How To Work With Store Bought Rolled Fondant For Accents?

Decorating By christine12377 Updated 27 Nov 2009 , 2:16am by kakeladi

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christine12377 Posted 22 Nov 2009 , 3:39pm
post #1 of 4

Hi everyone,

I"m going to buy a sheet cake covered in buttercream from a bakery and I would like to decorate it with fondant accents. I purchased the wilton pre-made ready to use rolled fondant and just started to experiment with it. My idea was to use star shaped cutouts to decorate my son's cake with.

I have a few questions actually:

1) is it better to use crisco on my surface or conf. sugar that I will be rolling the fondant out on?

2) I cut out a few shapes but they lost their shape upon lifting with a thin cake spatula. wondering- should i let them dry out before trying to lift so that they retain their shape better?

3) is it advisable to let fondant accents harden before putting them onto the cake? i only plan to put them on the top and the sides (flat surfaces) and not anything draped over the edges.

4) if i should let them harden, what is the best way to achieve this? harden on the counter, in the fridge??

5) once i am ready to put them on the cake, what do you suggest is the best way to get them to stick to the buttercream? i guess im only worried about the ones on the sides falling off.. im going to roll out to about 1/8 or 1/16, depending on what you suggest : ) i can pick up the cake either the morning of or the day before my son's party. im assuming the buttercream icing will be slightly crusted, but im not sure. i did taste another cake from the bakery and the icing didnt seem too hard....not sure what role this plays in putting fondant accents on it.

any help is much appreciated. the party is NEXT weekend and to be honest, if i cant get the fondant accents to retain their shape then i might just skip it all together : ( any advice anyone has on what i'm attempting to do i would really, REALLY appreciate.

thanks so much in advance!

3 replies
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celestecakes78 Posted 23 Nov 2009 , 1:23am
post #2 of 4

I'm going to try my best with this.

1)When I roll out my fondant for accents I use conf sugar otherwise short makes it more sticky and also if your trying to dry your decos short keeps that from happening.

2) retaining shape, did you roll your fondant too thin? if your only making stars you can make them a little on the thick side so they are more managable.

3)Its not really necessary to let them harden if your decoration is simple

4)personally I let them harden on the counter not fridge, for me fridge is emergency only because it makes them sticky when they come out because of the condensation from the fridge.

5) Its all about time management and how comfy you are with the time frame if you get the cake the day of. You can put alittle buttercream on the back of your decorations and they should stick just fine crusted or not from the bakery.

P.S For me when my kids have their bday parties i'm always making the cake.Its easier to do things the day before because if somethings not going quite right with the cake I don't freak out,I have time to focus on the cake, not balloons or kids running in the kitchen or setting up. Anything else?

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christine12377 Posted 27 Nov 2009 , 12:34am
post #3 of 4

hi celeste thanks so much for your reply. i will make them thicker so that they retain their shape better when lifting off the counter. i would like to have them harden somewhat...

im going to make them the night before and have leave them out until the next day when i pick up the cake. do you think they will get too hard? should i let them harden for just a little bit, and if so how long, and then put them into some tupperware or something until i am ready to use them?

thanks again for your response!

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kakeladi Posted 27 Nov 2009 , 2:16am
post #4 of 4

1) is it better to use crisco on my surface or conf. sugar that I will be rolling the fondant out on?
Answer: Just a *very light* rub of shortening should be good. Wilton's fondant is on th4e dry side to begin with so it needs that grease icon_smile.gif

2) cut..few shapes...lost their shape upon lifting with a thin cake spatula.
Answer: It does sound like you rolled it too thin. It should be around 1/4" thick. A good measure is to compare it to the thickness of a cake board.

3) is it advisable to let fondant accents harden before putting them onto the cake?
Answer: Totally up to you. Really don't need to.

4) if i should let them harden,....on the counter, in the fridge??
Answer: On the counter. Do not put in fridge.

5) ...ready to put them on the cake, what ... best way to get them to stick to the buttercream?
Answer: Pipe an open circle of icing on the back of each piece before sticking it on the cake - tip 3-6 is perfect for this.

....make them the night before.... leave them out ... will they get too hard? ...let them harden for just a little bit....how long, .......put into some tupperware
Answer: Either way is fine. They will not get too hard and when you put them on the cake they will eventually soften just a bit from the moisture & grease in the icing. They will keep well in tubberware.

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