cake it may be possible to create some of the tiers as 'dummies'.

How do I keep the top tier of my wedding cake?
I will leave a small white cake box at your reception venue for you, in which to take home and store the top tier of your wedding cake.
Iced Sponge Cake
Remove any fresh or sugar flowers and simply place in the freezer in the box supplied. Remove from the freezer the day before you wish to use it and let it defrost slowly. Moisture may gather on the surface of the icing, but this will just evaporate.
Fruit Cake
This can be frozen but it is not necessary. It can be stored in a cool, dry place, in the box supplied. Leave in any posy picks so that the cake remains sealed. The icing will go very hard in time, and if reused for a christening will probably need to be re-iced and decorated.
Chocolate Cake
Remove any fresh or sugar flowers and simply place in the freezer in the box supplied. If there is waxed paper on the top of the cake, leave this on to retain moisture. Remove from the freezer the day before you wish to use it and let it defrost slowly.