This Sweet Half-Naked Cake Took The Show - How to Style A Tablescape Like A Professional - 6th in this series
This little sweetheart of a cake was a show stopper at a charity event that I participated in last November in Hartford, Connecticut. Of all the design details on my table, this one was the most asked about and by far the favorite.
First, what is a half-naked cake!
A half-naked cake has a barely-there buttercream frosting on the outside and most often exposes the cake layers and filling. In mine, I wanted the cake completely frosted with a very thin layer of frosting. Here and there you can see the layers peak through the frosting. By frosting it with just a fine film of buttercream everywhere, I thought it would look a bit more formal yet still rustic in nature.
A naked-cake is both rustic and chic and is often decorated with fresh flowers and/or fruit, dripped with a ganache or anything else you want to do to style this lovely dessert. You can get very creative with this type of cake whether rustic or minimal in design.
Why did I choose a half-naked cake for this event?
I wanted something gorgeous and rustic
What better a cake that offers a texture and visual appeal that frosting can’t replicate. These lovely cakes are especially beautiful placed in the backyard of your home where you are celebrating an event or having a special dinner with those you love. It is casual but elegant at the same time.
I wanted something that I could decorate easily myself
Naked cakes are fairly easy to frost with just a few swipes of frosting on the top and a crumb layer on the sides.
I have to confess, I did not make this cake myself. I purchased it from my favorite cake designer, Miriam Hope Taylor, owner of Taste By Spellbound. Miriam has been baking cakes since just a little girl and has turned her passion into an amazing growing business. She is my go to designer/baker for any cake I am looking for that is special, well made and just plain delicious. I asked for a vanilla frosted three layer cake with chocolate dripped ganache on the top. They left the rest of the cake undecorated so that I could add the flowers and macarons to match the rest of my table design.
I chose three types of flowers to decorate my cake
Delphinium: I added just a few delphinium for the pop of deep blue I was looking for. I wanted a vibrant blue flower to match both my vintage Spode plates and votives. Delphinium’s have very small blooms that are deeply colorful. These were perfect.
David Austin Roses - Heritage: I then added beautiful David Austin Heritage roses to the bouquet. The blush color added nicely to the brown hues in the confit pot as well gave my centerpiece a warm richness I was looking for. These beautiful roses were a bit old fashion and very fragrant. Perfect for the look I was going for, cozy and warm.
Creamy White Hypericum Berries: I use these berries because of the texture and color it gave the cake. They add just a touch of warmth and beauty to any arrangement. These spots of berries added to the delicate nature of the cake.
NOTE: This cake was just for display and was not eaten. If it were eaten, I would have been very cautious of which flowers will go on my cake. Always check before adding flowers to be sure they are edible. I always look for organic flowers as well since pesticides can leach into your cake. If you can’t find non-pesticide flowers, you can wrap the stems with plasitc wrap before inserting into the cake. I also will use floral water tubes to insert flowers stems into before inserting into a cake.
I also added a few cream colored macarons on top of the cake decorated with hints of edible gold brushed on each of them.
Here’s my little semi-naked cake tucked into the tablescape design.
““The details are not the details. They make the design.””
“The thing is…adding little details to your table makes a difference in your design. This little cake, tucked amongst all the other French items added to the total design as a whole. It gave the tablescape interest, texture and an alluring feel to want to sit and stay a while.”
Here is a quick video of my finished tablescape.
“Mon Jardin à la Française” or “My French Garden”
If you want to know how to frost a half-naked cake, check out this link from sugarandsparrow.com. You will find very detailed instructions as well as a video to help you. Good luck!
As with everything I post on my blogs, please feel free to comment or if you have any questions, please email me through my contact page. I welcome it anytime!
Design with your heart™️
Happy entertaining my friends!
Mary
“May your home be a place where friends meet, family gathers, and love grows. ”
Next up…in the seventh series, decorating this lovely French market basket.
