Bolo de noiva: the Portuguese wedding cake kept for a year

On the wedding day, the cake is cut in front of everyone. Photos are taken, guests help themselves, and the celebration goes by quickly. But part of the cake is not meant to be eaten that evening. It has a date a year later, on the first wedding anniversary.

A tier kept for the christening

According to the Portuguese website E-konomista, the tradition goes back to the 19th century, when cakes with several tiers became fashionable. The top tier was then kept for the christening of the first child, which usually came about a year after the wedding: “batizado do primeiro filho”.

Couples now have children later, and the meaning has changed. Today, sharing that piece on the first wedding anniversary is thought to bring the couple luck, as a symbol of love and happiness. It is a way to relive the day of the celebration: a mouthful of the wedding, kept for later.

A royal cake, 250 eggs, 60 kilos of nuts

In September 2023, the Portuguese newspaper Observador reported on the cake for Infanta Maria Francisca, who was due to marry Duarte Martins on 7 October, at the basilica of the Mafra convent. Chef Hélio Loureiro was offering the cake as a wedding gift. He describes the result as “blanc sur blanc”, light and elegant. The bride does not know what the final result will look like.

The figures are dizzying: about 100 grams of cake per person, so 150 kilos for the main cake, with 250 eggs, 60 kilos of sugar and 60 kilos of nuts. Up to 1,200 guests were expected. The filling is walnut, the decoration is royal icing made from icing sugar, cream of tartar, lemon juice and egg whites. The inspiration comes from Gondomar filigree, a symbol of the folklore of northern Portugal.

The cake was to be made in Porto and assembled in Mafra. Two almost identical versions were planned: a first one to share with the public on the Terreiro D. João V, then a second one for the cocktail guests, served in the cloisters of the palace-convent.

Keeping a cake for a year: the method

If you really want to eat it a year later, the advice gathered by E-konomista is worth knowing. It is simple, and most of it is about hygiene.

• Tell the pastry chef when you order. They can then choose suitable ingredients and follow the hygiene rules for this kind of cake.
• Do not leave the cake in the sun. Beyond eight hours, the risk of contamination becomes high.
• Put it in the freezer quickly. Most modern cakes, made with dairy and eggs, should go in as early as possible.
• Wrap it in two steps. Cling film, then two layers of aluminium foil, then a well-protected box, in a safe area of the freezer.
• Thaw it slowly. In the fridge, still wrapped, one or two days before the date, then at room temperature until fully thawed.

The cake is eaten on the first anniversary, without waiting more than a year.

And in Brussels?

For a first wedding anniversary, you can also celebrate with a birthday cake made for the occasion. That is what we offer in Brussels, on our birthday cake page. Our shops in Etterbeek, Stockel, Uccle and Waterloo are listed on the stores page.

Sources: Observador, “150 quilos, 250 ovos e inspiração na filigrana de Gondomar: o bolo da boda real”; E-konomista, “Bolo de casamento: congelar ou não?”.

Photo: Mark J. Handel, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.