Does anyone else out there share the dreaded 'cracks-in-the-fondant' problem? This has been happening to me A LOT lately, and it is super frustrating! As I'm still a beginner, I only make about 3 or 4 cakes a month with fondant. I've been buying the Wilton brand of boxed fondant at either Michael's, A.C. Moore, or Walmart. Sometimes when I buy it it's very smooth and I have very little trouble. But more times than not, when I open it up it's very hard, especially around the edges. I can usually tell immediately after opening it how the fondant is going to turn out. Does anyone have suggestions as to how to deal with this? Should I make my own, buy a different brand, etc.? I pay $20 for a 5 lb. box of fondant, so I think it should have great quality!! Thank you for listening.

Try making Marshmallow fondant or buying Satin Ice. I realized this weekend just how easy it is to make the MMF in my Kitchen Aid, I'll never purchase fondant again.

I had some problems with cracking this weekend too, but I had never had problems before. I think though it happens to the best of us. I saw on Ace of Cakes that Duff had to fix a cake that cracked because his dowel (actually it was a straw) wasnt long enough and the weight of the cake made it crack. It was able to use a little royal icing as a caulk and then cover it up.

Keep your head up.

I would definately buy another brand or make my own as Wilton is the worst tasting stuff in the world. I've tried them all including home made MMF and the best tasting I've found is choco pan. It's pricy but it's worth every penny.

You can try a little Crisco lightly rubbed onto the cracks - unless they are too big. The Crisco will dry and not be noticeable.

Favorite fondants: FondX, Pettinice and Satin Ice.

Buy another brand. Wilton is the worst thing.
For the crack just work with a little bit of crisco.
Try making MMF, it tastes really god and is easy to make.

Thank you so much, cake buddies!! I'm glad to know that there is hope for me covering my cakes in fondant, and that it's not just me. I've tried MMF once, and I liked the taste of it much better than the Wilton, but I had some problems with the thickness of it. It didn't want to stick to the bottom sides of the cake. I'll try it again, but I am going to try one of the brands that were suggested also to see which one I like the best. Thank you again for your wisdom!!!