Fondant Recipes, Fondant Questions and Answers

Refrigerating and Freezing Fondant Covered Cakes:

QUESTION:

I love your page. I wonder if you could leave in the refrigerator a rolled fondant covered cake, and how you have to do it. I did once and the cake came out with something like little water spots over the fondant, but I have a friend who says that she always put the cake in the ice box even with fondant in it. I don’t understand. Thanks a lot for your help.

ANSWER:

Refrigerating: First I need to say that fondant dough (before it is placed on the cake) can and should be refrigerated. After it is on the cake I DO NOT suggest that you refrigerate it.

You should not refrigerate a fondant covered cake. The condensation that can occur when you defrost or bring to room temperature can destroy the finish of the fondant. Yes, you are right about the water spots that is caused by condensation. Leave a cold glass of water on the counter and the surface of the glass will get the same kind of water spots. Water condensation. It is a physics issue.

Your friend has been lucky about putting the cake in the refrigerator. Someday probably when it is most important the cake will get spots. If you live in a humid region your problem can even be greater and you can have drip line and puddles on the cake plate.

I do not guarantee this next technique. This is a trick you can use IF YOU MUST!

If the cake has been refrigerated, put the cake in a cardboard box (not a cake box) while it is coming to room temperature. The cardboard collects the atmospheric moisture and helps to protect the fondants surface.

Freezing: Fondant does not freeze well at all, as a matter of fact, downright lousy! The condensation that can occur when you defrost or bring to room temp can destroy the finish of the fondant.

Now, if you are going to freeze the cake, as many folks do until the first anniversary, yes go ahead and freeze. The cake will not look as beautiful as it did originally but you just have to keep the idea in mind that it was perfect on the day of the wedding.

QUESTION:
I am so glad I accidentally came across your site. You mentioned a Poured White Chocolate Ganache Icing. I am making individual Easter egg cakes for Easter and thought a poured icing would give a smooth finish. Then I could add buttercream decorations. I am going to let my grandchildren decorate their own eggs. Do you thing the poured icing and the buttercream would be a good combination? Would you share the Poured White Chocolate Ganache Icing? Thanks for all the time you put into this site to help amateur bakers like me.

ANSWER:
Typically I use Royal Icing decorations with the chocolate eggs and not buttercream icing. The decorations will look much better.

Royal Icing
Here is the recipe that I’ve used for years.

8 ounces top-quality white or dark chocolate
3/4 cup heavy cream

Using a sharp, heavy serrated knife, finely chop the chocolate. It’s important to chop it finely so that it melt quickly. Transfer to a bowl.

Bring heavy cream just to a beginning boil, and slowly pout it over the chopped chocolate. Stir until chocolate is melted and smooth.

Place the bowl firmly on the counter and use a wooden spoon to stir the mixture vigorously until it reaches the desired thickness or consistency. This will probably take about 5 minutes.

QUESTION:
I was thinking of making a birthday cake for my party and I was wondering. Is there a way I can make chocolate fondant icing?

ANSWER:
Following are the ingredients additions for making the Chocolate Fondant version:

Chocolate MM Fondant

MM (Marshmallow) Fondant (click on the underlined for the recipe)

Add:
1 ounce top-quality chocolate, melted
1 tablespoon cocoa powder*

* Use the best powdered chocolate cocoa you can get. The cheap brands have a tendency to take shortcuts on grinding the cocoa so you could get a grainy consistency to the fondant.

Add melted chocolate and cocoa powder to the regular recipe for a chocolate fondant.

NOTE: I found that if you add the melted chocolate to the melted MM Fondant it mixes up easier. Then add the cocoa powder in when you add in the powdered sugar.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS:

(1) You said at the bottom of the buttercream icing page, in order to make a chocolate buttercream, add cocoa. How much should I use?

I don’t have a set amount. I go by taste. With some cakes, I want a light chocolate flavor and with others I want a deep chocolate flavor. Start with figuring out what flavor you want then add the chocolate powder to hot water to dissolve the powder. I start with 2 tablespoons for a light flavored chocolate and the add more as desired.

(2) Can cocoa be added to the egg-white/sugar buttercream recipe as well? If so, how much?

The White Buttercream Icing that I posted is from Sweet Celebrations: The Art of Decorating Beautiful Cakes by Sylvia Weinstock with Kate Manchester (Simon & Schuster). This recipe is posted many places on the internet. Since her Chocolate recipe is not posted on the internet, I feel uncomfortable posting a recipe that could be copyrighted. Try to find the book at your local library or a friend.

(3) I hope to use the MM fondant with a chocolate buttercream icing. What flavor cake would best compliment that combo? I'm thinking a chocolate cake but am also considering a butter recipe golden cake.

All of these would work. If you want to use a Chocolate Buttercream Icing under a white fondant, you are going to cause yourself major problems. The chocolate BC can very possibly show through and you will get a dingy looking Fondant.

QUESTION:
Thank you for a fun, extremely helpful and most pleasant website. It's so encouraging and provides such clear and thorough guidance and direction, especially for a beginner like me. Your methods are so practical, cost-effective and, what you say is so easy to apply to real life situations. Wow, what a find!

My question: To add the almond flavor extract to the regular marshmallow fondant recipe, when is it added--as a replacement to part of the 1st two tablespoons that get micro waved with the marshmallows, or should it not be heated that way and added when kneading and adding the last part of the sugar? I'm concerned about microwaving it. Thank you again!

ANSWER:
I add my flavoring when the fondant is cool. I often have to add a few drops of water to the mixed fondant because it is to stiff to work with easily. That is when I add the almond extract, instead of the water. I can’t see any problem with adding the extract sooner except that excess heat often will cause the extract to fade so you get less for your money.

Best of all, with the recipe, you can’t hardly do it wrong. If you add it early or late you will get close to the same results.

My confession. I’ve have done it both ways. One day I decided to make a couple of batches so I’d have them ready to go. I added the extract early before heating for the first batch because I was lazy. The second batch it was added late in the kneading because I forgot the extract and remembered it at the last minute. So I added it, gave the MMF batch a quick knead, wrapped everything up and stored it in the refrigerator. I didn’t sense any differences between the batches.

QUESTION:
This is the first time I ever saw this sort of recipe for MM fondant!! I am so excited to try it...This could save me lots of money and trouble! I was curious as to how much this recipe makes. I am making 100 mini cakes (2 ½ round, 2 high), and I wonder how many batches I will need? Thank you so much!!! What a great idea this is!!!!

ANSWER:
Just to be sure, I always over make the fondant. I would rather have leftover fondant than to little. I’d make at least 4 batches, at about $5 a batch it’s not 2 expensive it you have “waste”. It stores very well for a at least 2 months if it is double wrapped and put in a Ziplock type of bag and then refrigerated.

FEEDBACK:
Using a golf ball sized piece of fondant, I was able to cover approximately 44 tea cakes that were approximately cupcake size. I used the Reynold's wrap cupcake tins that are shaped like hearts that you fill and sit on a cookie sheet.

All I did was bake the cupcakes with a piece of parchment paper inside on the bottom of the tin. When they were cooled, I turned them upside down, removed the parchment paper and put them on a doily, top side down so I would have a flat bottom surface. Then I crumb coated the cupcake and rolled out the fondant. I laid the fondant over the cupcake and molded it. When all the cupcakes were covered I put a couple of rose buds on top and dots on the sides. I used 4 different flavors so i coordinated the rose buds so I could tell which flavor was which. It turned out really well.

QUESTION:
I asked you about chocolate marshmallow fondant a few months ago. You responded to add 1 ounce of melted chocolate plus 1 tablespoon of good quality cocoa powder to the fondant recipe. Would you please tell me which MMF recipe will this addition work with?

Also, I have an even bigger problem with icing smooth my cakes. I have been using the Wilton Class Buttercream for the last couple of years, and I still can not get a perfectly smooth surface. I am using it at a very thin consistency, with the icer tip and the wide large spatula dipped in hot water after every couple of strokes. I also tried the painters plastic masker thingy and the Viva paper towels and parchment paper.

None of these things work (and on top of all the practice). What I like about this particular icing is its convenience (being a non-dairy product) and everybody enjoys the taste. However, I am at the point of desperation! Could you please help me? Once again I will greatly appreciate it!

ANSWER:
Use the recipe on Linda Stradley's web page: http://whatscookingamerica.net/PegW/Fondant.htm

I’m afraid that one of the tricks is “Practice, Practice, and Practice." I personally avoid the hot knife trick. Once you melt the butter, you don’t get a second chance. For an old pro, this trick is not a problem. They do a great job on the first attempt. You and I need a few more passes to get the icing where we want it to be.

I have the best results with the parchment paper technique after the icing has crusted for at least 20 minutes, if the weather is DRY. High humidity makes icing much more difficult and there are definitely Bad Buttercream Days.

OK, I have honest and blunt questions here. Are you a perfectionist? It’s very good to want to put out a wonderfully decorated product but are you pushing yourself to a point that decorating is not fun? Remember that you are working in a medium that will be eaten. Most of the folks at a gathering will look at a cake, Ooh and Awe a little bit, then they want to know when you will be cutting a cake so they can get a slice or two.

Here is one trick that I have. When you have a spot on the cake that you’re not satisfied with, put a bit of decorating on it. That covers the area that you consider a problem up nicely.

QUESTION:
I've looked and looked for a recipe for dry fondant and can't find one anywhere. Would you have one?

ANSWER:
I’m sorry I don’t have the information for you that your looking for.

I purchase the dry fondant for about $1.65 per pound. To me, the price is so fair that I’d rather just purchase the product rather than try to make it. I realize though, that you might live in an area that would be hard to get the packaged product.

I just checked the ingredients listed on the package and all that it says is that it includes dry fondant cane sugar and may contain dry egg.

QUESTION:
Thank you for the great recipe. I was wondering if its possible to add other flavors to this icing such as almond. I will be having guests that aren't too fond of marshmallow. Is the marshmallow flavor prominent to begin with?

ANSWER:
Yes, you can certainly add the Almond Extract.

In the MM Fondant recipe you use a couple of tablespoons of water. Just replace some of that water with the extract and flavor to your own taste. No problem at all. You do not have a heavy marshmallow taste at all in this recipe so you could flavor it with Vanilla, Almond, Mint, Banana, Chocolate, Orange, Lemon Extract, or just about combination that pleases you. If you find that you have gotten the fondant too soft, just add powdered sugar to the batch and a little Crisco to get it to the texture that you want it to be.