• The modern-day cake-cutting ceremony represents the new bond being created as a husband and wife, said Janna Ellis, sales manager of Granite Bakery & Bridal.
• In ancient Greek times, the couple ate a sesame seed cake together to symbolize fertility and happiness.
• In ancient Rome and Northern Scotland, the cake (actually more like a loaf of bread) was broken over the bride's head to symbolize fertility, according to WeddingSource.com.
• A long time ago, guests would bring cakes to the wedding as a gift, Ellis said.
• A dish known as the Bride's Pie was popular between the 17th and 19th centuries. It had a savory filling with bacon, chestnuts, oysters and dates, according to WeddingSource
.com.
• It's possible that Napoleon's wedding cake was made by chef Antonin Careme, known as the father of modern French cuisine and considered the celebrity chef of his day, according to Emeril Lagasse in his book, Emeril's Delmonico.
• The multitiered cake as we know it today probably originated with one served at the wedding of one of Queen Victoria's daughters in 1859, according to Wedding Cakes and Cultural History, by Simon Charsley (Taylor & Francis).
• Around the mid-19th century, people began saving the top tier of their cake for their first baby's christening. Today, the top tier is usually frozen and saved for the couple's first anniversary.
• During Queen Victoria's reign, it became popular to have a white wedding cake. It denoted purity, and also the whiter and thus pricier the cake, the more wealthy the family appeared.
• According to Lion House Weddings, an unmarried girl who takes home a slice of wedding cake and sleeps with it under her pillow will dream that night of the man she will marry.
• Some modern-day couples prefer to smash the cake in each other's faces. Kathy Wood, owner of The Victorian reception center in Layton, recalled a reception where that tradition took another twist: the bride and groom turned and smashed cake into the surprised faces of the maid of honor and best man.