Has anyone ever used food coloring on fondant? Just curious if it works o.k. If not I will have to go buy the edible markers to draw the colors of my casino chips and playing cards.

I was going to ask a similar question, but since you've covered fondant, I'll post it here.

First, to address your question, I believe if you want to make white fondant a color, you can do so by mixing POWDERED food coloring with the fondant. Using liquid food coloring will throw off the consistency of the fondant and render it unusable.

I thought - once when I was watching "Ace of Cakes" on the Food Network (their site directed me here, by the way) - they mixed powdered food coloring with Vodka and used a brush to paint the design on the cake.

Am I right?

Also, if I'm wrong - where can I get these edible markers? Those sound like an appealing alternative!

I have a cake I need to make for a baby shower on June 3...so I need this info sooner rather than later.

Thanks!

- amy

Michael's and/or Hobby Lobby sell the edible marker pens.

I beleive I know what you are referring to as far as the powder food coloring mixed with vodka. I usually use luster dust mixed with clear vanilla extract but that's only when I want my fondant to have a shine or glimmer to it. In this case, I don't need my casino chips and playing cards to glimmer.

I tell you what. I bought the edible markers and I would recommend writing on scrap fondant before the real thing and also if you take a break. I had a problem when I was doing the cards on my poker table where when I crossed over a line I had already drawn it pulled at the fondant. And it's kinda like a dry marker if it sits to long you have to draw a little to make it work. I may be the only one who experienced this but I wanted to let you know since I saw your post. As for coloring fondant I don't have any other the better brands only Wilton but it seems to color the fondant well for me. The brown and teal cake in my gallery I actually mixed the color paste in white I was melting the Marshmellows don't know if that was wrong but it sure gave me a pretty and easy to work with color. Good Luck.

TexasSugar:

Thanks for the information. That's what I thought regarding vodka.

And thanks for the clarification on past/gel colors. I forgot about those.

- amy

To keep my fondant from getting to sticky (when coloring wtih bright or dark colors that require more coloring paste) I add a small amount of Tragacanth Gum, knead it in and let it sit for a couple of hours.

For painting on fondant or gum paste I mix a small amount of vodka (anything clear works) with the color, works great.

I use the little paint trays (can get them in the art section at Wal Mart for under a dollar) which are nice because you can do muliple shades at the same time. I also use the little travel size bottles of vodka for easier pouring and storage.... and you can mix yourself a quick drink if you cake isnt turning out right!

To add my $.02 yes you can paint on fondant using gel colors mixed with a little vodka or Everclear. I agree with the other poster that using a gel color straight can leave your finished piece tacky if not mixed with another liquid. The higher the alcohol value the better since it lessens the drying time. You can also use petal dust to color or paint on fondant. I use both methods a lot since I prefer to work with fondant and gumpaste.

Regarding the markers - AmeriColor makes a great set of colored markers called Gourmet Writers that I just purchased several weeks ago. They work on fondant, chocolate and several other mediums. They are a little pricey, but worth the money. I purchased my pens from CandyLandCrafts.com but you can get them from a lot of other places as well. I think I have even seen them on the Cake Central site.

I hope you find this information useful. Good luck!

I just tried painting on fondant last weekend. I was making brownie tri-its for an investiture ceremony cake. I thinned gel colors with some vanilla, but I don't know if you need to do that. They took a little while to dry, but turned out great. I'd post photos, but for some reason they never finish posting when I try. Oh well. Maybe I'll figure it out some day. Good luck!

Thanks for everyone's input.

Thanks, everyone.

I have the information I need.