Should I Do It?
Hi all,
I have been baking my whole life, but am new to baking for customers. Also, I am new to tier cakes, although I have made plenty of sheet cakes. I have a good handle on buttercream frosting, but a friend of mine wants me to make a cake for her birthday with fondant. She wants two tiers. I have never worked with fondant before, except as added flat, simple decorations. So, my question is: how hard is it to work with fondant? And what kind would be the easiest? And even though I am not charging her, I don't want to disappoint her or embarrass her. I am pretty good with my hands, as I do pottery and silversmithing, so I can generally figure things out. But still. This is hard. :)
Thanks in advance,
Nancy
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by June Kowalczyk on
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Well Nancy
I say... GO FOR IT! If your a baker, you won't have a problem. Have you made pie crust from scratch & rolled it out? I was, & still am a good pastry maker. I figured if I could do that, I could roll out fondant. Made my 1st fondant 2 tier cake, a wedding cake, for my niece in 2006, then my daughter's wedding cake the year after. I bought my fondant because I didn't know back then I could make my own. So dead easy & much tastier than the purchased stuff. As long as your cakes are even & smooth with bc, you won't have a problem covering with fondant. I have the Mat to roll my large pieces of fondant in between, but I have discovered that my WalMart (here in On, Canada) sells rolls of food grade vinyl. You can buy a large enough piece to achieve the same as the Mat. If you can't get the vinyl, then a good large heavy duty rolling pin will work. I have 3. 1 regular wooden, 1 large pin covered in non stick coating, 1 large honkin plastic Wilton rolling pin. Used this one until I got the Mat. Takes a bit of elbow grease, but it works. And if your good with your hands & do pottery, I can't imagine you having trouble making fondant or gumpaste decorations. You will most likely need to secure your 2 tiers. Large cake straws or wooden cake dowells pushed through both tiers. That's not as hard as it sounds.
Then there is transporting your cake. But 1 step at a time. There are easy tricks for that too. Any help needed, ask away. Lots of cakers here to guide you along. :o)
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Permalink Reply by Maria Gemini on
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You can check youtube for videos on how to cover cake with fondant and make 2 tier cakes. It will show you how to put dowels in your cake for support. Maybe buy a ready made fondant at first then later on you can make your own marshmallow fondant or the real fondant. When I did my first fondant cake, I didn't know how to do it. It just take some guts and belief in yourself. Good luck.
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Permalink Reply by Katy Nott on
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Yes go for it Nancy. If you can do pottery, you can do fondant. It's almost the same thing, just edible! Make sure you 'crumb coat' your cake in a buttercream first. One thinnish layer to fill any dents and gaps, chill it, then another layer to get a nice smooth finish. That will give a good base to put your fondant onto. Make sure you knead your fondant well before rolling it out, so it is pliable and soft. That way it won't crack or split when you put it onto your cake. Smooth it over the cake with your hands, or a fondant smoother, or a ball of rolled up fondant to get a good finish. Don't make your fondant covering too much bigger than your cake, or it will pull as it hangs down and tear. But it needs to be big enough to cover plus a couple of inches, which you will trim off with a sharp knife (or pizza cutter), once your cake is covered. As far as the make is concerned, I like Satin Ice or Renshaw. I don't;t make my own because marshmallows are expensive in the UK and it's hard to get just white ones. So I almost always use ready made. Hope this helps some, as Maria said, check out youtube, there are loads of very helpful videos. As June says, we are here to help and guide you through every step of the way, so dont be afraid to ask. Good luck
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See Nancy
Already myself & 2 cakers.... cake friends of mine, have jumped into offer advice. Katy was very succinct about rolling your fondant, and Maria was bang on with watching YouTube for info. A plethora of info there. Wish cake info on YouTube had been around when I 1st started. :o)
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Permalink Reply by Nancy Lee on
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Thank you ladies, for the confidence booster!! I am going to watch some videos today, and go buy some fondant at AC Moore on my way home, and try this over the weekend. I am very excited!!
Nancy
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Glad your excited Nancy!! Looking forward to your cake pic posts. Don't forget to use your store coupon...... hee hee :o)
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Look forward to seeing your trials Nancy - don't forget to post, however it turns out lol!
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Hi all,
I will put pics online when I finish it. I am going to be brave, and make one for a fundraiser I am throwing, also!! Yikes!!!
Nancy
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I always look for free tutorials on Youtube and other website. At least you learn without paying. Decorator Secrets in Facebook is also very helpful specially for beginners.
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