How long can I make fondant and/or gumpaste decorations ahead of time? My daughter's baby shower is on a Saturday. I know I can't freeze fondant or it gets sticky-I think. So I know I willhave to put the fondant on the morning of the shower-but since it is at 1:00pm - and there is NO WAY I can cut everything out as well as doing the fondant that same day. So how many days in advance do you think I will be safe cutting out all the decorations? Also-what is the best way to store them?

The only problem with cutting out shapes before the day of is that they begin to dry out. Now this is fine if you don't mind hard decorations but if you want them to be edible then you want to do it as close as you can. The day before should be ok but I wouldn't make them further ahead than that unless you want them to harden up.

Conversely, if you want them hard as a rock then you will need to let them dry about a week or two or add in tylose or gumpaste to make them harden up faster.

Cat

Thank you Cat! I was worried about getting everything done the day of-impossible for me. I will just make them up the day before-should I just let them sit on parchment paper on cookie sheets or do they need to be covered? ALso--is it better to use gumpaste or fondant?

I'm planning on putting fondant cut outs on cookies right out of the oven, how far ahead can I cut them out?

Thank you.

Gumpaste doesn't taste all that great so I'd stick to plain fondant as long as you don't need them rock hard. If you do need them hard then mixing with gumpaste or making them out of gumpaste will help.

Cat

I would stick to fondant if someone might be eating them. Sure you can make them ahead of time. If you want them hard, just leave them out. You might want to store in a dark place so the colors don't get altered.

Jennifer

Fondant lasts for AGES, in fact it takes days to firm up, doing it the day of the event would mean they might be too soft. Never worked with gumpaste though, and I hear it's not nice to eat. I have added some tylose to my fondant, and that is wonderful, makes it much easier to work with, sets a bit firmer, and still tastes good.

I have a huge pile of cupcake toppers (made of fondant) that I've been doing over the last couple of months. They're still good! Also the shops here sell them, they sit on their shelves for ages with no problem. And the book I just read on cupcake toppers said you can store them for months, so I think you'll be fine!

Thank you zespri!

Quick question, what kind of fondant do you recommend? And if anyone makes there own what is the recipe? Thank you.

Where I live petticine is the only kind available, sorry, I guess that's not much help!