Does anybody ever actually EAT gumpaste pieces or figurines? and if so, do you usually flavor it . . . what flavor goes over well?

I've never heard of anyone eating gumpaste. If they did it would probably be very difficult to pass.

It's one of those things that we call "edible" but no one actually eats it.

My Mother used to make cakes with marzipan or almond paste figurines - at least that's what I THINK they were made from. They were completely edible and kinda chewy. She can't remember for the life of her how she made them or what ingredients she used!

Any ideas what this could've been? We're talkin' 20-25 years ago . . .

Figurines made out of marzipan, fondant, or modelling chocolate (as long as they are not allowed to harden) would be edible and chewy.

One of my nephews tried to eat a small, thin figure I'd made from gumpaste and nearly broke a tooth before I stopped him! Ever since then I don't use gumpaste on the cakes for the kids in my family because they all love to eat the fondant!

YES! My lovely daughter ate black road and letters that were made of fondant/gumpaste mix. I was so mad, and grossed out, her lips and teeth were black ugh anyways to answer your question... 3 year olds LOVE it lmao

The "clovers" on my Seussical cake were made of Tootsie Rolls covered with fondant with Gumtex mixed in to harden it. Somehow, the teenagers who ate the cake also managed to devour every last "clover". Note to self...servings/serving sizes don't apply when making a cake for teenagers--especially teenagers that have just finished putting on a 2 hour stage performance! Those kids will eat anything, and lots of it!

Oh yes, esp. if the decorations are small and 2-D (i.e. placed flat on the cake), I try to keep them fondant because I know people will want to eat them, esp. kids. As with everything, just be sure you don't use Wilton. No need to torture the poor children. Any good fondant is fine, MMF, Satin Ice, MicheleFF, whatever you feel comfortable modeling with. I don't think you really need to worry about flavoring it even more. The fun should come from chomping off a squirrel's head or whatever, I wouldn't concern myself with specialty flavored fondant. (That said, doesn't Fondarific make special flavors? I don't know what their stuff is like for modeling.)

Oh yes.. kids love them. They always come up to me and ask if they can have them! In fact, an adult asked me if she could eat one of my penguins last night. I was like, well you could.. but that thing has been sitting there for 3 weeks.. so it would be hard as a rock and disgusting! =o)

When I make fondant =, I flavor it wih concentrated marshmallow flavoring.When i make th decorations for the cake I add 1/2 gumpaste to 1/2 fondant, so it dosen't taste bad, and dries hard. It always seems that when you say "the whole cake is eatable, there is always someone who has totry the sugarpaste and fondant pieces, so they may as well sort of taste good! lol

Where can I buy already made Marzipan? Anyone know? Michael's doesn't sell it (at least not in Canada). All I can find are chocolate covered Marzipan bars. It was suggested to me that I peel the chocolate off and use the marzipan inside to make my edible figures. There's got to be a better way.

Marzipan is an ingredient you will find in grocery stores, not craft stores. I have heard great things about modeling with marzipan but have yet to do it myself because I know I would eat it. Almonds and sugar - YUM!

You can buy a small box of Marzipan (7oz) at the grocery stores here in the states. Check in the baking section beside the almond paste. I just bought some or I wouldn't have known either!

when i took maisie parrish's class several years ago.. we made all kinds of figures with marzipan.. got it from the grocery store.... i took a class making fruit in my dos.... was mixed with fondant ... the fruit turned out beautiful... i too , love to eat it... maisie said, in england, the marzipan was much better to work with than what we could buy....

You can make marzipan from scratch... yummy!

1 pound almond paste
1 pound confectioner's sugar
1/3 cup light corn syrup

Pulse in a food processor: almond paste and confectioner's sugar until combined.

Add corn syrup, pulse about 8 times additional or until mixture holds together when pressed.

Transfer to clean work surface and and knead until it forms a smooth dough. Keep wrapped tightly in plastic wrap.

Very much more cost effective than buying it ready made.

I have managed to find Almond Paste, but no Marzipan. It was the same supermarket (bakery section) that suggested I use the candy bar and peel the choc. away from it . . . EEEwww! Not very professional!

I HAVE used actual starburst candies for smaller accents before . . . YUM!! I had to use my pasta machine to make them pliable enough to mold, but otherwise I would totally recommend it for small accents or 2D shapes.

Thanks a bunch, Win!! Have you sculpted with it before?

I'm glad this topic has come up as I've always wondered the same thing. I love making gumpaste flowers on my cakes and cupcakes. My family has always eaten the gumpaste flowers as they are usually quite thin. Is this ok?

I think I have seen marzipan in Bulk Barn here in Canada, I'd give them a call and see.

OMG wily_kitt.....your avatar made me jump.

Does anyone know how long homemade Marzipan or homemade fondant will keep? How far in advance can I make this?

wily_kitt Thanks for the info, but we do not have a Bulk Barn in Edmonton. You must be from the East?

One of my customer's two kids ate all ELEVEN red gumpaste roses I had made for cake. I just did a birthday cake with three pink and black electric guitars and my customer told me his daughter ate all three of them.

They're hard as rocks, but I guess kids will eat anything made of sugar. I think it's gross, but whatever I guess.

When people ask if it's edible, I always tell them, "Technically, yes because it's all sugar. But I wouldn't want to eat it."

I'm getting a few chuckles reading the various replies. Yes, you can eat gumpaste, because it's "edible" -- but the enjoyment of doing so will depend on a number of (mostly obvious) factors - flowers with thin petals disappear when my grandkids are here, but they know to not eat the wires and the centers. Knowing figures have been sitting out for three weeks is a bit off-putting, and if anyone watched some figures being made, they might not want to ingest something that had quite that much "attention". BUT -- if all is done with the intention of the decorations being eaten, common sense says keep it delicious (no Wilton fondant), keep it appetizing, and keep it fresh.

As for the marzipan, I thiiiiink I just got some from King Arthur Flour. It comes in an 11-oz. can. My grocery store also carries the 7-oz. tubes (packaged in a box). Your grocer might be able to order some for you.

HTH

I have seen marzipan in the baking isle at Loblaws. It's packaged like a sausage.

I buy my marzipan either from Loblaws or the Independent Grocer. Food Basics also carries it, as do all the German delicatessen shops around here.

Here is a link to making your own marzipan, either cooked or uncooked. I haven't tried it yet, but will give it a go because the ready made stuff is very expensive.

http://www.pastrywiz.com/season/marzipan.htm

Good luck.

I mix marzipan together with homemade fondant (half and half) for some of my modeling. That way you get the benefits of both. The marzipan makes it more edible. While the fondant makes it whiter, so coloring cleaner and brighter than with marzipan alone. The fondant also makes it smoother, easier to work and sets up better.

I have only done a couple cakes with 'things' on them and have made them from fondant or gum paste and my kids eat them. "Crunch crunch hey this is good mom." " Yeah ok what ever..." LOL I won't let then eat too much though. I never did let them take a stab at my bald eagle. I couldn't bare to see him get eaten. Instead he sat on a shelf gaurding the room for a while before he took a beak dive into the bin.[/img]

This topic can be pretty funny...hearing about the kids chomping on the figurines. Just last week I stayed up late making a tinkerbell for my cake and awoke to my 3 yr old telling me "yummy!" As he ate the head off! I had to reconstruct the head...and lets just say it never looked quite the same. It was gumpaste, and just the smell of it when I was molding it was bad enough. I don't think I could have stomached the actual taste, but whatever, my son like it!