You're the Marshmallow to my Fondant

Howdy all. How are you doing? I hope you're doing just swell because someone as fantastic as yourself deserves just that. I hope your weeks are off to a great start...even if it still feels like it's winter...when it's actually spring. But ya know, go with flow...or something. On the bright side, this weather has given me more time to wear my favorite over-sized sweaters and my old, tattered mittens that I couldn't live without.

Annnyways, I have a few cool projects coming up. One began today with some prep work to save time tomorrow. My friend (and most loyal costumer) has once again asked me to make her daughter a birthday cake. The theme is polka dots (how fun?!). and the only requests are no chocolate and a raspberry filling. I must say my favorite orders are from those who don't have a set idea of what they want...I love being able to create my own idea and see their reaction.

This is the start of the "polka dot cake." I haven't completely settled on a design but I figured cutting out some circles was a decent place to begin.

In this post I'd like to share my fondant recipe that I've been using for years. I have no clue where I found it, probably the result of a random google search for fondant. But anywho, I'm not a fondant fan but this marshmallow stuff is pretty good. Aaand.....(guesses on my next compliment?)....easy!

So here's the down-low on this beauty:

Marshmallow Fondant

• 4 cups marshmallows
• 4 cups icing sugar
• 2 Tablespoons water

*Coat the marshmallows in water and microwave for 1 minute
*Stir until the marshmallows are melted (this may require a few more seconds in the microwave)
*Slowly stir in icing sugar, kneading with your hands on a sugared surface when necessary
*Roll, cut, or shape the fondant into whatever your little heart desires

*Coloring can be added at any point, if you're doing multiple colors do it at the end, but if you just need one color than it's easiest to add color before the icing sugar*

*Fondant can be stored in sealed containers (or ziplock bags) for quite a while, keep at room temperature and knead thoroughly when using.)*

I don't have an exact amount that this makes...my bad, but I would estimate enough to cover an 8" round (don't quote me on that).

Now my favorite thing to do with this fondant is make toppers and other such decorations... I prefer this tenfold to covering cakes in it.

I gathered some pictures of my previous fondant work, the ones that I've blogged about in the past will take you to that post if you just click on the image.

(my first fondant-covered cake)

 

(let's look at the nice swagging and not the poor icing job)

 

(click to follow link)

 

(Be expecting a post on these honey cupcakes with honey buttercream in the near future!)

 

 

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Well that's my little portfolio of some of my fondant creations. It's really a fun thing to work with, kinda like playdough that tastes better than regular playdough.

 

Meet you back here at the end of the week when I post about the polka-dot cake!

 

Take care and stay awesome,

Sydney

The Rare Beauty of a New Life

Well once again another holiday has come around. I like Easter, a lot. It's fantastic on so many levels. We had a small family get-together yesterday at my house. And let me just tell you how that went.

 

Bread.

 

Okay. So my mom and I were going to make buns and make them look like little bunnies. Yup, that was the plan. Well my mom gets up and starts to make the bread in the bread maker and soon smells fresh bread...a loaf of bread...not just bread dough. So needless to say, we ate that loaf of bread for supper that night.

 

Round two.

 

Alright this time we changed it up, cheese straws. Okay that sounds weird....basically they're just super skinny bread sticks with cheese. Well apparently the dough we made felt like being uncooperative and not rolling into sticks. So our cheese straws soon became cheese biscuits.

 

Third times a charm?

 

Lemon Easter bread. Okay so we make the dough successfully and proceed to place the pans in the oven to rise for an hour before we shapde it into buns. Ha. We than decided to pre-heat the oven so it'd be ready for the buns........the oven that had the pans in it. Yaaa...so than we just had really flat loaves of bread. They did taste good, but they were very flat.

 

Was any of our baking successful? Well yes. Despite our 3 failed attempts we did end up with a lovely meal and a fantastic day with the fam jam.

 

Now for dessert I called dibs on making a something...in my house this is necessary. After claiming dessert duty as my own, I was left to decide what to make.

 

Cake.

 

Of course!

 

 

I made a chocolate cake with chocolate mint buttercream. While shopping the other day we stumbled upon some weird icing flavoring stuff from Duncan Hines. It's intended to add to store-bought icing...pfft who buys icing? But I got a couple packs of the chocolate mint flavor and added it to my own buttercream. And I was very disappointed. It kinda didn't make my buttercream taste any different than usual. I speculate that I didn't have enough for the quantity of icing I had...I'll report back after I give it another go.

 

I made a ferrero rocher filling for the cake. Now after searching thee web for hours I couldn't find a recipe for this anywhere...so I made up my own. I tried to keep track of what I did, so here it is:

 

Ferrero Rocher Cake Filling

•  16 Ferrero Rocher chocolates
• 1/3 and 1 Tbs icing sugar
• 3 Tbs water

*Crush up the chocolates (I found this easiest to do with them still in the wrapper) in a bowl

*Add the icing sugar and water, mixing until it becomes a spreadable consistency

 

 

Something like such ^^

 

To decorate the cake I made fondant calla lilies. To do this I just cut out a triangle of marshmallow fondant and rolled it into a cone, stuck a yellow tube in the middle, and used food coloring to paint the insides yellow.

 

 

 

Those Duncan Hines flavor thingers did give the buttercream a nice color, one point for them!

 

 

Well, that's all I have for ya today. Have a blessed Easter and fantastic weekend,

Enjoy,

Sydney