Buttercream Wedding Cake Decorating Ideas

A collage of cakes decorated with different buttercream flavors.

Pairing the right cake flavors with the right filling and frosting can be critical to the success of recipes. These Cake Flavor Combinations are a great guide to have on hand when you are wondering what to bake or what is the best flavor combination for a particular cake.

A Collage of cakes for flavor ideas. — How to combine Cake Flavors with Fillings and Frostings.

Have you ever wondered about the endless possibilities of cake flavor combinations or cake flavor ideas?

Which flavors go well together?
Also, what cake flavor goes with buttercream frosting?
What flavor and filling go well with lemon cake?
Or even what flavor goes with a red velvet cake? And what filling should I use for red velvet cake?
What goes with a chocolate cake? Which filling should I use in my chocolate cake?
Which are the best cake combinations? What is the best cake filling combinations?
Vanilla cake flavor combinations
Best flavor and filling combinations
And what are the best cake flavor combination for decorated cakes?

When I started my little cake business one of my challenges was to figure out what cake flavor combinations would go well together. I'd have all these questions in my head and spent hours trying small batches of recipes and seeing whether I really liked them or not. I've given away a lot of free cakes just to get feedback and inputs from family and friends.

Table of Content

Can you use the same cake combinations for business?
1. Creative cake flavors and filling combinations
2. Flavors that go with coconut cakes
3. Flavors that go with banana cakes
4. Flavors that go well with lemon or strawberry cakes
5. Flavors that go with chocolate cake
6. Matcha flavor combinations
7. Cake flavor ideas for fall
8. Cake flavor ideas for summer
How many different types of buttercream frosting are there?
How to create simple cake fillings from basic recipes
1. Layer cakes
2. Coffee Cakes
3. Chocolate cake
4. Vanilla cakes
5. Cakes with fruits
6. Cupcakes, muffins
Eggless cakes
You may also like
Free masterclasses
Comments

Can you use the same cake combinations for business?

In truth what may be a family favorite does not necessarily work in the business given the time needed to decorate, travel, etc. For example:

Red velvet cake - I love my red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting, in fact, I prefer it with my no-butter cream cheese frosting but when I make it for an order with fondant I usually use Swiss Meringue Buttercream - it's easier to work with and can stay out longer than cream cheese.
Cake flavor that goes with lemon cake - I love lemon cake with lemon curd and lemon buttercream. But here the weather is so hot that in summer I don't offer that flavor with fondant cakes. It has to be a buttercream cake with lemon curd and it has to be eaten within 3 days.

I love cakes and I love baking new flavors as much as eating them. Over the years I've lost count of the many experiments I've done with flavor ideas. I must admit that some have not made it to my books as keepers. And yet, I still enjoyed the process.

When I started cake decorating professionally, I started putting together a list of popular flavors and combinations and my list keeps getting longer and longer.

Collage of cut cakees showing different falvors. — How to combine Cake Flavors with Fillings and Frostings.

1. Creative cake flavors and filling combinations

So what are some creative cake flavors to try? Here's a small part of that list, I think you will love it very much.

Almond cake with almond cream and white chocolate buttercream
Use my Vanilla Cream Cake recipe and add some almond flavoring - layer it with my White Chocolate buttercream
Champagne cake with strawberry mousse and champagne buttercream
For the champagne, cake using my champagne cupcake recipe (just use the recipe cards at the bottom of each post to change serving size and it will calculate the recipe for you)
Ginger-spiced cake with vanilla & honey buttercream -
For the ginger-spiced cake use my gingerbread spice cake and add grated ginger for extra flavor. For honey buttercream- substitute some of the sugar in my vanilla buttercream with honey and omit the liquid.
Earl Grey cake with lavender flavored buttercream - add lavender flavoring to my vanilla buttercream to make a lavender flavored buttercream.
Vanilla Kahlua cake with Kahlua chocolate buttercream
Vanilla cafe latte cake with coffee buttercream
Chai latte cake with vanilla buttercream frosting
Brown butter cake with whipped cream buttercream

Mom's Vanilla Cake Recipe
Vanilla Cafe Latte Cake with Coffee Buttercream
Chai Latte Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
White Chocolate Cupcakes with White Chocolate Buttercream

2. Flavors that go with coconut cakes

Coconut cake with rum-flavored chocolate buttercream - add rum instead of cream in my Chocolate buttercream frosting
or Coconut cake with lemon/lime curd and maple buttercream
Coconut Cake with pineapple cream and Swiss Meringue Buttercream
and Coconut cake with dark chocolate fudge filling and Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Coconut cake with dulce de leche filling and chocolate fudge buttercream
even Coconut cake with coconut cream filling and brown butter buttercream
Toasted Coconut Cream Cake with coconut cream filling and Whipped Cream Buttercream
Coconut cake with lemon curd and coconut cream buttercream

Coconut Cake Recipe
How to Make Lemon Curd
Coconut Cake with Coconut Cream Filling
Swiss Meringue Buttercream

3. Flavors that go with banana cakes

Easy Banana Caramel Cake
Banana cake with salted caramel frosting
Banana cake with caramel cream cheese frosting (add caramel to my no-butter cream cheese frosting)
or Chocolate Banana Cake with Nutella Buttercream
Banana cake with coconut cream and Almond Buttercream
Tropical Banana cake with pineapple cream and whipped cream buttercream.
Chocolate Chip Banana Cake with Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Banana Maple Cake with pecan praline filling and caramel buttercream.
and Banana Blueberry Cake with blueberry filling and Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Easy Moist Banana Cake
Best Orange Cake
Italian Meringue Buttercream
No Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

4. Flavors that go well with lemon or strawberry cakes

Lemon cake with almond buttercream
or Lemon cake with raspberry frosting and lemon buttercream
Strawberry cake with banana mousse and strawberry buttercream
Lemon cake with lemon curd and lemon buttercream
Vanilla cake, raspberry filling, and white chocolate buttercream
Orange cake with vanilla chai buttercream (infuse chai in the cream before adding to the buttercream)
Try my Strawberry Cake with Velvet American Buttercream
Strawberry Red Velvet Cake with Strawberry Filling and Whipped Cream

Strawberry Cake Recipe
Best White Cake Recipe
Funfetti cake recipe
Moist Strawberry Cream Cake

5. Flavors that go with chocolate cake

Chocolate pecan cake with mascarpone cream cheese frosting(use mascarpone for the cream cheese in the recipe)
Dark chocolate cake with peanut butter frostings
or Dark chocolate cake with mint buttercream
Chocolate cake with chocolate ganache
Cherry Chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream*
Chocolate Fudge cake with raspberry or white chocolate mousse and vanilla buttercream
and Chocolate fudge cake with crushed Oreo buttercream
Dark chocolate cake with orange, strawberry or raspberry buttercream
German chocolate cake with pecan praline cream and dark chocolate ganache
Death by chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream and chocolate ganache
Devil's Food Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache
Chocolate Birthday cake with Chocolate Frosting

8-inch Chocolate Fudge Cake
8-inch BEST Chocolate Cake EVER!
Death By Chocolate Cake
Homemade Chocolate Birthday Cake

see all chocolate cakes here

6. Matcha flavor combinations

Matcha cake with coconut cream and matcha buttercream (add ¼ to ½ cup matcha powder to my vanilla buttercream)
or Match pound cake with blueberry filling and Italian Meringue Buttercream (replace ¼ cup flour with matcha powder to my classic pound cake)
Matcha chiffon cake with cream cheese frosting
and matcha genoise with strawberry and whipped cream (add 1 tablespoon match powder to my vanilla genoise cake)
White chocolate matcha cake with matcha ganache

Moist Vanilla Bean Cake
BEST Fluffy Vanilla Cake
Mom's Vanilla Cake Recipe
One Bowl Vanilla Cake

7. Cake flavor ideas for fall

Pumpkin Coconut Cake with coconut cream caramel
or Pumpkin spice cake with chai latte buttercream
Pumpkin maple cake with pecan filling and maple buttercream
Fall spice cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Apple spice cake with caramel filling and Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Pumpkin cake with pumpkin pie filling and no butter cream cheese frosting
Pumpkin ginger cake with pumpkin spice buttercream
Apple pear cake with apple pie filling and whipped cream buttercream
Pumpkin white chocolate cake with pumpkin spice buttercream
(add 4 oz melted white chocolate to this pumpkin cream cake and add pumpkin spice to my vanilla buttercream frosting)
Apple Pie Cake with Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Cardamom cake with Mocha Buttercream
Masala chai cake with chai spice buttercream (add chai spice to your buttercream)

Ultimate Pumpkin Spice Cake
Easy Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake
Cardamom Cake with Mocha Buttercream
Caramel Apple Cake with Caramel Buttercream

8. Cake flavor ideas for summer

Mango Chiffon cake with mango jam and stabilized whipped cream
Orange Chiffon cake with orange marmalade and Swiss meringue buttercream
Orange cake with orange curd and orange Swiss meringue buttercream
Strawberry chiffon cake with strawberry jam and stabilized whipped cream
Pineapple white chocolate cake with pineapple whipped cream

Frosted Swiss Meringue Buttercream Mango Cake
Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Moist Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Moist Strawberry Cream Cake

How many different types of buttercream frosting are there?

The number of frosting recipes can be overwhelming and sometimes confusing. In general, we can categories these as

Butter-based buttercream - simple all-purpose buttercreams like my velvet American buttercream, Vanilla buttercream (eggless)
Decorators buttercream - often with all or some vegetable shortening to prevent the frosting from melting easily like my Bakery style frostings - Vanilla and Chocolate frosting
Cream Cheese based - made with cream cheese often with or without butter like my classic cream cheese is made with butter which adds more stability and my no-butter cream cheese frosting when you want a more luxurious dessert type frosting.
Meringue buttercream - made with the addition of whipped egg whites. Less sweet than the classic butter-based buttercream like my Swiss Meringue or Italian Meringue
Egg-based buttercream - like the French Buttercream and German buttercream made with egg yolks then whipped to make a light and fluffy frosting with the addition of butter.
Whipped Cream Frosting - the lightest of them all is, of course, simple whipped cream. I shared 5 different methods to make whipped cream at home. As well as a whipped cream buttercream frosting.

30 + Buttercream Recipes - Frosting
Light & Fluffy Ermine Frosting (Less Sweet)
White Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Korean Buttercream Recipe
Maple Buttercream Frosting
Bakery-Style Chocolate Frosting
Bakery Style Vanilla Frosting
Best Coffee Buttercream Frosting

see all buttercream frosting recipes here

How to create simple cake fillings from basic recipes

Well, not all are straightforward but often creating these can be as simple as tweaking your basic vanilla buttercream recipe just a little. For example:

Almond buttercream is just your vanilla buttercream with almond flavoring
Mint buttercream - just a mint flavoring to vanilla buttercream
Lemon buttercream - replace the liquid in the recipe with some lemon juice when making vanilla buttercream
Nutella buttercream is just Nutella added to your vanilla buttercream too

Check out my post where I share how to make different buttercream flavors with one basic buttercream recipe. As well as, my post; One Vanilla cake with many different flavors and One Chocolate cake with many different flavors.

Homemade Butterscotch Sauce
Homemade Caramel Sauce
Caramel Buttercream Frosting
Blackberry Filling
Raspberry Filling Recipe
No-Fail Orange Curd Recipe
Creamy Caramel Filling for Cakes Tarts Desserts
Ultimate Strawberry Filling

see all filling recipes here

Here are some cakes I think you may want to bookmark for the future

1. Layer cakes

Letter Cakes Recipe Tutorial
Strawberry Cake with Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Earl Grey Cake with Italian Meringue Buttercream
Buttercream Mermaid Cake
Cake Decorating for Beginners - Masterclass
Pina Colada Cake
Raspberry White Chocolate Cake
Cadbury Creme Eggs Cake
Coffee Chocolate Cake
Easiest Vanilla Birthday Cake
Vanilla Kahlua Cake with Kahlua Chocolate Buttercream
Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake Recipe (Video Recipe)

see all layer cake recipes here

2. Coffee Cakes

Recipe for Madeleines
Recipe for Fruitcake
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
Honey Cake Recipe
Pistachio Halva Cake
Apricot Cake
Moist Chocolate Pound Cake
Cream Cheese Pound Cake
Cinnamon Apple Bread Recipe
Cinnamon Apple Cake
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cake Recipe
Peach Cake - Coffee Cake with Peaches

see all coffee cakes here

3. Chocolate cake

Chocolate Fudge Mug Cake Recipe
Chocolate Mug Cake
Chocolate Coffee Cake
Heart Chocolate Terrine
Flourless Chocolate Cake Recipe
Devil's Food Chocolate Bundt Cake
Eggless Chocolate Fudge Cake
Moist Chocolate Cherry Cake

see all chocolate cake recipes here

4. Vanilla cakes

Moist Vanilla Pound Cake
Sour Cream Coffee Cake Recipe
Eggnog Bundt Cake
Naked Brown Butter Cake
Classic Vanilla Bundt Cake
Eggnog Yule Log Cake - Buche de Noel
Cranberry Almond Semolina Cake
Eggless Vanilla Cake Recipe

see all vanilla cake recipes

5. Cakes with fruits

Cranberry Cake Christmas
Chocolate Chip Banana Cake
Strawberry Bundt Cake
Strawberry Red Velvet Cake
Cherry Pound Cake (Bundt Cake)
Moist Pumpkin Cream Cake Recipe
Blueberry Cream Cake with Crumb Topping
Chocolate Fudge Cakes for Two

See all cakes with fruits

6. Cupcakes, muffins

Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes
Caramel Apple Cupcakes
Moist Honey Cupcakes
Moist Chocolate Cupcakes (One-Bowl)
Moist Vanilla Cupcakes (one-bowl)
Carrot Cupcakes with Candy Eggs
Coffee Cupcakes
Funfetti Cupcakes

see all cupcakes and muffin recipes here

Eggless cakes

Eggless Chocolate Fudge Cake
Eggless Vanilla Cake Recipe
Mom's Eggless Chocolate Cake
Eggless Strawberry Cupcakes with Pink Buttercream

Free masterclasses

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Secrets to Baking Incredible Cakes

What to learn my secrets to baking incredible cakes? Want to learn how to bake from scratch? Want to take your baking skills to the next level? Then this masterclass is for you.

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Bread Baking for Beginners Masterclass

Do you want to improve your bread baking skills? Have you tried baking bread but always feel that there is something missing? Well, then this masterclass is for you.

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