Simple Non-Fondant Wedding Cake Ideas – 4 Fantastic Options

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Last Updated on December 4, 2022

In our list of simple non-fondant wedding cake ideas, we will look at alternatives that taste great, are versatile in style, and are budget-friendly.

The categories of options we’ll discuss can be customized to fit your style. Sure, some work easier in certain themes than others. But, with a little imagination, you can choose the best option for your dream day!

What Are Some Simple Non-Fondant Wedding Cake Ideas?

It’s not necessarily that fondant wedding cakes are out of date. This ingredient allows you to create the most beautiful and elaborate cakes ever. However, more people are looking for simple non-fondant wedding cake ideas instead.

Whether that is because of cost concerns or they don’t like the flavor, there are a ton of wedding cakes without fondant icing.

Before you go choosing any cake, it’s important to consider that each option can help or hinder your theme. For example, as beautiful as a naked cake is, it gives the decor a more rustic outdoorsy feel. Not necessarily high-class minimalistic modern.

So, always consider your theme before choosing one of the styles we will look at below.

Then, of course, also consider your budget. At the end of the day, it’s a cake! Yes, it is an important traditional part of the wedding. But it’s almost just 10 minutes of the entire day!

So, if you choose a chocolate-covered cake, buy a smaller cake that fits your budget and guest number. But, if you want a big fancy cake, try a cheaper option. A naked cake or minimalistic buttercream-coated cake are budget-friendly alternatives.

So, without further or due, here are some of our favorite simple wedding cakes without fondant ideas.

The Best Simple Non-Fondant Wedding Cake Ideas

Our list below caters to a variety of wedding styles and budgets. We can all but guarantee that this list will be able to narrow down your choices of simple non-fondant wedding cake ideas.

1. Simple wedding cakes without fondant – naked cakes

We absolutely love a naked cake. And, what makes this style even better is that you can choose a full-naked cake or semi-naked cake.

A full-naked cake essentially shows a clean layer of cake, then frosting. A semi-naked cake is covered with frosting on the sides as well, but you can see the cake peeking through. it isn’t showing through completely.

These two different types can go with different wedding themes. For example, a full naked cake will likely be better suited to an outdoors forest-themed wedding. But, a semi-naked cake, if garnished correctly, can work for a more chic wedding too.

These cakes are easier to make than fondant-covered cakes. This also means they are (at or least should be) cheaper.

You can still choose different cake flavors for the inside, but it’s best to stick with one cake color. Because the cake layer can be seen, different colored layers can make the cake look like a rainbow of sorts.

You can decorate naked cakes with flowers, macarons, fresh fruit, whipped cream, and more. And, it’s incredibly easy to flavor the frosting as you’d like.

2. Buttercream wedding cake without fondant

Now, this is an equally popular option for simple non-fondant wedding cake ideas. And the only reason it is ranked lower on our list is that it is sometimes too sweet. Yes, the buttercream tastes better than fondant, but it is often far sweeter.

However, buttercream-covered wedding cakes are beautiful. You can create a variety of styles and even elaborate decorative details.

But, here’s another downside. These cakes are more expensive than naked cakes (because they use more frosting). They are still relatively affordable in comparison to most fondant wedding cakes. Or at the very least, they will fall in the same price range.

But, despite a few minor cons, it is a beautiful and versatile option. And, done by the right baker, it can look even better than a fondant cake!

3. Chocolate-covered cake

Next is an option we love, but that is very expensive. Even more so than fondant cakes! These cakes are covered with real chocolate garnishes.

Now, there are many different styles you can make. We love ruffled chocolate wedding cakes the most. They are elegant and a little extravagant. And let’s not forget, it’s chocolate!

You can also have a chocolate-bark-covered cake, a chocolate curls-covered cake, or a chocolate-glazed cake. And, for each of these, you can choose between white, milk, and dark chocolate.

Chocolate-decorated cakes also made our list of simple non-fondant wedding cake ideas is because of their style versatility. For example, a bark-covered cake can work for a rustic wedding. But, make it in white and it works for a chic one too.

If you really want this option, go for a smaller cake that can still feed all of your guests.

4. Glazed cake

Last, but certainly not least on today’s list of simple non-fondant wedding cake ideas, we have glazed cakes. Now, this option isn’t particularly popular for wedding cakes. But, for some brides, it may be the perfect option!

And, the type of glaze you use can vary. A mirror glaze is great but only works for more extravagant or chic-fancy weddings. So instead, you can choose a ganache glaze.

It will cover your cake beautifully without giving it that uber-glossy finish. So, you can decorate it to your liking or leave it as is.

These glazed cakes are also very easy to make and taste really good. And price-wise, they are somewhere around the same as buttercream-frosted cakes. Less than chocolate-covered cakes, but more than naked cakes.

Wrapping It Up

As you can see, there is no shortage of simple non-fondant wedding cake ideas. Even within these 4 categories, we discussed today, you can still play around with their style and theme. These options all taste great and can be customized to fit most weddings.

Let us know if you have any other questions. Or if you would like to share some other ideas you think we’ve missed!

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