Another Fondant To Test - Dream by Choco-Pan

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My quest for the perfect fondant continues....

I thought I had found the perfect fondant with Via Roma Bakery Fondant, but my last 5lb tub of the stuff was less than perfect (it formed the dreaded elephant skin).  So I'm back on the hunt, searching for the "Perfect Fondant" that is consistently perfect.    Next to be tested is...

Dream Fondant by Choco-Pan

(If you want to read about other fondants I've tested you can checkout the 7 fondant comparison, the Via Roma, the Cake Craft,  the Carma Massa, or the Fat Daddio's comparisons.)

In my non-expert analysis of the fondants I use nine different criteria: Taste, Texture, Rolling, Coverage, Draping/Smoothing, Cutting/Trimming, Drying Time, Tinting, and The Final Look.

Taste - I have to say I was impressed with the taste of this Dream Fondant.  It has a hint of White Chocolate and a touch of vanilla.  The fondant feels creamy in the mouth and dissolves easily on the tongue.  It doesn't feel tough and is not chewy at all.  Dream is more like firm buttercream instead of icky, chew, fondant.  I have to say that Dream is one of the best tasting fondants I have sampled.  (But in my book, Pettinice is still the best tasting.)

Texture -  Out of the pail this Dream Fondant was as hard as a rock, but a few seconds in the microwave had it soft and malleable.  It is very easy to knead and condition, and very easy to fold and stretch.

The photo below show exactly how soft the fondant is.  I had the fondant sitting on a paper towel, and in just a few short minutes the fondant pick up the pattern from the paper.  I didn't press the fondant into the paper, honest I didn't.

The fondant also had this strange paradox of textures.  On the one hand it felt dry and cool to the touch, but it also left a greasy film on my hands. 

And even more contradictions: the Dream Fondant comes out of the pail as hard as a rock, but after warming the fondant is soft to the touch and will stay that way for days.   The fondant feels soft, but strangely, if you don't work quickly it can tear.   And while the fondant is soft and malleable, it is not floppy.  It will hold its shape without bending.  A good analogy for this fondant is modeling clay.   It is soft and workable, but it will hold its shape after it is formed.  So this his Dream Fondant is full of contradiction, but contradictions that (for the most part) all work in the cake maker's favor. 

Rolling - After softening  and working the fondant for a few minutes, I found that it rolled very easily.  I didn't have to use a lot of effort or muscle to flatten it to 1/8".  I did find the bottom of the fondant stuck a little to The Mat, but nothing too bad.  The rolled, outer edges of the fondant also stayed soft and supple and didn't crack.  

Coverage - In all of my fondant comparison I used the same amount of fondant (5 ounces) rolled to the same thickness (1/8") to see how far each brand would spread. At 11-1/2 inches round, this Dream Fondant was one of the best performers (tied with Fondarific and Via Roma). The worst performers, at 9" round, were Duff & Satin Ice. 

Draping/Smoothing - When compared to other fondants, I found the Dream Fondant a little stiffer and more difficult to work with.  When placed over my "dummy" cake it acted more like a piece of aluminum foil rather than a piece of Saran Wrap.  The fondant just didn't want to drape and flow down the sides of the cake.  It was also a little difficult to fluffy out the folds.

And below is something that really surprised me given how the fondant is so soft...  I was in the middle of smoothing the fondant over the dummy cake.  I was taking my time, slowly moving back and forth trying to fluff out the folds, when the fondant start to rip.  Gasp!!  This is a cake maker's worst nightmare.  

I yanked the fondant off, squished it a bit, re-rolled, and started over.  The second attempt was much better.  I worked faster this time, although it still took a lot of time to smooth, fluff, and work out the folds.  I also trimmed off the excess skirt fondant away from the base before I started smoothing.  In the end I finished without creating any tears.  And best of all there was none of that dreamed Elephant Skin, and NO bubbles.  I hate bubbles in my fondant (see the Carma Massa drama).

Cutting/Trimming - The Dream Fondant performed very well at the cutting/trimming stage.  No ragged edges are unsightly pulls.  I have started using these Sugar Smoothers to cut/trim the bottom of the cakes...

But a wheel cutter works just as well.

Drying Time - The Dream Fondant has a slow drying time. I had a small ball of the fondant sitting on the counter for over 30 hours and after all that time it was still soft and moist.  I was able to rework the ball, and roll it out like it had just come out of the pail.

Tinting - After all the problems I had coloring the Carma Massa fondant a pretty mauve color, I started testing the fondants to see how they handle  U.S. Certified Red #3 dye.  The Dream Fondant had no trouble with the Red #3 dye.  The mauve looked pinkish just like it was supposed to look.

Final Look - Well in the end, this Dream covered cake dummy looked pretty damn good.  Not perfect, but pretty close.  The fondant finish was smooth and velvety, and seemed to float above the nooks and crannies of the dummy cake underneath. It really looked good.  About the only negative I could mention is that I found the surface of the fondant to be a little delicate.  Even hours after the fondant is applied, it is very easy to gouge the surface of the fondant with finger tips or other tools.  But on the positive side, the same character that makes the fondant surface easy to gouge also make it easy to buff out the imperfections.

So this Dream Fondant is a real contender for the crown of Perfect Fondant.  Until I find something better, this will probably be my go to fondant. 

Happy Baking (and Decorating),

Carol

  

Harry Potter Lesson Books Cake

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My first Groom’s Cake!!!

Both the bride and groom (close friends of my niece) are big Harry Potter fans, so they requested a Golden Snitch Cake. I didn’t want to do just the snitch, so I decided to build a tower of Harry Potter lesson books with a wand and the golden snitch sitting on top.

(Hey, free cake so I kind-of get to do what I want.)

Not surprising, the snitch was the hardest piece to make. I started with a fondant covered foam ball, and then used various sized fondant ropes (used a clay extruder to form the ropes) to decorate the outer shell.

Next came the wings for the snitch. I rolled out Wilton ready-to-use gumpaste very thin, and then sandwiched a curved metal wire between the upper and lower layer.

I cut out the shape of the wing, and then cut parallel lines through the gumpaste to make the individual feathers of the wing.

As a final step I sprayed (using Wilton's color mist) the wings sliver and the body gold.

The wand came next, and unlike the snitch I was able to whip it out in just with a few minutes of work. I made the wand in three stages, allowing the gumpaste to dry at each stage. First I rolled out a thin log of gumpaste and then inserted a wooden skewer down the center. After the first section dried I built up a second layer near the end of the wand and gave it a little texture to make it look like wood. The third stage was a lumpy wad of gumpaste that I stuck on the end of the wand. I cut deep grooves into the gumpaste, and stuck some wart-like little knobs to make it look like a stick from a tree. As a final step I painted it with some Wilton Black food color and Americolor chocolate brown food color gel.

I finished the snitch and wand a few days before the event so on the day before the wedding I only had to worry about the stack of books.  I didn't need a whole lot of actual cake, so I made the top two books out of foam.  There are lots of detailed instructions on the web on how to construct the closed book cakes so I won't repeat all the steps.  But essentially you cover three sides of the foam with white fondant.  All the instructions I read said to carefully measuring the cake/foam to get a piece of white fondant exactly the right size, but I just got "close" and smeared the extra fondant over the top of the foam.  I used a bit of shortening to stick the fondant to the foam.  To make the "pages" of the book I just ran a scoring tool into the fondant to make parallel lines.  The lines don't have to be exact.  You just want to give the impression of pages.

The books "cover" was the next step. You need to be a more precise when you cut this piece, and I learned the hard way that you also need fondant that is a little stiff.  If your fondant is too soft, it will get pulled out of shape when you try and place it on the cake/foam.  I used my last bit of Carma Messa fondant on the first dummy cake and didn't have any trouble with the fondant pulling out of shape. On the second foam book I used Fondarific, and had so much trouble I almost yanked my hair out in frustration.  The Fondarific was so soft it just wouldn't stay square when I tried to place it on the cake, and the edges that extended beyond the "page" section of the book kept flopping down.  The Fondarific was just too soft to use in this fashion.  In the end I used some tylose gum tex power to stiffen the fondant.  I could get away with this because this fondant was going to cover the foam/dummy cake, and no one was going to eat it. 

The final step in the construction was to cut thin strips that are position around the bottom of the cake to form what looks like the bottom cover of the book.

Other than the Fondaric issue, the foam cakes went together pretty easily.  But I did have some real trouble constructing the book that was actually made out of cake.  I'm not real good at getting my cakes level, so after I putting on the ganache I had to build up the top outer edges with pieces of fondant to get the top somewhat flat and even.  I also couldn't roll out a strip of white fondant that was long enough to cover all three sides, so I just cut three pieces and patched them together.  If you look closely at the edge along the front left side you can see where I overlapped the two pieces. 

And once again I had trouble placing the "cover" on the book.  I was using the Fondarific again because that was all I hand, and again it was just way too soft to hold its shape (and I couldn't add any tylose to this one because people might actually eat the fondant).  It took me three tries to get the top cover on without stretching it out of shape.  I used my SweetWise Pro Mat to help position the cover on top of the cake, and then pull the mat away from the cut edges of the fondant very gently.  I also had the prop the corners up with tooth picks so they wouldn't droop.  In the end the book made out of cake looked a lot more rustic than the books made out of the foam. The foam "cakes" had sharp edges and smooth sides, and the real cake looked a little lumpy.  But remember - free cake.

Final step on the book construction was to add some embellishments to make it look more realistic.  You can't really see in the picture, but I used an impression mat on the dark colored bands to get some texture on the fondant.  I also dusted it with Chef Alan  Tetreault edible gold dust to make it sparkle.  

The three books were then stacked, and the titles added to the book.  On the top book I cut out the letters using my Cricut paper cutting machine, but I wasn't too happy with the look.  The letters were too perfect and precise looking so they didn't match the rest of the book.  But I didn't have time to re-cut them by hand so I had to use the Cricut letters.

I hand lettered the titles along the spine using Wilton edible markers, and the final step to complete the books was dusting them with cocoa power to give everything an aged look.  I added a few extra things here and there like the "HP" logo and the "parchment letter" with the names of the bride and groom and the date.  Funny story but I had a white owl perched on the edge of the book delivering the letter, but the owl look so bad I decided not to use it.

So all-in-all the cake turned out well, and the bride and groom were happy.  But I have come to realize that the hardest part about making an elaborate cake is watching as hours and hours of painstaking work is destroyed in a matter of seconds. 

Happy Decorating,

Carol

Gold Engagement Cake with Peonies – Edible Gold Paint, Gunging and Easy Ruffled Cake Drum

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I’m just a hobby baker, so this 3-tiered cake was one of my most adventurous so far. It doesn’t look very complicated, but I had a few miss-steps and learned some interesting new techniques along the way.

First off the painting of the tiers…

At first I was going to use gold leaf, but after being told that gold leaf wasn't edible I decided to paint on the gold color.  Next obstacle was deciding on what type of color to use. Who knew there were so many options: pearl, luster and disco dust, gels, and airbrush paint. Then the whole edible vs non-toxic issue came up yet again. I didn’t realize that a lot of the accent stuff that is sold for cake decorating is actually not edible. Some dusts are labeled as non-toxic which essentially means it won’t kill you if you eat it, but it is not designed to be consumed.

So after some searching I finally settled on Edible Hybrid Luster Dust by Chef Alan Tetreault. The Chef Tetreault line has lots of gold colors to choose from, and after much thought I finally settled on Soft Gold.  In the end it turned out a little lighter than I was wanted, but I think it still looked okay.

So  to paint on the gold color I mixed the luster dust with vodka to form a thick paste and just started brushing it on.

I wanted the cake to have broad, uneven brush-strokes (like the example the bride-to-be game me), but it didn’t quite come out that way. The paint ended up looking more uniform than I wanted, but it didn’t look too terrible. (Hey the “customer” was getting it for free so she couldn’t complain.) But it still vexes me why I couldn’t get the look I wanted…maybe my paint wasn’t thick enough??? I may try it again on a dummy cake just to see where I went wrong.  I also used this nifty little measuring tool by Wilton to make sure my painted area stayed the same thickness as I went around the cake.  And my Cake Boss Cake Stand/Turntable is so wide and spacious thanks to a gadget by Innovative Sugarworks that expands my turntable to 20".  Don't you just love cake decorating gadgets??!!

The next next new thing I tried was the gumpaste peonies. This was the first time I tried to make realistic looking gumpaste peonies, and they were actually pretty easy to construct. I used a center Styrofoam ball and just glued a bunch of individual peony petals to it. Not hard, but very time consuming. Sorry, I forgot to take pictures as I was making the flowers, but this is the end product.  I also dusted a little of the dry gold luster on the petals to give them some shine.

Next issue was this horrible, yawning gap that showed up after I stacked the cakes.  The example design the  didn’t have a border to hide this kind of flaw, so I was freaking out.  How was I going to hide the huge gap???!!!

But then I remembered a video I saw on the “gunging” technique. In this technique you beat your fondant with milk and vodka until it forms a paste that has the consistency of beaten egg whites. It takes a lot of beating (10-15 minutes), but in the end you get a soft, putty-like mixture that acts like that silicone filler the construction guys use.

You can pipe the gunge into to gaps and then scrape the access off with a straight edge tool. You can also use the gunge to fix nicks and gouges in your fondant. The gunge saved the cake!!

Before:

 And after:

My next dilemma was the unattractive drum at the base of the cake.  My bottom tier was 12 inches and I planned on using a 12 inch drum that would blend into the bottom tier and make it look taller.  Sadly it didn't turn out that way.  In hindsight I realize that I didn't take into account the added thickness from the ganache on the cake, so the cake drum ended up being a 1/2 inch smaller than the tier above it.  Stupid, stupid, me.

You can also see a bit of a bulge on the bottom tier,  Sigh... Nothing I could do about that at this point. The bulge showed up even before I stacked the cakes, so I guess the white cake recipe I used was too fluffy and delicate to handle the weight of three layers plus all the buttercream, ganache, and fondant.

But back to the ugly cake drum problem.  I couldn't fix the bulge, but I could try and fix the base.  I tried a few things: painting it gold, wrapping a gold ribbon around it, adding a ribbon of white fondant, but nothing looked good.  Then I cut out some 1x1 inch squares of fondant and started filling the gap.  I just keep overlapping the squares and working my way around the cake.  And surprise, surprise, it really looked good. They kind-of resembled fancy pleats!  In fact it looked like I had actually planed it!!  I guess necessity really is the mother of invention.

So in the end it, even with my missteps, the cake didn't turn out too bad.   But I really do apologize for the ugly wooden board under the cake.  It was all I had the the house that was large enough to hold the cake.  I was hoping they would have some decorations at the party that I could use to hide the board, but no such luck.  My cake decorating attempts are always filled with misadventures.

Happy Decorating,

Carol

Via Roma - My New Favorite Fondant

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Back in August 2013 I did a big comparison of different fondants to decide which I liked the best.  Sadly there was no clear winner.  The ones that tasted the best were the most difficult to work with, and the ones easy to work with didn't taste so hot.  I was so disappointed that I didn't have a "goto" fondant, that I when a new fondant from Italy hit the US market I jumped at the chance to give it a try.  This new, ready-to-use fondant is called Via Roma Bakery White Roll Fondant. Ta-da....

In my original fondant comparison I used 8 different criteria to judge and rank the fondants.  I will stick with the same 8 criteria in this post. 

Taste ---- Face it -- No fondant taste great, but some are more palatable than others. This Via Roma Bakery tasted okay, but it did have a somewhat rubbery feel in my mouth. It had a pronounced marshmallow flavor that was both mild and agreeable. It didn't taste as good as brands like Pettinice or Choco-Pan, but it tasted much better (IMHO) than some of the other brands like Wilton, Fondx Elite, Fondarific, or Satin Ice.

Texture ---- When you knead the Via Roma it feels very dry in your hands. It is not sticky or tacky at all. It is very soft and does not need to be microwaved or heated to loosen it up. It is amazingly easy to work with.

Rolling ---- It rolled very easily, and I did not need any powdered sugar or corn starch to keep it from sticking to the mat. In fact the Via Roma did not stick at all. No matter how thin I rolled it, it easily lifted from the mat without any sticking, pulling or tearing. The rolled fondant was also very elastic so the edges of the fondant didn't crack as I rolled it out.

Coverage ---- In my fondant comparison I used the same amount of fondant (5 ounces) rolled to the same thickness (1/8") to see how far each brand would spread. At 11+ inches round, this Via Roma fondant was one of the best performers (tied with Fondarific). The worst performers, at 9" round, were Duff & Satin Ice. I was also able to roll the Via Roma to 1/16" which gave me a 13" circle of fondant. (The box says that you can roll the fondant to 1/24", but my rolling pin doesn't have spacers that thin.) So with just 5 ounces of Via Roma fondant you can cover an 8" cake! That is pretty amazing.

Fondant rolled to 1/8"...

Fondant rolled to 1/16".  You can see through the fondant it is so thin.

Draping/Smoothing ---- Because the Via Roma is so soft and elastic it created a lot of folds and drapes when placed on top of the cake. But the folds were very easy to smooth away with a little bit of work. The stretchy, elastic nature of the fondant also made it easy to buff away imperfections. As the Via Roma dried I did notice a bit of “elephant skin” texture forming (Satin Ice does this a lot), but when I smoothed it with my warm hands the skinning went away. Also no air bubbles formed. Yea!

Cutting/Trimming ---- The fondant cuts very cleanly; no ragged edges like you can get with other fondants (Duff).

Drying Time ---- The Via Roma fondant has a slow drying time. I was able to re-roll, position, and smooth the fondant three times without noticing any stiffness or cracking in the fondant. Some fondants I tested would start to dry out while as soon as you start rolling (Wilton). If you need a fondant that never dries out try Fondarific -- this stuff will stay soft for years!

Final Look --- Perfection. I have to say that I was really impressed with the final look of this fondant. The elastic nature of the fondant kept it from drooping into the nooks and crannies of the cake. The fondant almost seemed to float on top of the cake which helped to mask all the imperfections beneath it. Out of all the fondants I’ve tested, I think the Via Roma looks the best. (Followed closely by Elite and Wilton.)

So all-in-all this Via Roma is a great fondant. It is easy to knead, roll, drape, and smooth. The elastic nature of the fondant gives the finished cake a look that is as smooth as glass, and hides most of the cake's little imperfections. The fondant stays soft enough for repeated rollings (important in case you mess up and have to start over), and even when it dries it is still easy to cut. It doesn't taste as good as Pettinice or Choco-Pan, but it is still pretty tasty.

So after all this time I think I have found my "goto" fondant: Via Roma Bakery!

Note: some additional fondant comparisons/reviews are for Cake Craft Fondant and Carma Massa Ticcino .

Note2:  I haven't been pleased with my last two purchases of Via Roma Fondant (there were a little dry and I got the dreaded "elephant skin" texture on my cake), so I'm again on the hunt for the perfect fondant.

Happy Baking (and Decorating),

Carol

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The Mat - Fondant Rolling System - A Review

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I'd been eying “The Mat” by SweetWise for some time now, but I make so few fondant cakes that I couldn’t really justify the expense. What to do? What to do? But then my Wilton mat tore after years of use and abuse, so I took the plunge and bought the Professional Mat.

Oops… should have paid more attention to the size. That thing is huge!!  30 inches doesn’t sound like a lot, but it is almost too big to fit on my round kitchen table. Due to its size it is also a little difficult to handle (especially if you are just rolling out a small amount of fondant). Suggestion #1: If you are a hobby baker, think about the Home version instead of the Professional. The Professional is only a few dollars more than the Home version but sometimes bigger is not always better.

I didn’t have a fondant cake to make so I decided to just do some dummy testing, training and seasoning of my new Mat. But first I watched the video on the Sweet Wise web page (or on YouTube). The Mat itself does not come packaged with instructions, so you MUST watch the video to figure out how to use the dang thing.

The video has lots of tips and tricks, but one of the most important is to get the two vinyl sheets oriented correctly before you start rolling the fondant. Each sheet has a “good” side and a “bad” side. Use the printed instructions on each sheet to get them positioned properly.

The top sheet should point right...

And the bottom sheet should point left...

Next comes the rolling. Easy peasy. The video suggests rolling from the center out instead of all the way across.

Next peel off the top vinyl layer and position the bottom vinyl layer (and rolled out fondant) over the cake.

Release one edged of the fondant from the vinyl and then let the weight of the fondant and gravity pull the rest free.

My first test was with Wilton fondant, and the process worked like a charm. The Wilton fondant released from The Mat and gently rolled onto the “cake”.  Next I tried Satin Ice fondant and it work equally as well.

BUT then I tired the same process with Fondarific fondant. What a disaster.

I had trouble with the Fondarific from step one. While rolling the fondant between the vinyl sheets I noticed lots of pockmarks forming. Next when trying to remove the top sheet, pieces of the Fondarific stuck and formed even bigger pockmarks. Then, like the top sheet, the fondant would not release from the bottom sheet.

I had to pull it loose and I ended up with a huge mess.

But I gave it another try. This time I dusted The Mat with cornstarch and then re-rolled the Fondarific fondant.

It worked a little better, but it still took some effort and consequently the fondant was a little stretched. The pockmarks were also still visible even using the corn strach.

I went online and found that other people were having the same problems. It seems like the “stickier” fondants don’t work as well with The Mat. They seem to, well… stick.

Other reviewer suggested using a little Crisco on The Mat, but I rejected that idea because I didn’t want to have to clean (with soap and water) that monster again. When I first got The Mat I tried to wash it in the sink. What a mess. Water went everywhere, including down the front of my pants. That thing was just too big to wrestle into my kitchen sink.

So what is my final opinion of The Mat?

Well it is GREAT as long as you use the right fondant.

With the right fondant The Mat makes the rolling, positioning, and final placement of the fondant super easy. It keeps the fondant from drying out during the rolling process, and the size guide printed on the vinyl makes rolling out the correct size a snap.

BUT the key to The Mat’s success is using the correct fondant. The dryer fondant like Wilton, Satin Ice, Fondx, etc will work well, but the stickier fondants like Fondarific, Duff, and MMF might give you some problems.

So keep your preferred fondant in mind when considering a purchase of The SweetWise Mat.

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