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This week’s topics: wedding cake design inspiration, Arizona wedding desserts, pink champagne wedding cake, choosing your cake flavor, custom dessert table ideas, unique cake alternatives, dummy cakes and sheet cakes for weddings, planning desserts in hot climates, coordinating cake delivery and setup, modern wedding cake trends, experiential wedding dessert ideas, wedding dessert timeline tips, anniversary cake traditions, prickly pear wedding flavor ideas, creative ways to personalize your cake, working with your caterer
In this episode of Wedding Day Podcast, host Sonja Babich, CEO of Iron Diamond Media, and co-host Chelsea Gibson, Editor of Oregon Wedding Day and Arizona Bride, sit down with Ashley Phillips, owner and pastry artist behind Arizona-based Amour de Sucre Bakery. Recorded at the beautiful Ocotillo Golf Club, the conversation dives into the art, challenges and pure joy of creating unforgettable wedding desserts — starting with a childhood on the counter baking with her grandmothers.
Ashley shares how her early culinary roots led her to Le Cordon Bleu in Scottsdale and eventually to running a thriving bakery that specializes in wedding cakes and dessert tables with a personal touch. Her Italian heritage shines through in her focus on flavor — something she believes is just as important as the design. Known for her signature pink champagne cake, Ashley explains how she encourages couples to think beyond standard flavors and choose something that reflects who they are as a couple.
Throughout the episode, Sonja and Chelsea explore the many ways cake can be more than a dessert — it can be a design statement, a tradition and a talking point. Ashley discusses everything from the logistics of delivering cakes in Arizona's heat to the growing trend of dummy cakes paired with sheet cake for efficient service. She also explains how couples are incorporating local ingredients, like prickly pear jam, and creating experiential moments — like cookie escort cards and petite cakes on every table.
Ashley also shares practical advice around cake cutting, timing and catering coordination — highlighting why planners and caterers should be looped into the dessert plan early. She opens up about what it's like transporting a six-tier cake on a swing, off-roading into the desert with a wedding cake and balancing design with durability under pressure. For Ashley, making cakes isn't just a service — it's a relationship built on trust and celebration.
Beyond traditional wedding cakes, Ashley's creativity shines in dessert table designs, late-night sweets and unique ways to bring a couple's personality into their cake selection. She talks about her free one-year anniversary cake offering, giving couples a fresh chance to celebrate without relying on frozen leftovers. It's all part of how Amour de Sucre supports couples through every chapter — from engagement to parenthood.
Whether you're planning a classic tiered cake or dreaming of cookie walls and creative confections, this episode is full of inspiration, expert advice and sweet stories. Ashley's passion for her craft—and her love for her couples — is evident in every detail she shares.
This episode is powered by Dan Riggs Films and Amour De Sucre Bakery. Special thanks to members Linen Effects, Continental Diamond, Warpaint International.
