Southern Sundays: The Groom's Cake Part 1: The Origin, Wedding Traditions | Table7 Events

Over any other Southern wedding tradition, the groom's cake is by far my personal favorite.  The typical groom does not get to make a whole lot of decisions when it comes to his wedding, but I love that this is all about him even though his bride-to-be most likely chose every detail that went into it.  The groom's cake is a gift from the bride to honor her new husband and is all about his personality, hobbies and interests.

I love this wedding tradition so much that I have divided this blog into a 3 part series:  The Origin, The Facts, and The Design.  Let's get started...

The Origin:

Actually, the groom's cake is not necessarily a Southern tradition, but they are the group that we associate with this custom.  The origin of the tradition started in Rome, but became more popular in England.  The English groom's cake was a dense fruitcake that was sliced, packaged and given to the unmarried women who attended the wedding to take home.  The women would then take their slice of cake, place it under their pillow that night, and have sweet dreams of their future husband.

Unless you came from the South or have a family that has brought this tradition into your heritage, most of us probably had our first encounter with the groom's cake in the movie "Steel Magnolia's."  I remember being about 14 and seeing that hideous gray armadillo's tail being chopped off and thinking.  I think that was my first introduction to red velvet as well.  I bet it was yours as well!!!  Remember this little fella?

Join us next week for The Goom's Cake Part 2:  The Facts.  We dig into the day it is served, the placement of the groom's cake and the timing of service.

See y'all next Sunday!

Photo Credit:  Southern Weddings Blog