Hi Everyone,
Can someone please help me? I am trying to make a baby crib out of pastillage. I used the recipe from sugarpaste .com. My pieces dried hard, but they were all warped, crooked and had tiny hairline cracks like snakeskin instead of a smooth finish. I'm not sure if it is the humidity here that made them warp and expand or what. I did lay them on a flat surface to dry. Should I just make it out of gumpaste or is their better pastillage recipe? Also, how do I keep my pieces from being mark/dented when moving them from my counter where I rolled my dough out to the drying surface?

Thanks for any help you can give,
Danyelle

I do have a recipe for you, but I don't have ti with me right now. Pastillage is very finicky, you should roll and cut it right on the same surface that you will be drying it on. It starts to dry the second the air hits it, and once it gets that outer crust, any moving of it will cause the "skin" to wrinkle. Sometimes this is desired, but otherwise it's best not to move the piece for at least 24 hours, and then just to flip them for the other side to dry thoroughly.

I would be so grateful if you could share your recipe with me. Do you think it would be okay if I roll the paste out on the wax cardboard cake circles and cut the shapes out and leave it on that to dry? I just do not have the counter space to make the pieces for the crib and dresser. Thanks for your help!

Here are two CC pastillage recipes:

http://www.cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=Recipes&sort=recipename&sort_dir=ASC&op=search&chname=X&chingredients=X&searchtext=pastillage&cat_id=-1&x=61&y=11

HTH

Here you go:

The key to this pastillage recipe is to measure everything PRECISELY.

500 grams powdered sugar (if 6x, you must sift, if 10x, sifting isn't necessary)
50 grams cornstarch
50 milliliters (or grams, by weight) white vinegar
4 sheets gelatin, bloomed in cold water

1. mix powdered sugar and cornstarch together in bowl of stand mixer

2. Squeeze excess water from bloomed gelatin, place into vinegar, and heat gently to melt gelatin

3. Pour liquid into dry and mix with paddle until combined

4. Roll and cut immediately. If not using right away, wrap well in plastic that has been rubbed with shortening and cover with a damp towel (this recipe should be used the day it is made however and does not keep well).

If you pastillage seems too wet/loose, add about 150 gms more powdered sugar, wrap well and stick in the freezer for 10-15 minutes (but not much longer) and it should be fine

If it's too dry. heat some white vinegar in the micro until very hot and add a little at a time until the right consistency is reached.

You can definitely cut this on your cake circles and leave them there to dry. The key is to cut them and leave them to dry without moving until at least one side is dry, or else you may get wrinkling/rippling.

good luck... PM me if you have problems or questions!

Thank you both for the recipes. I really appreciate it!