I was just told by a local cake shop that gumpaste is not ediable. I always thought that it was ediable but just not very nice tasting.

I just delivered a cake yesterday and they ate the gumpaste bow.

Why use gumpaste if you can't eat it?

Anyones thoughts?

technically gumpaste is edible....

but then so is paper with which it shares it's taste.

ICK!

Hmmm...on second thought, paper does taste better.

Royal Icing is also edible, and I bet you've had it at least once.

Remember those colored dots of candy that cake on a long paper tape like adding machine tape?

those were royal icing.

and remember the taste of them mixed with the little bit of paper that always pulled off?

well, that's way tastier than gumpaste.

gumpaste doesn't really have a "taste" unless you add flavoring to it.

and the stiffening ingredients in gumpaste are also found in denture adhesive.

so, the kids will eat it (but then they'll eat everything except what's good for them).

but most adults will just go ICK.

I had the same question about gum paste when I started. It was explained to me that, "Gum paste is edible, but you don't want to eat it."

I like to use it for flowers for toppers, because it looks more delicate than fondant. Also, if it doesn't get icing on it, can be saved by the person who gets the cake. (At least for awhile. I've heard w/ high humidity this may not work, although I haven't had problems--yet.)

I put a little flavoring in my RI to make it taste a little better. If used on BC, it softens a little. (The complaint I usually get w/ RI is that the flowers are so hard.)

That's why I don't make gumpaste stuff... And if I make royal icing stuff, I warn about how hard it may be, and I'm not responsible if they chip a tooth...LOL...
All the daisies on my daughter's wedding cake in my photos were royal icing... and I had the cake cutter take them all off before serving the cake..didn't want to take the chance of someone breaking a tooth... I made them months ahead of the wedding and they were rock hard..
Some of them that were touching the BC softened up...but I still didn't want to take the chance..
I've never bothered to use gumpaste...But I do love the results of the flowers they get with it...Very beautiful...But!!!! I'll stick to what I use..

Gumpaste is edible, until you add wires or other things to it. When you make flowers with wires or stamens then you really don't want anyone eating it.

Royal icing is the same way. When I teach C3 and we do the Easter Lily and Petunia I always remind my students that Royal is edible, but once you add the stamens you want to make sure that they don't get eaten.