Fondant Woes

Decorating By IHATEFONDANT Updated 1 Sep 2005 , 1:30pm by Sangria

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IHATEFONDANT Posted 27 Aug 2005 , 1:49pm
post #1 of 17

I've only recently attempted using Fondant....no matter what I do I get that famous "bulge"...I stack my layers bottoms up...crumb coat..leave overnight..add Fondant and those nasty bulges appear.

I always use "sturdy" cakes.. and reinforce the buttercream I use to create the "well" for my filling.

My question is this....are most cakes that are covered with fondant scantily filled? It just seems that no matter what I do the weight of the Fondant causes the "squishing" of the center filling.

Thanks for any advice.

16 replies
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lisekris Posted 27 Aug 2005 , 4:10pm
post #2 of 17

Hi - what sort of filling do you use?
I often fill my cakes with rasberry mousse og chocolate ditto and don't seem to have that problem? I tend to fill them using the pan I baked the cakes in and refrigerate overnight so they firm up nicely and then cover with sugarpaste - which is more or less the same as fondant. How thick do you roll it out?

Lise

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IHATEFONDANT Posted 27 Aug 2005 , 4:30pm
post #3 of 17

I fill with mousses etc..and make a nice thick dam of buttercream.

The fondant is generally 1/4" thick....I have noticed that bakers in the UK and Australia generally only use a thin layer of jam between their layers...

The cakes are very firm before I put the fondant on....I get it on..smooth it out and not long after I can see the "bulge" starting...

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lisekris Posted 27 Aug 2005 , 5:47pm
post #4 of 17

I must admit that I am a bit stumped - have you tried gelatine ? Chocolate fudge always works as well

The following rasberry mousse (-ish) works for me:

abt 7oz of frozen(or fresh)rasberries (or any other berry except strawberries - too wet) thawed to room temp

2 cups double cream (sorry, don't know the US term - cream for whipping)

2 tbsp sugar

Vanilla to taste

1/2 yoghurt - adds a nice sharpness to the mousse - goes very well with chocolate

mash the berries with the sugar and add the yoghurt. Whip the cream until it is a hair's breadth from butter and combine the two, very gently. This will be enough for abt an 8-9"cake.
'Build' the cake in the pan it was baked in and refrigerate for several hours, preferably overnight

Hope this helps

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IHATEFONDANT Posted 27 Aug 2005 , 6:08pm
post #5 of 17

Thanks!!! I'll try that.

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mvucic Posted 28 Aug 2005 , 6:26pm
post #6 of 17

I read somewhere here that smoothing it with your hand accentuates the bulging on the sides of the cake. Do you use a smoother or your hand? Try with a smoother next time. Just a suggestion... HTH

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IHATEFONDANT Posted 28 Aug 2005 , 7:26pm
post #7 of 17

MV..that makes sense..the heat from my hands may be helping to soften the buttercream dam.....I use the fondant smoother...but have also used my hands at times...good suggestion!!! Thanks!!

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mvucic Posted 28 Aug 2005 , 8:07pm
post #8 of 17

Oh, one more thing my SIL told me. She made this wedding cake (her first one, and only! so she saysicon_wink.gif) that was simple PERFECT! Her fondant down the sides and across the top was flawless. She said to prevent the bulging, all she did was make her damn further towards the center (maybe 1/2 inch in from the edge?) and when she stacked the layers, there was no buttercream showing through, just leaving her with cake layers on the sides. I know, there really isn't much filling here then, but it sure made a difference with she crumb coat, iced and fondant covered the cakes. She didn't skimp on the filling at least icon_wink.gif. I wish I had a picture to show you. Maybe that would help too.

Good Luck icon_smile.gif

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IHATEFONDANT Posted 28 Aug 2005 , 8:24pm
post #9 of 17

that is an interesting idea...bringing the dam in further....I'll have to give that idea a go...Thanks again!!

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mvucic Posted 28 Aug 2005 , 8:26pm
post #10 of 17

No Problem! icon_biggrin.gif Hope it helps!

Mirjana

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MissBaritone Posted 28 Aug 2005 , 8:27pm
post #11 of 17

I usually use a thin layer of buttercream to coat my cake before applying the sugar paste. It does sound like you have your filling too near the edge of your cake. If you move it in slightly then let it firm up overnight you should have no problems

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IHATEFONDANT Posted 28 Aug 2005 , 9:08pm
post #12 of 17

Miss....I have the dam of buttercream ring the outside of the layer..the filling goes inside the dam.

It is not the filling that is bulging but that dam of buttercream...I'll try moving everything in a bit.

I do coat the cake with a thin coat of buttercream to crumb coat the cake and act as a glue for the fondant.

I still find that Americans love their sweet buttercreams but like the look of the fondant.

I have warned clients about the taste of the fondant, even when I flavor it with oil. Many people end up peeling the fondant off of their slice of cake before eating it. But some people want that smooth look regardless.

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vicky Posted 30 Aug 2005 , 3:58am
post #13 of 17

I went to a class and was told to ice the cakes with buttercream liberally instead of crumbcoating. When I had crumbcoated only, there wasn't enough "glue" buttercream to hold the fondant. Good luck!

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itsacake Posted 1 Sep 2005 , 4:06am
post #14 of 17

I've been told, but can't remember where, that cakes get that center bulge not because of anything about the filling, but because the cake itself settles. Are you baking and letting the cakes sit overnight before you fill and stack them? I usually also let the cakes sit again before I cover them with fondant. The point is you have to let gravity have it's chance. I've had this problem, but it seems to be less since I've begun to observe this settling time.

Good Luck!

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MissBaritone Posted 1 Sep 2005 , 6:19am
post #15 of 17

Sorry I was counting your buttercream dam as part of your filling (who says England and the US speak the same language) When you put your top layer onto the buttercream it will squish outwards as the cake settles down, so if you move the dam further in towards the centre it has more room to squish outwards without bulging out the sides of the cake.

In England we use very little buttercream. Birthday cakes ect are nearly always covered in fondand and the buttercream just gets used as a glue to hold it on, or the favourite filling tends to be a layer of raspberry jam and a layer of buttercream. The only time we tend to flavour fondant is to make sweets, something like peppermint creams. I've never heard of it being flavoured to go on a cake

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IHATEFONDANT Posted 1 Sep 2005 , 10:23am
post #16 of 17

I bake my cakes and let them sit overnight.....then I fill and stack,crumbcoat and let them sit at least 4 hours and usually overnight.


MissB...forgive me but Fondant has a nasty taste..*L*....I flavor mine with oils to make it a bit more tasty....

I've noticed that UK cakes are usually dense.....most books I have from the UK or Australia use fruit cakes as their base...and are modestly filled.

We Americans loves our sweets...most of my clients want generous fillings and coatings of buttercream on them...I roll my fondant to about 1/4" thickness...I think the sheer weight of it helps to push the dam outwards.

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Sangria Posted 1 Sep 2005 , 1:30pm
post #17 of 17
Quote:
Originally Posted by IHATEFONDANT

I flavor mine with oils to make it a bit more tasty....




IHATEFONDANT (cute name by the way) what oils do you use? I've tried the Lorainne Almond but they it was terrible. Any ideas? Thanks!

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