Note: The featured cake is by Shara of CakesByShara.net.

Men traditionally breaks out cigars in celebration. This amazing groom’s cake by Shara in the shape of a  humidor (yes, it’s a cake) is right on the dot (we hope it was ordered by the groom himself). All that chocolate on the cake makes it tempting even for non-smoking guests.

Chef Mendy and Gabriel Vidauri of CakesByThePound.com sent over a picture of a croquembouche. Don’t twist your tounge on that yet. We have to do a bit of digging to know what it is and how it’s pronounced too.

Wikipedia says a croquembouche or croquenbouche [kroh-kuhm-BOOSH] is “a French dessert, a kind of pièce montée often served at weddings. It is a high cone of profiteroles (choux filled with pastry cream) bound with caramel, and usually decorated with threads of caramel, sugared almonds, chocolate, flowers, or ribbons.”  Crunch-in-the-mouth in plain English.

Chef Mendy’s take on a classic croquembouche dessert recipe is place the sweet and crunchy tower atop a cake pedestal for a unique wedding cake. Described in her own words…

“This is a French Wedding cake, croquembouche, sitting on top of a chocolate buttermilk cake with Van Gogh espresso ganache, and Godiva white chocolate French buttercream. Decorations are chocolate roses and orchids.”

Ahhh, Godiva white chocolate, I can already feel my blood pressure rising.  With tendrils of spun sugar draped around it and white bells and doves for decorations, it will fit perfectly among chirstmas wedding themed cakes too.

Our thanks to Cakes by the Pound for the photo.

Gabriel Vidauri, operations manager of cakesbythepound.com, has sent us photo of one of the latest creations by Chef Mendy K. Pound. He described it as, ” a chiffon cake with vanilla pastry cream as a filling and berries. The outside is has sugar roses.”

We assume the pretty lady posing with the cake is the bride. The laptop in front of her is NOT real. It is the groom’s cake. Gabriel described it as “chocolate buttermilk  covered in fondant.“

The people behind CakesByThePound are real nice and they serve the Los Angeles area.