Must-Have Tools for Stress-Free Wedding Cake Deliveries!
Updated: Feb 15
As bakery business owners and cake decorators, we have all been there: you're an hour away from your kitchen, delivering a car full of beautiful, delectable, time and heat sensitive sweets. You sigh a breath of relief seeing that everything made it in one piece and go to set up when you realize that the couple has decided last minute to order cake flowers and left you flower stems to prep. Or maybe you hit an unavoidable pothole on the delivery and there is an ugly crack in the cake from the impact. For each wedding delivery, I bring a standard set of kitchen tools and extra items to make sure I am prepared for any situation! Read on to learn the essentials I pack in my delivery tool kit and why!
Off-Set Spatula + Piping Bag of Buttercream
I have had heavy tiered wedding cakes get stuck in boxes, suction to the refrigerator shelf at a backyard wedding, and I've had deliveries on gravel roads result in a small crack in a buttercream cake that I have needed to fix before placing it on display. Trust me, these the off-set spatula and extra buttercream are essentials for many unexpected situations! My favorite off-set spatula is not as thick as other brands, which makes it especially helpful for situations like the cake suctioning nightmare I went through (a story for another time)!
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Floral Tape + Scissors
I always bring floral tape and kitchen shears with me on cake deliveries now for a few reasons:
Most of the time the florists leave me a vase of flowers that have not been wrapped (which I prefer most of the time)
When the cake flowers have been prepped by a florist with wire and floral tape, sometimes they are too long and I have to trim the wire and re-tape them.
A few weddings per year, cake flowers will be added to the design last minute without it being discussed ahead of time (which I do not necessarily allow in my contract, but do like to be prepared for on the off chance that it occurs without my prior knowledge).
Sometimes the florist will offer up extra greenery for me to place around the desserts on the platters. In most cases, I am left with a bucket of extra flower stems in water, which I need to cut and wrap to style on and around the dessert table.
Box of Nitrile Gloves
I used to just bring a pair of gloves in a bag. Now, I bring a box of gloves (or at least 4-5 pairs) because:
Gloves tear easily (especially when you're working with a tight timeframe and only have one pair).
When setting up desserts, gloves should be changed between desserts containing allergens (e.g. gluten free desserts, desserts that contain nuts, and gluten or other allergen containing desserts should each use fresh set of gloves).
Gloves should be worn when adding edible decorations to cakes.
Some flowers and greenery, even non-toxic cake flowers, can be irritating to skin, so I also prep flowers wearing gloves to protect my hands from reactions.
A note on glove material: Latex gloves should be avoided for food use to protect others with latex allergies from being exposed to food handled with latex. I prefer nitrile or vinyl gloves, but there are other latex-free alternatives as well!
Tongs + a Dry Towel
When I have desserts to set up, like cheesecake bites, I bring tongs and a clean, dry towel to make set up easier. It is also nice to have the tongs as a back up in case I drop or run out of gloves before I am finished setting out the desserts. Having a clean dry towel is helpful to wipe away crumbs on the edges of platters.
A Lint Roller
Newly added to my delivery kit essentials is a lint roller. Because I usually prep the cake flowers at the cake and dessert display table, there's little particles from the flower prep to clean up or crumbs from setting up desserts. When there is a white or light table cloth, the lint roller helps pick up the particles to avoid accidentally creating any streaks/stains from trying to sweep particles and crumbs off. It also does the job quickly, so when I am running low on time to clean up before the wedding reception room opens up to guests, it's a lifesaver!
Packing Up The Actual Cake and Desserts For Delivery
Dessert Containers and Coolers
I use Plastic Food Containers with Lids to pack up my mini desserts. These fit in my favorite Insulated Catering Cooler Bags with strips of these Ice Packs around them to keep the desserts perfectly chilled at safe cold temperature on deliveries. I always tape the lids on and use a non-slip liner between containers.
The CakeSafe Box
Last but not least, I pack my tiered cakes in a CakeSafe Cake Delivery Box. This is the best reusable delivery box I have found yet! The price tag is high, but the quality matches. Here's why I love it:
The sides are made from double walled polycarbonate plastic, which is light weight, but helps insulate to keep cakes cold.
It is easy to assemble, take apart, and clean/sanitize between uses!
The box helps keeps cakes safe from condensation in the refrigerator and the elements on deliveries (heat, rain, dust, pollen, etc.).
It is made in the USA and the company has great customer service, plus a facebook group for fellow CakeSafe users to ask questions!
Note: If you have watched my cake stacking videos on Instagram, you will see me using a wooden center dowel, so I want to note that I do NOT usually use the center dowel that comes with this box, I only have a few times when I have a steep delivery or will be in stop-and-go traffic. I use the box mostly to keep my cakes cool, for the sturdy base that keeps my cakes from shifting in the car, and for the ease of use/cleaning. *I do not have a partnership with CakeSafe, I simply love how stress free my cake deliveries have become since I began using their box!*
I hope this helps you stay organized for stress free deliveries this upcoming wedding season!