I would like to create a nice organized chart to upload on the site indicating all the pluses and minuses of different store-bought fondant brands.
Anyone care to chime in? I'm going to wait until we have lots and lots of feedback on this before I put it together.
Please include details like:
taste
easy or difficult to work with
price per pound
does it dry out
and anything else you can think of
Tags:
How is the Fondx as far as workability - does it dry out quickly or start cracking at all while you are trying to smooth it on a large cake or does it give you enough time to work out any wrinkles etc.?
One other question...does it sweat if you put the cake in the fridge and then take it out to work on. That is one thing that drives me crazy about homemade fondants like MMF and Michele Foster's (not sure if I am the only one that happens to with these recipes).
Rosemary Galpin said:
I absolutely love Fondx Elite! It tastes wonderful, hints of white chocolate & raspberry. (I have to watch my stock when my grown sons help. They think it tastes like candy!) It is very soft and pliable and can be rolled to 1/8" easily with the new Mat System from Caljava. It smoothes beautifully and comes in a host of wonderful colors. I use it with fondant stabilizer to make my gum paste flowers. The purple orchid cake I posted is covered in Elite and the orchids are made from it as well.
Sorry, Lisa, I can't answer the fondx question. I don't refridgerate my fondant cakes, although I know from my cake club, that our leader & several members do it. What I understand Lisa it isn't so much the brand or type, but that the cake is wrapped properly so the fondant doesn't absorb condensation. If you want the "know how" I could always find out the info for you. Because the info didn't pertain to me, I didn't write it down.
Well, I have had compliments from my family members who have ate it. I actually like it myself. Why don't you buy a small 5 k and try it out??
Shari, What color did you have trouble with? I was thinking of buying the purple one because my niece wants me to make her sweet sixteen bday cake and wants purple. She wants it pretty dark so I was thinking of buying it but now I'm not so sure.
Shari said:
Certain colors for Duff work good but oh my goodness! Some of their colors are heavy, gummy and fall apart. :-( I like the taste but not the texture.
Be fore warned Goreti. I believe Shari was speaking about Duff's fondant. I have the red and is way to soft to work with. Takes forever to dry!!!! I had to add tylose/cmc powder to help roll it out, and so it would dry.
Tx for the heads up ladies. I guess I will stick to mmf
I might have to break down and order some. I do like Satin Ice better than Wilton or Fondarific as far as overall taste and workability, but it seems to dry out too fast when I am doing things like carved cakes - it doesn't allow enough time to do the blending I want to do. I just hate to pay between $17 and $20 for shipping for a little 5# bucket, which seems to be the going rate for shipping to Wyoming.
June Kowalczyk said:
Well, I have had compliments from my family members who have ate it. I actually like it myself. Why don't you buy a small 5 k and try it out??
Here is the recipe I use Shari:
Courtesy of Sugar Sweet Cakes & Treats on FB
Marshmallow Fondant (MMF)
- 16 oz Bag Generic Mini Marshmallow’s (not Jet Puffed)
- 2 lbs C&H Powdered Sugar, Shifted to remove any lumps (abbreviated "PS")
- 2 Tsp Water
- Shortening or Crisco (keeps the MMF from sticking to surfaces)
- 1 tsp Light Corn Syrup (optional, makes it more pliable when adding color)
Directions:
1) Coat a microwave safe bowl with 2 Tbsp shortening, add marshmallows, sprinkle with water.
2) Coat a spatula really well with shortening.
3) Microwave for 30 sec intervals, stirring really well with the spatula in between each interval. DO NOT microwave for more than 3 intervals (it will break down the marshmallows and you end up with a ton of air bubbles in your finished product). Stirring really well will help distribute the heat and melt the marshmallows thoroughly.
4) If needed, add any flavoring or color to the melted marshmallows (see Hints below). You can always add more coloring to it as you are kneading in the PS so don’t worry if you don’t get the color you want initially.
5) Grease a table or counter top really well with shortening and add ½ of the PS onto it. Create a well in the PS and pour the melted marshmallows into it. Grease your hands with a thick coating of shortening and knead the powdered sugar into the melted marshmallows (work fast, you don’t want the marshmallow to cool and see Hint #1 below).
6) Keep rubbing more shortening into your hands as needed. Add more powdered sugar and keep kneading until it forms a smooth ball of dough and is no longer sticky (feels a lot like play dough). Coat the dough really well with a thick coating of shortening, cover in saran wrap tightly, cover again in a 2nd layer of saran wrap and store in an air tight container or Zip Lock Bag overnight (sugar incorporates and any lumps melt away).
7) Knead again until soft before using it: If too dry, add a few drops of water or if sticky, add more PS.
Notes:
1) I have never used the entire 2 lbs of Powdered Sugar. Depending on the weather and humidity, I use anywhere from 1-1/2 lbs to 1-3/4 lbs.
2) Optional: When making colored MMF, add a tsp of Corn Syrup to the MMF as you are kneading in the PS. It makes it more pliable especially if you make darker colors. When I make white, I don’t find a need to add the Corn Syrup.
3) You can store the MMF at room temperate for about 3 months, in the fridge for a couple months or in the freezer for a very long time. Just keep it wrapped and let it come to room temperature before using it. If really hard, zap in microwave for about 10 secs to soften it slightly then knead by hand.
4) You can make the MMF by using a powerful Kitchen Aide (KA) with a dough hook, coat bowl and hook really well with shortening. I personally like doing it by hand; you can feel if the dough is the right consistency. When I've used the KA, the PS gets compacted along the bottom and sides of the bowl which I have to scrap off leaving large lumps of PS in the MMF...not good, plus more dishes to wash after wards.
5) If the MMF is too stretchy, let it sit uncovered for about 5 minutes to cool down and settle a bit, you may have overworked it and got it too warm. Also, MMF will take more PS if too warm so don't add more than the 2 lbs or else you'll end up with a big, lumpy, crumbly ball once completely cooled.
Hints:
1) Don’t dig your hands into the melted marshmallows or else you will get a big, sticky mess on thy fingers. You want to FOLD the PS into the melted marshmallows and after doing this a couple times, you will be able to handle the marshmallows without it sticking like glue to your fingers. If you do get a sticky mess on the hands, rub them with PS and it will peel right off.
2) Use flavored jello’s to flavor and color you MMF. Add a large, 6 oz box, of Jell-O Mix into the melted marshmallow and stir it really well and quickly to melt it all in. Or you can also use Candy Melts. I haven't used the melts yet I am eager to give it a try soon.
3) Dark colors become darker over time, so be sure to give yourself 2-3 days to get the shade you need and to allow the colors to mature completely.
4) Red MMF: As difficult as everyone says it is to make red, I am glad to say that I have succeeded (see Ferrari Cake). How? When the marshmallows are melted, add 1 large box (6 oz) of Strawberry Jello and stir really well (work fast, you don’t want the marshmallow’s to cool down before adding the PS). This gives the MMF a pink base to start with. Then added a ½ oz of the Wilton No Taste Red to it. Kneed in the PS and add more of the red coloring a little at a time. Don’t worry if it is not very red; Dark colors darken over time. Coat the dough with shortening, wrap tightly and store in an airtight container. Let it sit overnight. On the following day, knead the dough more and add more red as needed. For the red on the Ferrari Cake, I made the MMF 3 days ahead, kneaded more red into it on day 2 and let it just sit and rest until I used it on day 3. It smelled and tasted deliciously like strawberry jello!
Shari,
I never use the same recipe. I like to experiment. This is one of the recipes I have used
Don't know if you saw the comment Lisa, but someone here posted that if you add Satin Ice to the Wilton, you get the best of both worlds. Better taste, workability, better texture. Maybe worth a try?????
Lisa Seidling said:
I might have to break down and order some. I do like Satin Ice better than Wilton or Fondarific as far as overall taste and workability, but it seems to dry out too fast when I am doing things like carved cakes - it doesn't allow enough time to do the blending I want to do. I just hate to pay between $17 and $20 for shipping for a little 5# bucket, which seems to be the going rate for shipping to Wyoming.
June Kowalczyk said:Well, I have had compliments from my family members who have ate it. I actually like it myself. Why don't you buy a small 5 k and try it out??
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