#89: Dissecting The Groom's Cake

What's the difference between a traditional wedding cake and a groom's cake? This photo says it all:

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Traditional wedding cake = a clean, white and sophisticated dessert sure to look pretty in the photos.
Groom's cake = whatever the heck the groom wants it to be.

Case in point:

 

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All of this makes me wonder:

1. Why must the fun, creative, and highly personalized cake be an afterthought, taking backseat to the traditional, grown-up, white tiered dessert?
2. Umm...where's the bride's fun cake??

After a little bit of research I learned that the groom's cake has its roots in southern United States and was traditionally given to the groom as a gift from his wife.  The cake, which would be decorated to reflect the groom's hobbies and interests, was not served at the wedding reception, but rather, was sliced up and given to the guests as favors. According to legend, any single lady who attended the wedding should put the cake under her pillow that evening so that she would dream of her future husband.

(Insert your feminist critique of the groom's cake tradition here.)

So...if we lived in a world where there never existed a tradition wherein couples spend a couple hundred bucks on a tiered white cake, and instead people were encouraged to serve whatever dessert they liked and could afford (which might be an expensive white tiered cake, but probably not), how would YOUR cake/ cupcake/ pie, etc.,  be decorated? 

Here's what Brian and I served at our wedding:

                     Who DOESN'T love a marshmallow snout and Fruit Roll Up ears?

And if there were a tradition where a groom gave his bride a cake gift (one that would be decorated to reflect her hobbies, and could be placed under a man's pillow so that he could dream of the smart, funny, talented, strong woman who might one day, out of the goodness of her heart, decide to offer him a fairytale life), how would it be decorated?

(In case you're curious, my bride cake would be a GIGANTIC warm brownie carved to resemble Oprah's face, served over mounds of vanilla bean ice cream. Duh.)