Hi beautiful ladies (cakers, bakers..=D)

this is an awersome forum especially for noobs like me..I am not sure if there is anybody like me who lives in Asia. Me and my husband moved here from New York City last year and although i've been baking for years, I never had thought of really making this as my small biz.

Anyhoo, to cut the long story short. I could not find a better fondant, i tried the commerical ones, it melted right away could not stand on its own especially when it rains and massive humidity rate. I made my own, same thing happened and also..my homemade fondant has no glycerin-- why? because they're not sellng it! anywhere in Thailand, I had to look for it online and most shipping costs is horrendous.

Also I made some MMF, it was too stiff and unworkable. I wanted to make some gumpaste..and you guess it, sure enough there is no tylose powder ,gum arabic or gumt tragarcinth..I've had sleepless nights, my last big order of cupcakes and cake was terrible. it just melted and i almost felt like crying.

My husband's birthday is coming up in two weeks, I have two orders of birthday cakes in 3 weeks and a baby cake at the same time.

I don't know what else I could do...

Your wise advise and suggestions are gladly welcomed with open arms!

xxxxxxxxxx

You should try to buy these ingredients from Australia or NZ. That should give you reasonabvle shipping rates. They also have brands of fondant and other stuff never available in the USA

thank you BakingIrene!

I tried, there is one Australian Site I know that does wholesale (which is a gem) but! they don't do international shipping. I guess I have to keep on looking but my time is running up.

Any suggestions or options that I could substitute?

big thanks

Singapore, which is closer to you, has all of these sorts of products- so does Malaysia which is even closer. Both are very big into cake decorating -especially in KL- and there are tons of options available. Just google baking/cake decorating supplies etc in either one of these two countries.

Can't you sub light corn syrup for the glycerin when making fondant? If so, then you can probably find that in Thailand, depending on which city you're in, but if you're in Bangkok- for sure you can if you check around sukhumvit area. I believe there a few western/'expat' types of supermarkets and they will have a lot of things.

Hope this helps!

PS- http://www.kitchencapers.net/shopstore/ingredients.htm
or http://www.b-i-y.com/

Both of these Singapore places have supplies and will probably ship to you

Hi,

I can totally relate to your dilemma! My Husband and i recently moved to India from Arizona. Arizona according to me was the perfect place for gumpaste the dry weather helped in keeping all my creations perfect!! even at room temperature....however, India is a totally different story.. The humidity here is terrrible! Gumpaste/fondant gets so sticky at room temperature.....

After many batches of failed gumpaste recipe i finally found one that i can rely on its Nicholas Lodge recipe ( you can find it on the net)....he uses tylose ( which is difficult to find here in India) i substitute CMC, i add 2 tsps. extra per batch...and if required i add more whiles am kneading the dough when required till i get the desired consistency.
I have read that adding glycerin in high humidity areas is not recommended cause it tends to absorb moisture in the air, so avoid as much as you need.
And if you find your gumpaste melting after you have completed a figurine keep in under a lamp ( direct light to harden) , however, be careful as the colour does then to fade. To cover cakes you can try uses Marzipan, it gives the same finish as fondant and it doesn't bleed/ melt in high humidity.

Right now am trying to find a way to stop my creations from fading under direct light, if any of you out there knows a solution please share!!!!!............

Hi there OP. Have you tried asking at a pharmacy/chemist/drug store? They use glycerine in making medical remedies/treatments.

Hi there OP. Have you tried asking at a pharmacy/chemist/drug store? They use glycerine in making medical remedies/treatments.

[quote="cakefat"]Singapore, which is closer to you, has all of these sorts of products- so does Malaysia which is even closer. Both are very big into cake decorating -especially in KL- and there are tons of options available. Just google baking/cake decorating supplies etc in either one of these two countries.

Can't you sub light corn syrup for the glycerin when making fondant? If so, then you can probably find that in Thailand, depending on which city you're in, but if you're in Bangkok- for sure you can if you check around sukhumvit area. I believe there a few western/'expat' types of supermarkets and they will have a lot of things.

Hope this helps!

PS- http://www.kitchencapers.net/shopstore/ingredients.htm
or http://www.b-i-y.com//quote]



Thank you Cakefat!

Yes, I was browsing both of the sites that you recommended and emailed them on how much the shipping costs would be. THanks again! Now, the waiting game begins for this supplies to arrive!

I don't live in Bangkok (used to be, last year for 2 months) currently we live in Chiangmai, Thailand. And I ask my friends to look for me, they could not find any of those ingredients. Here we have a lot of expat supermarkets and even bigger stores for baking, yet surprisingly they don't carry those ingredients, even given me a BIG question mark look like with a look that I have three heads on me.

Well, anyhoo that's thailand for you. sigh.

Thanks again!

Cheers!

Many people in my country use what they call 'Faux marzipan'. It has nothing to do with a real marzipan, they just call it so. It's made of powdered sugar, powdered milk (11 - 15 % fat), oil or shortening, honey, water + extracts if you want to use them - vanilla or almond or any other you like. There are different recipes available on-line, you can try to make just half batch and see which one you like more. You can color it with gel colors, if you want to color the whole batch it's better to mix some color with the water before adding it to the dry mix.

1. 560 g powdered sugar, 270 g powdered milk, 60g honey, 30g oil, 70g water + extract(s)
Just dump everything in a bowl and mix.

2. 150 g powdered sugar, 150 g powdered milk, 3 Tbsp oil, water + extract
Sift PS and milk together in a bowl, add oil, couple of tsp of water + extracts and mix well.

3. 270 g powdered sugar, 150 g powdered milk, 30 g shortening, 50 g honey, 1 tsp rum (you can omit rum if you don't like alcohol), 1/2 tsp almond extract, 2 - 3 Tbsp water
Sift PS and milk together in a bowl, add melted shortening, honey (+ rum and extract), eventually water if needed.

4. 350 g powdered sugar, 250 g powdered milk, 90 ml water, 2 Tbsp il, almond extract
As 1. If the mass is too stiff, add 1/2 - 1 tsp of water at a time till it comes to a good working consistency. If it's too runny, add the mixture of PS and powdered milk. Roll it out between two sheets of wax paper, mat or on the counter dusted with PS .

Use immediately or wrap tightly in saran wrap, put in a zip lock bag and keep in the fridge. Heat shortly in the microwave in intervals of 10 sec if too hard.

These are not professional recipes, that's why there are no precise quantities/instructions sometimes. You don't need ingredients like gelatine, glycerine or glucose. Years ago I lived in India for 2 years, so I can imagine your situation fondant-wise and how difficult in general caking there is

Hii...

You can use marzipan for any cake, i will be working on a carrot date walnut cake this week covered in marzipan will let you know how it goes. Dont add any gum ingredients in fondant/marzipan cause it will get rock hard, like royal icing....and you may not get the desired stretch need to cover a cake. I have been using butter cream to cover my cakes, to give it a smooth finish i use the paper towel (or thick smooth paper napkin) trick to give it a smooth look.


Gumpaste Nicholas Lodge

Tylose Gumpaste


Tylose is an alternative product to use in making gumpaste instead of gum tragacanth. The advantage of the Tylose is that the paste is less expensive,, easier to make, holds up better in humidity and is whiter in color. The 55g container makes approximately 3 pounds of finished gumpaste.
The following recipe will make approximately 2 pounds of gumpaste.

SEE NOTES BELOW

4 - Large Egg Whites
1 - 2 lb. bag 10x powdered sugar
11 - Level teaspoons *Tylose (Available in our online store)
4 - Teaspoons shortening (Crisco)




1. Place the egg whites in a Kitchen Aid mixer bowl, fitted with the flat paddle.

2. Turn the mixer on high speed for 10 seconds to break up the egg whites.

3. Reserve 1 cup of the powdered sugar and set aside.

4. Turn the mixer to the lowest speed, slowly add the remaining sugar. This will make a soft consistency royal icing.

5. Turn up the speed to setting 3 or 4 for about two minutes.
During this time measure off the Tylose into a small container.

6. Make sure the mixture is at the soft-peak stage. It should look shiny, like meringue and the peaks fall over. (If coloring the entire batch, add the paste color at this stage, making it a shade darker than the desired color.)

7. Turn the mixer to the slow setting and sprinkle the Tylose in over a 5 second time period. Next, turn the speed up to the high setting for a few seconds. (This will thicken the mixture.)

8. Scrape the mixture out of the bowl onto a work surface that has been sprinkled with some of the reserved 1 cup of powdered sugar. Place the shortening on your hands and knead the paste, adding enough of the reserved powdered sugar to form a soft but not sticky dough. You can check by pinching with your fingers and they should come away clean. Place the finished paste in a
zip-top bag, then place the bagged paste in a second bag and seal well.

9. Place in the refrigerator for 24 hours if possible before using to mature the paste.

10. Before use, remove from refrigerator and allow the paste to come to room temperature. Take a small amount of shortening on the end of your finger and knead this into the paste. If you are coloring the paste, add the paste color at this stage.

11. Always store the paste in the zip-top bags and return to the refrigerator when you are not using the paste. Will keep under refrigeration for approximately 6 months. You can keep the paste longer by freezing. Be sure to use zip-top freezer bags. If you will be freezing a batch of paste, allow it to mature for 24 hours in the refrigerator first before placing into the freezer. The paste can be kept in the freezer for several years with no problems.

*This recipe is for Tylose C Composition 1000 which is usually under the brand names of
JEM Cutters and Confectionery Art Int'l.
If using Pfeil & Holding Tylose C, reduce the amount of Tylose to 9½ teaspoons for a 4 egg white batch, for best results.

Recipe for Edible Glue
1. Bring one cup of tap water to a rolling boil and remove from the heat.
2. Add 1/2 heaped teaspoon of Tylose powder to the water. Stir well with a fork to break up the Tylose. Allow to cool, stirring often to dissolve.
3. If necessary, place the mixture in the refrigerator overnight to allow the Tylose to dissolve.
4. Place in an airtight bottle when cool. Has a shelf life of approximately 30 to 60 days, but will keep longer if kept refrigerated when not in use.

thank you paula!

Just tried the Faux marzipan..did not work out unfortunately. It just melted right in front of me, tried different consistencies too. But I thank you for your suggestion!

cheers,
Meowie

thank you Vairy for the recipe..I still need the Tylose Powder..so that's the only solution i have in my problem.

Now....I am still WAITING for the response from B-I-Y- its been almost two weeks. I still have not gotten any invoice yet. I am quite frustrated.

But thanks to all suggestions and help..I appreciate it!

Although right now to be honest, nothiing is helping. Am just stuck.

cheers,
Meowie

Did you check out this link?

I think you'll find pharmacy grade glycerin finer grade than any other! Have a read:
http://www.mfcd.net/depot/PROD/glyc.asp

I Live in the caribbean where it is super hot and I have had these same issues. what I found that works for me is the nicholas lodge recipe for gumpaste which will keep my flowers in good shape for up to 2 months before it starts to melt. Michelle Foster's fondant recipe don't work for me in the heat so I use MMF with a bit of glycerine which makes it more pliable. Hope this helps.

hi sorry this is quite a little bit late of a reply. I finally used MMF without glycerin though. It is still pliable but it tends to have some cracks. I finally just received my tylose powder from singapore and I swear would never, ever order from them again.

thank you for the advice, I will definitely look into it.

Cheers!

Meowie

hii....do let us know how it goes with the tylose powder.

Here is a website for MMF without glycerin!

http://whatscookingamerica.net/PegW/Fondant.htm