Fondant Making

From http://thecookduke.com/fondant-recipe/

Three important tips before we move to the actual “how to make fondant” instructions and the fondant recipe:

When you make fondant, both the dough and the icing, make sure to make it in room temperature – Too cold or too warm room will hurt the dough

When you calculate the quantity of fondant icing required, it’s better to have too much fondant icing rather than too little, as leftover icing can be stored and used at a later date, or used for extra decorations

Make sure you make fondant on a clean and smooth working surface.

Jewelry on your fingers or wrists or fluffy clothing could hurt the fondant’s surface

Ingredients required to make the fondant recipe:
1 Tbsp of unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup of cold water
1 tsp of almond extract
1/2 cup of light corn syrup (If a corn syrup is not available, you can substitute it with a sugar syrup made with 1-1/4 cups sugar and 1/3 cup water, boiled together until syrupy)
1 Tbsp of glycerin (some recipes say it’s optional, believe me, it’s a must)
2 lbs 10X confectioners’ sugar
1/2 tsp of white vegetable shortening

Directions how to make the fondant recipe:

Sprinkle the gelatin over cold water in a small bowl and let it rest for 2 minutes to soften

Place the bowl in a microwave for 30 seconds on High, until the gelatin dissolves

Add the Almond extract

Add the corn syrup and the glycerin and stir until the mixture is smooth and clear (if the mixture is not turning smooth and clear, microwave it for an additional 15 to 20 seconds on high and stir again)

Sift 1 1/2 pounds of the sugar into a large bowl

Make a hole in the sugar and pour the liquid mixture to it

Stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture becomes sticky

Sift some of the remaining 1/2 pound of sugar onto a smooth work surface and add as much of the remaining sugar as the mixture will take

Knead the fondant, adding a little more sugar if necessary, to form a smooth, pliable mass

Rub the vegetable shortening on your thumbs and knead it into the fondant

Wrap the fondant in plastic wrap and place it in a tightly sealed container to prevent it from drying out

If the icing dries out and harden it can often be revived by popping it into a microwave oven for a few seconds and then kneading it back to life

Now you know how to make fondant, I hope the following pictures will inspire you to give this easy, tasty Fondant Recipe

But first, if you want to take your fondant recipe to the next level, you’re welcome to visit my post How to Color Fondant

And one update (11/02/09) – A few of my readers sent me pictures of cakes they made following the instructions on this post.

I advice you to go and check it out, to see what to expect when you learn how to make fondant