Help. What Did I Do Wrong (Fondant)
Decorating By kikifish Updated 11 Sep 2009 , 10:51pm by BeeBoos-8599_
Hello everyone,
Long time lurker, first time poster...
I have never eaten a fondant cake before so I am not sure what a fondant cake texture should be like.
I did two cakes and two WAY different results. I used Wilton premade fondant on both (now going to start using MMF)
Cake 1 was fondant detail like "ribbons" and "circles" on top of a plain buttercream frosting. The fondan turned very "gelatinous" and took on the taste of the buttercream, so i was pleased with the flavor, but disappointed at how the fondant got so "gel" like. It was ok for this cake, but i was worried if it would do that when I fully covered a layer... so I made another cake.
Cake 2 was a tiered cake with all layers covered in fondant. I used a "oreo" buttercream that was basically ground oreo's mixed in buttercream. I frosted it on 1 day, fondant on the next, ate it on day 3. Here is the problem, it looked fantastic and was so easy to handle each layer as the fondant remained nice and did not "gel" like the previous cake. However, upon cutting it and tryint to eat it it was sort of "leather" like... It seemed dry and did not even stick well to the frosting. Is this normal for a fondant cake? How can I make it better?
What should I be doing differently?
I should add that I did cover both the cakes until it was time to eat them...
I am pretty disappointed as cake 2 was beautiful but people did not want to eat it because they didn't like the fondant (I guess pulling it off was not proper or something). They were not very nice about it and I felt bad several people passed on having cake...
Again, the flavor was fine but the textures all seem strange to me...
I would really appreciate any help and feedback I can get.
First of all I congrats on no longer being a post virgin. We will try to be gentle.
Fondant absorbes the moisture from the icing. That is why your ribbons got softer. As for the 2nd cake I am not sure but I would have put the fondant on sooner so it could soften up.
Once you start using other brands of fondant you will have better results. IMHO Wilton fondant is the reason most people hate eating fondant. I still use it for modeling figures, flowers etc but not for eating (most people wont eat the flowers etc unless they are kids and they will eat anything). If you ask what is the best brand you will get MANY different opinions. Some like Satin Ice, some make thier own Marshmallow Fondant. It is totally up to the user. My favorite is Fondaerific buttercream flavored.
Just keep working with it and you will continue to have better results.
Wilton fondant is great to work with but tastes terrible. Try making your own, I had no luck with mmf, hard to work with but great success with mff. It should not be leathery in taste or texture, that may be Wilton's fault, not yours. Try making your own, tastes better and much cheaper. Good luck, HTH
From my own experience, Wilton's fondant tastes disgusting and I've heard similar responses from others. Don't feel badly. Switch over to MMF as I did.
Hi
what is mff not sure
mff is michele foster's fondant
Cake 2 I frosted it on 1 day, fondant on the next, ate it on day 3. Here is the problem, it looked fantastic and was so easy to handle each layer as the fondant remained nice and did not "gel" like the previous cake. However, upon cutting it and tryint to eat it it was sort of "leather" like... It seemed dry and did not even stick well to the frosting. Is this normal for a fondant cake? How can I make it better?
What should I be doing differently?
I would say that that was the problem in both the fully covered cake's fondant being leather like and for it not sticking to the frosting...regardless of what fondant you use, this would've more than likely been the end result if the same steps were followed.
Cover the cake when the icing is still moist or chilled even.
I am going to attempt the MMF in a day or two and see how I like it... Or if it even works for me... I hope that the texture will be more appealing once its on the cake than the Wilton. I don't have a store that sells anything other than that, and I don't have time to order it online (nor really the finances after my last cake).
Should I let it sit for a day or two after I have covered it with MMF prior to serving it? I usually bake and frost on 1 day, fondant on the next (cause I am usually "caked out" and tired by the time I get to tier #3), then serve on day 3... is that not enough time to allow for the fondant to sit on the cake? Maybe I should just suck it up and hammer it all out in one day?
Again, I really REALLY appreciate all of your help!
My family hates the texture of fondant. All but one of them usually don't eat it because we like melt in your mouth and not chewy icing. And yes I have made mine own, so it can't all be blamed on Wilton's Fondant like most are quick to do.
I just think that like IMBC vc Regular BC, not everyone likes the same thing and that is okay. It is okay for your family not to like the texture of fondant and it is okay for them to leave the fondant behind on the plates. Just like it is okay that my family prefers the Regular buttercream vs IMBC when others swear that IMBC is all their family will eat.
All4Cake... Thank you for confirming what I was thinking! I will do that next time and see how it turns out.
TexasSugar... Thank you for making me feel a little less dejected. I think I will just tell them next time that you can pull it off and enjoy the yummy buttercream below... and if they are too snobby to bother- then that's their problem.
Here is cake #1 for my niece's "Queen of the Jungle" theme. I just finished Wilton Class 1 and this is my 3rd attempt at making a cake, and my first ever stacked one. It looks big, but I used a really small bundt pan, and a 6 in, and a 8 in round pan. So it was small.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=612375&l=426b7fc792&id=1143300734
Here is cake #2 for my nephew's "Pirate" theme. Its a cheap knockoff of a fantastic cake by www.quaintcake.com. I wish she lived closer... would have saved me a lot of trouble. But I did have fun. This is the "leather" cake... 
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=687468&l=f2f21a3150&id=1143300734
no, really those are my cakes. I took a Wilton 1 from my local Michaels, then got on here and youtube. This is THE place for learning cake decorating! I haven't tried cake stuff before, but I am pretty craft and art minded. I really enjoy modeling the figures the most and painting the stuff on the cake.
But I think I need alot of practice, as my first cake stack was too low and it stuck to the fondant, and the pirate cake fondant was all puckered around the edges and I cut it too short. But I am going to take the next to Wilton's classes and the fondant and try to get it correct.
I just did a "diaper cake" last night... not edible, unless you like diapers... but super cute and fun! It has no fondant, so that is likely why. 
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=707975&l=e2018340c7&id=1143300734
I think your cakes are terrific. Well done.
I've only just started using fondant too and I think it takes a lot of trial and error to get your technique up to a standard you're happy with.
As far as taste goes, it's such an individual thing but I do know that a lot of people are turned off fondant because it's so thick, no one wants a mouthful of just fondant!! If you can find a fondant (either pre-made or home-made) that you can roll out really thinly without it tearing too much, you'll be able to avoid that. I'm in Australia and I use Bakel's Pettinice which I think has a reasonable flavour (not too sweet) and stays 'strong' when really thin; I can usually get it to about 3mm on my cakes.
Keep at it and try a few different recipes until you find one you like. If you're going to buy online do a lot of shopping around so you get the best price.
HTH
Emma
I agree with emcm51, make the fondant as thin as you can. Also, you can fondant the day after you ice it just dab a damp paper towel around icing so fondant will stick (that trick comes from Sugarshack's dvd's), or some piping gel dabbed around the bottom of cake (that comes from my wilton teacher) Cake should settle before you put fondant on but if it is too dry, the fondant won't stick hence the above tricks. HTH
Hi. I am doing a pirate theme for my sons birthday and saw your post but when I went to click on the links, the pics wouldn't come up (on facebook). Any chance you can send them to me at [email protected]? I am intersted to see them, it sounds like they came out great! thanks so much!
I will say that fonderific can be rolled VERY thin and when you put the buttercream flavor over BC it just goes great together. People allways eat it when I use it.
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