Fondant And Gumpaste Questions
Decorating By satgirlga Updated 17 Jul 2007 , 2:51pm by cakebaker1957
I've never used fondant or gumpaste. Could someone tell me the difference and what type of decorations would you make with each? I also am looking for the recipes on how to make each of these. I'll be doing a cake in a couple of weeks that I may want to try doing some hibiscus flowers for. Any tips on how to make these flowers? Thanks for all of your help!
Well, you can buy both fondant and gumpaste ready to use. I always make my own fondant (Marshmallow Fondant or MMF is what I typically use, the recipe is at http://forum.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-1949-Marshmallow-Fondant-MMF.html I have never made gumpaste, just always used the ready made stuff.
I think you can use either to make similar decorations- I'm pretty new to gumpaste. Gumpaste dries harder and faster than fondant does. Some people mix them togther for their projects. As for making flowers, Wilton makes a fondant/gumpaste flower kit. I do not have it, but have heard lots of people talk about it.
Hope this helps a little. Sorry I'm not more help!
well with a little bit of BAD experience, becareful when first using GP because if you aren't used to it it can dry before you get the shape you want....try a gp / fondant mix 50/50 (I think). It might even be better to work with fondant first to get the feel of it. I love MMF I don't do enough fondant work to buy it but I love it (not real good with it but I am learning also) There are so many truly talented fondant workers on here that can answer your questions better!
Gumpaste is often used to make flowers and decorations like bows and ribbons. It dries hard and it dries quickly. It is flexible so you can roll it out very thin. Although it is edible it is usually not eaten. Gumpaste can be used to mold figures but you have to work quickly because the paste dries quickly.
Fondant is meant to be eaten so it does not dry quite so rock hard. You can make figures out of fondant but you have to expect much longer drying time than if you use gumpaste. A good compromise is using 1/2 gumpaste and 1/2 fondant. It gives you the best of both worlds.
Gumpaste is often used to make flowers and decorations like bows and ribbons. It dries hard and it dries quickly. It is flexible so you can roll it out very thin. Although it is edible it is usually not eaten. Gumpaste can be used to mold figures but you have to work quickly because the paste dries quickly.
Fondant is meant to be eaten so it does not dry quite so rock hard. You can make figures out of fondant but you have to expect much longer drying time than if you use gumpaste. A good compromise is using 1/2 gumpaste and 1/2 fondant. It gives you the best of both worlds.
Good Morning Bakinggirl
i made a baby out of 50/50 last night and noticed that one leg is kinda wrinkled what can i do to get this out, or should i just make a new one, also how can i do this and make them look more real, i dont have very many fondant tools, the face turned out great but one leg just doesnt look right im using it on a Baby Shower Cake Saturday and if i cove it with BC icing will this make it breakdown and fall apart?
Thanks for the info
cakebaker1957,
I had a similar problem when I made penguins for my penguin cake. My first penguins were horribly wrinkly despite being 1/2 gumpaste. I had used the gumpaste you mix yourself and it was just too soft so the insides of the penguins drooped and settled resulting in a wrinkled outside "skin". Looked horrible. I re-did the penguins using all fondant which was fine. The figures were not 100% dry, but dry enough to hold their shape, when I put them on the cake. It turned out fine as it was the first thing the birthday boy ate, eeew.
I don't think you are going to be able to get the wrinkles out of your baby figure, you would probably have to do it again. I don't think BC icing is going to make your figure break down, although the fat in the icing may keep the figure soft. I would let the figure dry properly before adding BC details to be on the safe side.
cakebaker1957,
I had a similar problem when I made penguins for my penguin cake. My first penguins were horribly wrinkly despite being 1/2 gumpaste. I had used the gumpaste you mix yourself and it was just too soft so the insides of the penguins drooped and settled resulting in a wrinkled outside "skin". Looked horrible. I re-did the penguins using all fondant which was fine. The figures were not 100% dry, but dry enough to hold their shape, when I put them on the cake. It turned out fine as it was the first thing the birthday boy ate, eeew.
I don't think you are going to be able to get the wrinkles out of your baby figure, you would probably have to do it again. I don't think BC icing is going to make your figure break down, although the fat in the icing may keep the figure soft. I would let the figure dry properly before adding BC
details to be on the safe side.
Thanks
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