My neighbors Cynthia and Trent asked me to make a cake for their mom’s birthday party. Of course I wanted to do it, but as they described the style of cake she wanted I got downright giddy about it. “Something bright, colorful and wildly whimsical” were the words they used to describe her taste. Immediately I thought fondant! It isn’t my favorite thing in the world to eat, but it allows so much creativity with color, shapes and dimensions that you can’t always get with buttercream or other icings. Not to mention they were driving this cake about an hour away and in the heat of summer fondant is a great traveler.
There are a few things to know about fondant, but it really isn’t difficult to work with. I’m going to show you step by step how I put this cake together. You may want to start with something slightly less over-the-top, but maybe not!
What you will need:
Wilton Pure White Rolled Fondant, 24oz (Wilton is easy to work with, but you DO NOT want to eat it. I only use this if the person I’m making the cake for intends to peel off the fondant. Yes, you just peel the entire layer of fondant off and reveal some delicious icing underneath. I’m suggesting you start with Wilton’s product just because it is so easy to use.)
Food Color Soft Gel Paste (Use the gels, not the water based kind you get at the grocery store.)
Food Service Grade Disposable Latex Glove (This will protect your hands from the food coloring.)
Heavy Gauge Clear Vinyl (This is the clear sheet that I roll out the fondant on. Nothing sticks to it and you can lift it up easily and move it around. you can also use a Roll’Pat Pastry Mat, but it is much more expensive.)
Rolling Pin
Pastry Wheel (For trimming the fondant around the base of the cake.)
Wooden Dowel Rods 12 Pk (Support the cake if it is more than one layer high.)
Spatula
Corn Starch
This is the drawing I did as a guide for the cake. It is helpful to have a plan, even if you don’t end up sticking to it through to the end.
Claudia wanted a chocolate extravaganza, so I made my Devil’s Food with layers of chocolate ganache. I also trimmed the cake so that it was tapered at the bottom, just for a bit more whimsy.
I coated the outside in a thick layer of the ganache. This is what the guests will eat after the fondant is pulled away so you want to make sure there is a nice layer of it.
Smooth the icing out as much as possible before covering with the fondant. Then I cut the cardboard rounds to exactly match the size fo the bottom of the cake. You don’t want cardboard showing.
Mix the fondant with the food coloring to achieve the right color. knead the fondant to distribute the color evenly.
Stretching and turning the dough also helps to mix in the color. I first saw this done on the Jersey shore where they were making taffy, it seems to work equally well for fondant.
Once it is the color you want then dust your vinyl sheet with corn starch. Keep the fondant well covered if not using right away.
Roll the fondant out to about 1/8-inch thick and round.
Pick up the fondant carefully and drape it over the cake.
Carefully stretch the fondant, by gently rubbing and pulling it until it is flat up against the cake. You will now have a large skirt of excess fondant around the base.
Using the pastry cutter, trim off the excess fondant until it is flush with the bottom of the cake.
Smooth the cake with the palms of your hands or a paddle.
If you are stacking the cake you will need to cut wooden dowels that will stand up in the bottom layer and support the top layer. Cut the dowels so they are flush with the fondant, as I did in this picture.
Stack the two layers together and now you are ready to decorate. Next I will show you how to make the flowers.
Isnt there a simple fondant recipe of marshmellows melted with powdered sugar? thats what i used for my daughters fonant cake last year, it was my first cake. It was good, just like eating marshmellows.
hi zoe. yes my wedding cake I did was A sucess!
although I need help. I seem to be struggling with my cakes not getting the right size.
like today I did a madeira, recipe said for a 6 inch cake. I used a 6inch deep cake tin and my cake only came half way up. It looked like a sandwhich cake . can you advice me.
thanks bev
hi zoe , bev again. I am going to do a wedding cake for my daughters friend. she wants a fruit cake for the top tier so that she can keep this for a christening. would this keep having sugarpaste as coating? can it be frozen or stored in cardboard box for a long time?
and the other question , will it be too heavy for the bottom two tiers that are going to be madeira. hope you can help.
thankyou bev
Hi Bev,
You can freeze the cake, but I would wrap it in plastic and then put it in the box, or it will be freezer burned.
The fruit cake top will need to be very well supported by dowels to keep it from crushing the bottom levels.
Have fun! Zoë
hi zoe , ah thankyou, this is a great help. I can crack on with my christmas mountain cake now. 🙂 and I will have a look at amazon.
thanks again bev.
have a lovely christmas.
hi zoe , can you tell me were I can buy the vinyl from
thanks bev
hi zoe, I have watched a few of your video’s on you tube now which are great, easy to follow. you know when you put the cake in the fridge with crumb coat on and then take it out to cover in sugarpaste. Do I leave the cake stand for a while so that the sugarpaste sticks to it or will it stick straight away. hope you can help!
thanks bev
Hi Bev,
This is such a great question. Usually the fondant sticks right away, since you are rubbing it onto the cake. This may have something to do with the recipe you use for buttercream, normally it will warm up fairly quickly. If it still feels rock hard when you are ready to go, then give it a few more minutes.
I have found vinyl at my local fabric store and it used to be available on Amazon. This is a good alternative to vinyl if you can’t find it locally: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0012XJFNW?ie=UTF8&tag=zoebakes-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0012XJFNW
Thanks, Zoë
Hi Zoe!
Thanks for the fondant recipe and taking the time to share with all of us! I have a question; I have tried the recipe and was down to about 2/3 of a cup of the sugar left to incorporate and the “dough” began to feel hard and really more difficult to knead in more sugar. I stopped and finally got it into a ball and wrapped it but had about a 1/4 cup left. Should I have continued to incorporate the remainder or did I add too much. The ball is hard and seems to crack more than had I stopped earlier. Hope this makes sense and congrats on the book! I will be back on bread making soon.
Eli
Hi Lynnette,
So glad you like the cake I made for Claudia. Fondant once it is exposed to the air for any amount of time does begin to harden. If you want to keep it soft it has to be covered and/or refrigerated.
Here is a post I did about the flowers: http://zoebakescom.bigscoots-staging.com/?p=614
Thanks, Zoë
claudia .. thanks 4 showing us how u made that beautiful cake… pls i want to ask u if u know why our fondant is always so strong.. after covering the cake? pls let me know if there´s any clue i need to know… i love the colour and the designs of ur cake… how can i learn how to make the flowers? i´m looking forward to reading from u… cheers lynnette