Tara Lipinski talks wedding cakes, hosting gigs and her sweet tooth
Tara Lipinski, co-host of Food Network’s Wedding Cake Championship, sat down with FoodSided to chat about wedding cakes, hosting the show and her sweet tooth.
As Food Network’s Wedding Cake Championship finale airs, Tara Lipinski took some time to chat with FoodSided about her co-hosting duties on this baking show, her own wedding cake and her love of sweets. During my conversation with the vivacious television personality, I was struck how approachable she is. From her honesty about having a sweet tooth to her opinions on wedding cakes, the conversation made me excited to see tonight’s finale.
Tara, and her co-hosting partner Johnny Weir, often are seeing at figuring skating competitions, Olympic coverage and red carpet events. While not expected, this Food Network baking competition is a new avenue for Tara. She referenced that this competition show was a lot of fun to co-host. While the cakes were impressive, there was plenty of drama in the kitchen. Through the filming, she said that she became invested in the bakers and the competition.
Tara Lipinski, photo by Collin Stark.
Since this Food Network baking show was all about wedding cakes, I asked Tara about her own wedding cake. According to published pictures, her wedding cake was traditional. With subtle, pale colors and delicate floral decorations, the cake reflected her style. Tara likes more traditional, elegant cakes.
While her wedding cake decoration was traditional, the wedding cake’s flavor was just as important as the cake’s design. For her wedding cake, each cake layer had a different flavor. It was very important for her to have all the flavors in her cake. That decision definitely showed her love of cake and sweets.
After discussing her own wedding cake, I asked what advice that she would have for brides. Tara recommended that the bride (and groom) should have a cake that reflects the couple. From a particular flavor to the decoration, that cake is an expression of the couple and their special day.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BZMS6jvgT5m/?taken-by=taralipinski
The cake, like everything else at the wedding, is part of that special day. Tara said, why not make the cake an expression of your personality. If the bride wants all the flavors, have all those flavors. That cake should be personal to the couple.
When it comes to wedding cakes, there is one curious tradition that Tara followed. Tara and her husband Todd kept the top tier of her wedding cake to eat on her first anniversary. While the cake stayed in the freezer, she did forget to eat it for her first anniversary.
We both wondered if the frozen wedding cake would taste good. Tara said that the cake is still in the freezer. While I found that my frozen wedding cake wasn’t as good as I remember, I hope that Tara’s tastes much better.
Luckily for Tara, she had another option a special first anniversary cake. As part of the Wedding Cake Championship finale, the three remaining baking teams had to create a first anniversary cake for Tara and Todd. According the Food Network, the cake’s theme is all countries where the couple has traveled. The theme sounds like it continues her belief that these special cakes should be quite personal.
According to Tara, the final challenge was a big twist for the teams. After growing close to all the bakers, it was hard to now judge them. She felt that it almost seemed that there was more pressure in the finale since the cake was for her and Todd.
Based my conversation with her, I would guess that the cake flavor will be just as important as the cake’s decoration. The team that can incorporate both her and her husband’s favorite flavors should do well in the final challenge.
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As a person who loves sweets and cakes, co-hosting Wedding Cake Championship was a dream for Tara. Even though she didn’t judge all the cakes throughout the season, she couldn’t resist tasting all those delicious cakes. Apparently, she had a fork hidden on set to sneak a taste from the judges’ plates. Who can blame her? I wouldn’t let all those delicious cakes go by without tasting at least a bite.
While Tara loves sweets, she is more of an eater than a chef. If she had to choose, baking holds more of an interest than savory cooking. It sounds like this season’s Wedding Cake Championship was a perfect fit for her.
As this season of Wedding Cake Championship comes to a close, could Tara Lipinski fans expect to see her co-hosting another food competition show? She said that she would be open to hosting another program. Just think of the food show possibilities for Tara and Johnny. Wonder if there could a red carpet food challenge or a sports themed food challenge in the works.
Next: Gesine Prado offers simple advice to aspiring bakers
A huge thanks to Tara Lipinski for taking time to share her experiences on Food Network’s Wedding Cake Championship and her love of sweets. Can’t wait to see the winning first anniversary cake on the finale episode. Wishing Tara many more years of sweet wedded bliss filled with delicious treats.