Fondant vs Buttercream Frosting

I personally think fondant is gross and always find it weird when bakers/chefs claim something is entirely "edible" but the products used are something no one would ever choose to eat. Fondant is a prime example. If it doesn't taste good, it shouldn't be a predominant ingredient in your cake, IMO. For the record, I probably watch too many baking shows where inedible "edible" ingredients are constantly used and its a pet peeve of mine (shows like "Nailed It" and "Baking Impossible").

I would steer clear of fondant unless its used in minimal amounts for highly decorative components of the cake that would be removed when the cake is cut and not served to guests. Fondant should not coat the entire exterior of your cake, IMO.

Unless your cake is going to be sitting out in the heat for extended periods, I would still with buttercream. It's less expensive and tastes better. IF you need a more durable or temperature stable cake, fondant's icky tasting qualities do make it a little more rugged as the tough shell provides a bit of a protective barrier for the rest of the cake, so it might be worth considering if you are having an outdoor summer wedding in Alabama or something.

View Quoted Comment Agree 100% with this.

They always look cool, but I'd go with the buttercream. I've never heard anybody say oooh that fondant is tasty. Plus why have the added expense if you just plan to peel it off. When you have your cake made either do it in a light color so teeth staining isn't an issue or have toothpaste in your wedding emergency kit in case you need it.

For that particular cake and the color of it I would go with fondant. No one eats the fondant but it will give you the look that you want and it will have a layer of buttercream underneath it for the taste that you want.

Fondant is great for making it look good but I would ask for buttercream dressed naked style then you can still add the gold flakes. Just Pinterest or Google "Naked wedding cake" and you can see what you think. However, if you are doing a dark color, like the Navy, and she said the fondant won't stain or color your teeth then that is something to think about. Of course, if you were to slice the cake and just eat from the middle portion without the exterior frosting then you can also prevent coloring on your teeth. Just some things to think about. Congrats and good luck!

View Quoted Comment The only problem with naked cakes is that they dry out fast. The buttercream or cream cheese or whipped cream (you are not limited to only one icing type) locks in moisture.

View Quoted Comment Fondant for sure buttercream will stain everything! Plus having dark buttercream won’t be very tasty it has a lot of food coloring. Like she said you can peel the fondant. And as far as having tasty frosting for your guests you can ask for extra frosting in between the layers.

I am doing a black cake as well! My cake decorator suggested doing a faux cake made of styrofoam but covered with the fondant & having a real slice available for us to do the cake cutting with the faux cake. What would be served to guests would be a buttercream sheet cake that she does a layer of the dark color over white so that it doesn’t stain people’s mouth. She provided samples & showed us real life examples to make sure the black color wasn’t lost when served & it worked! Maybe try that if it hasn’t been mentioned yet.

View Quoted Comment

Agreed. However, if you do a "scantily clad" cake with some of the cake showing through (not full "naked") they retain their moisture fairly well.

For example, this cake would probably get pretty dry:

But this cake would not:

I personally don't like fully naked cakes, but do love the cakes with even but not quite full coverage frosting with just a little sponge showing through. I think they are really pretty and unique but still have a good balance of sponge, frosting, moisture, and flavor.