Frustrated With Mmf? Here's A Tip...
Decorating By jeking Updated 20 May 2009 , 5:32am by madgeowens
My favorite two hobbies: cake decorating and exercise.
I'm just trying to balance it all out...
but the cake is winning,
Me too, I love working out! ...and I eat dessert almost every night. 
I always knead in a little bit of crisco with all types of fondant. The weather is so dry right now that my fondant is drying up in about 10 seconds!! 
Also, when making MMF maybe just melt down a little bit of crisco with the MM, and then see how it is. You can always knead in a little more if necessary.
Courtney
Sweetpeeps, I did add the color to the fluff before the sugar along with some vanilla extract. (I used the Easy MMF recipe on this site, which uses fluff instead of melted mm.) Then I added the ps in batches with mixer until it was stiff. sugar mostly incorporated. I sprayed my surface with cooking spray and criscoed my hands. I kneaded in the rest of the sugar until it seemed it would take no more. I wrapped it tight in saran, then in a ziplock. Let it rest 2 days and then, after I sprayed my surface and kneaded it seemed so dry so I added a little more crisco. MMF became really shiny, glossy and when I rolled it out, it was bubbly. I tried kneading more and rolling again twice and finally got it to look a little better, but still bubbles! I have heard that the easy recipe takes more kneading. Don't know if I used too much color, crisco or not enough sugar. I will try the recipe with the melted marshmallows next time and see if I do better with it.
I'm making my very first batch this weekend, I'm glad this came up!
How do you know how much coloring to add when melting the marshmallows. Also, does the color soften after you add the CS?
elvisb and Melvira, you are too funny! 
I made the Rhonda's MMF last week but after I followed the directions, I thought it could use more sugar. I added an additional cup and used shortening to knead it like the recipe said. I let it rest for two days. It seemed just right. And I used shortening to roll it out, too. Worked great! I had read that originally from Wendoger and am glad I did! It made my first experience a joy 
Hope the next one goes as well. I was wondering, how long is the MMF good for? I have some left (tightly wrapped) in the fridge. Is it stlll good? I know the Wilton's seems to stay good forever, but it's no wonder when it tastes like plastic!! 
added 4 cups of confectioner's sugar and mixed it until all the CS was incorporated. I put 3 cups of CS on my countertop and then scooped out the MM mixture onto it and began to knead it
ok sorry to ask but , what is the cs..is it cornstarch...
Is it really necessary to let mmf rest before using?
yes because it helps to dissolve any little bits of sugar that might not have gotten mixed in all the way. Actually, I will not make it without sifting my powdered sugar first now. I bought a NASTY bag of Publix powdered sugar and I will never buy their brand again. No matter how long I let it rest or how much I kneaded it, the lumps on sugar would not come out. They were like hard tiny pebbles. I always sift now.
OMG I ALWAYS have trouble with MMF. I think of the 6 times Ive made it, 2 actually came out usable. I posted videos on here about a month ago under the how to section about my MMF disaster. Its kind of funny. It was like wet goo. It looked chunky, like popcorn. Soooo gross. I added too much water.
I will try adding crisco while melting next time and wont add ANY water. It seems I never get consistent results with this stuff.
Oh and I found out another problem that I was having with it, the recipe I was using said to use a larger bag of MM, but no where around here sells anything but 10oz bags. A whole 2 lb bag of PS is too much for a 10oz bag, I believe. I used less PS the last time I made it and it turned out better. I think I used like 3/4 of the bag.
Thanks for all the tips. I was about to make it for the first time for a cake I need to get done rather quickly but now I am thinking I had better wait for some experimental time. Thank you for helping me avoid a disaster!
Make sure you get the 16 ounce bag of marshmallows!! I tell my students to first use about 3/4 of the 2 pound bag of powdered sugar and then add more if it is still sticky. (the powdered sugar amount will always vary depending on the humidity of the air when you are making it) I always use shortning to roll it out too - works like a charm.
I have a question. Has anyone tried to add glycerin to their MMF? Would that give it more elasticity? Next time I will try my MMF without the water. I always add crisco to mine too.
JCE62108 I could only find the 10oz bags too. Walmart does carry a 16oz bag of minimarshmallows. It is their brand - Great Value. I haven't had the chance to use it yet for MMF but other people have said it works well.
Diet tip: Any cake (or anything else for that matter) eaten while you're standing at the counter or over the kitchen sink has ZERO calories. You know, because you're standing!
As for the MMF, the one time I had chunks of sugar in it was when I overheated the marshmallows in the microwave. It was ruined. I find it's better to microwave for shorter periods and let the heated marshmallows melt themselves.
I nuke the marshmallows in Crisco-greased bowl for 10-20 seconds until partially melted, then add the powdered sugar, and microwave again for 10-20 seconds. Stir after each microwaving. I grease my hands with Crisco, and knead and squish MMF around until it doesn't stick to counter.
I finally made my first cake with fondant (MM) over the w/e and it did have a couple tears...oh well, that's what flowers and decorations are for, isn't it?
I have a question. Has anyone tried to add glycerin to their MMF? Would that give it more elasticity? Next time I will try my MMF without the water. I always add crisco to mine too.
I was wondering the same thing. In Michelle Fosters recipe on CC, she adds 2 T. glycerin for elasticity (the other ingredients besides conf. sugar and water are gelatin, corn syrup...which essentially is the composition of marshmallows...)
What are your thoughts or experiences?
I have a question. Has anyone tried to add glycerin to their MMF? Would that give it more elasticity? Next time I will try my MMF without the water. I always add crisco to mine too.
One of the recipes (I think it is MacsMom's) has 1 T of glycerin. I made some over the weekend for a class tonight - it is really soft and I am really concerned. I did add 1 T of glycerin and I used it to make Jennifer Dontz's chocolate fondant. I went in last night and kneaded more sugar ... haven't checked it today because it is too late to do anything about it.
I think I will try the no water and add shortening the next time. My niece made Michele Foster's fondant and we are going to see who was happier with theirs. I have a feeling I know who is going to win this one ....
I use a mixture of corn syrup and glycerine to try and improve the elasticity of MMF, it seems to work well. The only thing I don't like about MMF is the tendency to shrink because it's made of marshmallows. Mainly it's only an issue when you're covering cookies. You cut it out with the cookie cutter and it shrinks a little, and the cookie spreads just a tiny bit, so you end up with a larger, uncovered edge on the cookie. Annoying! 
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