I am often asked if I can make a cake gluten free, vegan etc - the answer is pretty much always yes, but there are a few things to consider.
Firstly - there’s three different scenarios I come across frequently:
maybe you, the bride or the groom, are vegan, or dairy intolerant, or whatever. In that case you probably just want the whole cake to be made so that you eat every last slice, should you so desire. You probably also don’t want to be charged extra for the privilege. Email me! I can sort this out for you.
Maybe its your bestie, or your mum, or half of your friends are vegan, or most of your family needs eggless cake. In this case, you might just want to make one or two tiers “special’. No problem, I often do this. Or you could have a few special cupcakes on the side for those guests.
Maybe it’s just one person. Maybe your work colleague’s girlfriend, who you’ve never met, is gluten intolerant and she’s already sent three emails about it. Maybe your sister in law doesn’t eat dairy, but she’s totally easy going about it. It’s a minefield but it’s totally up to you. You could have a few special cupcakes on the side, or…you could be completely forgiven for not catering for them if you don’t want to. It’s not the main meal, the cake usually forms part of the evening buffet, and if you can’t eat dairy/gluten/eggs then to be honest you may have already accepted that cake is not for you. Only you will know if that person thinks along those lines. Your call. I’m here for you and don’t forget I will tell the caterers what’s in every tier so guests can find out if they need to.
Allergies and serious intolerances
Firstly, a note about allergies & coeliacs. If your Special Guest has an ALLERGY to a particular ingredient, that’s really serious and a crumb could make them ill. This is also applies to coeliacs who will be very ill if they eat gluten (wheat). I will give a printed list of all the allergens in the cake to the caterers. Most of my cakes contain gluten, dairy and eggs. Some contain nuts and peanuts. Even cakes that don’t contain those things will carry the warning that they MIGHT. I totally know this is annoying for anyone who is allergic and just wants to eat cake, but all my baking happens in my kitchen which handles all the allergens, and nearly every packet I open has the same warning on it. So I’m really sorry but if you are catering for someone with an allergy, or ceoliac disease, then you would be better finding a specialist bakery where there’s no chance of cross-contamination.
This 5-tier gold leaf wedding cake was entirely dairy free.
Intolerances or other dietary requirements
Most people with dietry intolerances know their own limits and understand the risks of cross contamination, so we’re on! Here’s what I can do:
Vegetarian - All the cakes are vegetarian, don’t worry about a thing.
Gluten free - I can make almost any of my flavours gluten free.
Dairy free - Again almost any flavour (there’s a couple of exceptions, those flavours that are made with buttermilk for example) but most flavours are still on the menu.
Eggless - required for some Hindu and Sikh guests. This excludes a few flavours but I can still make you any chocolate flavour (chocolate and salted caramel, chocolate orange, cookies and cream, etc) and also vanilla and raspberry and lemon cakes.
Vegan - As with eggless, I can make any chocolate flavour, vanilla and raspberry, strawberry and champagne, and lemon. Vegan recipes often require soya which is a known allergen, so please bear that in mind. They also often use palm oil. I only use products with sustainable soya or palm oil sources.
Alcohol - some cakes are made with alcohol, but not so much that I’d worry about kids or drivers having any, but if you need the cake to be alcohol free for religious reasons that’s fine. It rules out the champagne and amaretto cakes, but I suspect you guessed this!
Diabetic / sugar free - I’m asked about this surprisingly often, I’m really sorry but I have my limits, and making a sugar-free cake is one. [Yes, I know you can buy sweetners for baking. Don’t write in.]
Combinations: you can combine most options, and have a gluten-free vegan cake (so no dairy, gluten/wheat, eggs) if you want to.
Vegan wedding cakes: choose from chocolate and salted caramel, cookies and cream, chocolate orange, lemon, champagne and strawberry, and vanilla and raspberry.