Hello Everyone,
I am a newbie to posting here, but I have been reading all of your wonderful posts and helpful hints/instructions for quite some time now. I make cakes as a hobby and in NO-WAY am I even close to all of your fabulous cakes, but none the less I do enjoy it very much and appreciate all the great information I get from this site. You all are Priceless!!!
My question is regarding Gum Paste....I am SO Confused!! I went to a cake decorating store and was talking to them about wanting to venture into making some characters and maybe flowers (I'm very intimadated by flowers, so really want to start with the characters) she gives me a container of Gum Tex and tells me this is what I need. O.K. I buy it thinking this is all I need and I am good to go. Now silly me I didn't read the back of the container and it tells me for the Gum Paste Recipe I need Wilton g lucose ? O.K. so I call the store (as it is 58 miles away, not just a short ways) and she says they don't carry the g lucose just the Gum Tex. WHAT?!? so I go onto the Wilton site and they carry it of course along with Ready-To-Use Gum Paste and Gum Paste Mix. The store doesn't carry any of those other mixes, and I'm not sure why I need this Tex stuff? Is there a simple recipe for Gum Paste that I could use without having to purchase the g lucose from Wilton? I have searched the site hoping to find one, without any luck.
Any and All information on Gum Paste (recipes, mixes,anything) is greatly appreciated!!
Thank you!!
I think you could use Wiltons ready made gumpaste for practice work, or knead some of the Gum Tex powder you bought into some rolled fondant. It will give the flowers or figures more strength and help it to dry faster. Next step I would suggest would be to buy Tylose powder and try making your own gumpaste with Nicholas Lodge's recipe. I think you will find it easier to work with and like the results better.
http://www.nicholaslodge.com/gumpaste.htm
I found that you can get gloucose from a local pharmacy. Ask the pharmacist for some. They either have it or have to order it. Way cheaper than Wilton and just as good.
I also suggest mixing the gumtex into your fondant. This makes your fondant more like gumpaste, but gives you more working time before it dries out, which is something you probably want when you are just starting out.
I have used fondant plus gum tex to make lots of things from Turkeys and pumpkins, a scarecrow and Santa with reindeers.
I'm sorry to jump on your post Spoiled1 but I have a gum paste question too.... I made a fairy last night and she looked great, today when I got home from work she looked horribly dry and cracked. Is there a way to keep the gumpaste looking fresh? Any help is appreciated!!
I find that straight gumpaste is a bit too dry for modeling figures, it would work better if you kneaded fondant and gumpaste half and half together. The gumpaste helps it dry more solid than straight fondant, but the fondant gives it pliability and it doesn't crack when it dries. Called 50/50 paste in some books or instructions.
Here's the recipe I like. It's the one that's included with JEM cutters. I like it better than the ready-made Wilton, because it doesn't have the smell and is cheaper and it doesn't have to sit overnight like the Nicholas Lodge recipe. Also, I've used it substituting gum-tex for Tylose powder and it works just as well as it does using tylose powder, the texture just feels a little bit grainier and it doesn't dry quite as hard, in my opinion. Also, the Tylose mixture will be whiter, if you need a purer white.
Ingredients: 1 egg white, 1 cup powdered sugar, 2 rounded tsp. Tylose
Lightly beat the egg white. Add sifted powdered sugar (I don't like sifting, so I don't and mine always turns out fine) slowly until soft peak consistency is reached. I sometimes have to add more powdered sugar to get it to the soft peak consistency--and then again, sometimes I just mix it up a while and go to the next step whether it has reached that consistency or not--I haven't been able to see a real difference in the outcome. Next step, add the tylose powder and the mixture will thicken within seconds. Gradually add more powdered sugar until a pliable texture is achieved. I keep adding until the consistency is similar to play dough and not sticky--a little bit of tackiness is ok because the crisco will aleviate that. Then grease your hands up (crisco works well) and kneed the dough a little bit. To store it, I roll into a ball, put a sheen of crisco on it, and then press it flat and wrap it in press'nseal. It lasts several weeks this way, but you can start using it immediately if you want. I've never had a problem with cracking, either.
Also, if you double this recipe, it will yield about 15 oz. (just under one pound).
I should mention, too, that I make this in my mixer with the whisk and then I change to a dough hook (greased, just like you would making MMF) right before I add the tylose powder. That way, my hands don't get tired from kneeding a bunch. I only hand-kneed a little bit at the end to work the crisco into the gumpaste.
Other people mentioned the Wilton ready-made gumpaste and adding gumtex or tylose to fondant. I just want to say that for learning, I liked the ready-made gumpaste. It is easy to work with, but it smells. Also, I like the results that adding gumtex to MMF yields, but I never can get the powder kneeded in well enough to have a smooth texture and I really like it when the gumpaste is smooth to the touch.
Anyway, there are a number of good suggestions people have already left for you, but I thought I'd throw in this recipe because it is so simple and easy and gives great results. Also, it dries within a few hours, but leaves plenty of time to work on your project.
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