About Marshmallow Fondant

Decorating By monogatari Updated 27 Apr 2014 , 4:53am by mattyeatscakes

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monogatari Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 7:36pm
post #1 of 16

I recently made a thread in Cake Decorating and received no replies. Maybe I posted in the wrong place, or maybe it's just too long. But anyway, I have a few question about Marshmallow Fondant :)

 

1. I don't have any stand mixer. Is it still possible to make MMF from scratch? How about gumpaste? Or do you think for gumpaste it's better to buy a premade one? (to make figurines or cake topper)

 

2. Is there a specific kind of marshmallows I should use? I read once that kraft or Jet puffed marshmallows won't work, but I only read it in one recipe. No other recipe mentions it.

 

3. If the MMF is going to be draped over some dummy cake, can I leave it out in room temperature or is it going to sag? I heard MMF won't harden over time... but I'm not sure.

 

What I'm trying to do:

Basically I'm trying to make a 3 tier cake, but the bottom 2 tier is going to be dummy cake covered with fondant and decorated (basically a glorified cake stand). The top cake is going to be the real cake, about 5" round. 

 
I'm taking this to a wedding venue in which I'm not sure what's the status of refrigeration there. I'm thinking of making the dummy cakes one week ahead of time to avoid any mishaps.
 
Should I just use store bought fondant? I heard they don't taste very good, but the bottom two tiers are not gonna be eaten anyway. 

 

4. How far ahead can I make MMF decoration or figurines?

 

5. Can I store MMF in room temperature if it's not covered? Let's say it's draped over something non perishable, like a dummy cake. Is the same rule still apply? (wrap it in shrink wrap twice)

 

Thank you!

15 replies
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MBalaska Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 8:01pm
post #2 of 16

are you new to the CC forum?

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monogatari Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 8:28pm
post #3 of 16

Quote:

Originally Posted by MBalaska 
 

are you new to the CC forum?

 

Yes I am. It's probably obvious from my post count and the fact that I suspect I did a major CC forum faux pas?

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CMLayton Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 8:34pm
post #4 of 16

A1. You can mix mmf by hand. That's the only way I do it. I do however buy my gumpaste. Just easier for me! 2.For marshmallows I use the Walmart brand and have zero problems. 3. It is fine to leave room temp but make sure it isn't too humid. 4. You can make the figures way in advance. I usually do a week ahead of time. 5. You can leave it out but it will harden some.

Hope that helps!

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MBalaska Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 8:42pm
post #5 of 16

You didn't do anything other than ask questions....... more likely there are hundreds of previous threads that answer all of your questions that you could read after a search, or the MMF users are busy or something.

 

http://cakecentral.com/t/763494/making-bc-and-fondant-by-hand

 

http://cakecentral.com/t/763933/mmf

 

http://cakecentral.com/newsearch?search=marshmallow+fondant&=Search

 

a lot of your questions can be answered by "search" and a few minutes of reading.  The good part of spending time on searching is that you find out an abundance of other very helpful information, and tips that you had never thought of and will enjoy for a long time to come.

 

I've made MMF, one of the cakes in my default is covered in MMF however I prefer a water version of the glucose-glycerne MFF.   so I'm really not much help here.

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jennicake Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 9:09pm
post #6 of 16

Quote:

Originally Posted by monogatari 
 

I recently made a thread in Cake Decorating and received no replies. Maybe I posted in the wrong place, or maybe it's just too long. But anyway, I have a few question about Marshmallow Fondant :)

 

1. I don't have any stand mixer. Is it still possible to make MMF from scratch? How about gumpaste? Or do you think for gumpaste it's better to buy a premade one? (to make figurines or cake topper)

 

2. Is there a specific kind of marshmallows I should use? I read once that kraft or Jet puffed marshmallows won't work, but I only read it in one recipe. No other recipe mentions it.

 

3. If the MMF is going to be draped over some dummy cake, can I leave it out in room temperature or is it going to sag? I heard MMF won't harden over time... but I'm not sure.

 

What I'm trying to do:

Basically I'm trying to make a 3 tier cake, but the bottom 2 tier is going to be dummy cake covered with fondant and decorated (basically a glorified cake stand). The top cake is going to be the real cake, about 5" round. 

 
I'm taking this to a wedding venue in which I'm not sure what's the status of refrigeration there. I'm thinking of making the dummy cakes one week ahead of time to avoid any mishaps.
 
Should I just use store bought fondant? I heard they don't taste very good, but the bottom two tiers are not gonna be eaten anyway. 

 

4. How far ahead can I make MMF decoration or figurines?

 

5. Can I store MMF in room temperature if it's not covered? Let's say it's draped over something non perishable, like a dummy cake. Is the same rule still apply? (wrap it in shrink wrap twice)

 

Thank you!

1.  Yup, you can make without a mixer.  I think most people do!  Buy gumpaste though, thats not as easy to make.

 

2.  I've used Kraft and Wal-mart brand with no problems.  Just make sure they are still "fresh" and soft.  Old ones wont work as well.

 

3.  It doesn't harden as much as regular fondant, but it will still firm up a little bit.  If its on the cake and not too thick, it shouldn't sag though.  

 

Can't help you with the last two questions, but it looks like someone else has answered those too.  

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monogatari Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 9:50pm
post #7 of 16

Quote:

Originally Posted by MBalaska 
 

You didn't do anything other than ask questions....... more likely there are hundreds of previous threads that answer all of your questions that you could read after a search, or the MMF users are busy or something.

 

http://cakecentral.com/t/763494/making-bc-and-fondant-by-hand

 

http://cakecentral.com/t/763933/mmf

 

http://cakecentral.com/newsearch?search=marshmallow+fondant&=Search

 

a lot of your questions can be answered by "search" and a few minutes of reading.  The good part of spending time on searching is that you find out an abundance of other very helpful information, and tips that you had never thought of and will enjoy for a long time to come.

 

I've made MMF, one of the cakes in my default is covered in MMF however I prefer a water version of the glucose-glycerne MFF.   so I'm really not much help here.

 

Thanks, and sorry about that! In my first thread I thought I rambled too long on what I'm trying to do, and that's the reason people don't really have any reply for me. So I made this thread succinct and to the point, maybe I sounded too demanding in my post. I did find the answer for the first question after a google search but I didn't edit the thread thinking that I won't get answers anyway. Sorry about that. 

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by CMLayton 

1. You can mix mmf by hand. That's the only way I do it. I do however buy my gumpaste. Just easier for me!
2.For marshmallows I use the Walmart brand and have zero problems.
3. It is fine to leave room temp but make sure it isn't too humid.
4. You can make the figures way in advance. I usually do a week ahead of time.
5. You can leave it out but it will harden some.

Hope that helps!

 

Thank you! That was very helpful. This is going to be my second cake ever (and a wedding cake. No pressure here) Thanks for your help :)

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by jennicake 
 

1.  Yup, you can make without a mixer.  I think most people do!  Buy gumpaste though, thats not as easy to make.

 

2.  I've used Kraft and Wal-mart brand with no problems.  Just make sure they are still "fresh" and soft.  Old ones wont work as well.

 

3.  It doesn't harden as much as regular fondant, but it will still firm up a little bit.  If its on the cake and not too thick, it shouldn't sag though.  

 

Can't help you with the last two questions, but it looks like someone else has answered those too.  

 

Thank you for the heads up! I'm glad I came here before I spend hours ripping my hairs off trying to figure out gumpaste. :)

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LizzieAylett Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 10:03pm
post #8 of 16

To chip in my tuppence-worth, if you are thinking of using store bought fondant for the bottom two tiers and home-made for the top, then be aware of the potential for differences in colour, texture and finish between the two.  It may work with your design, or it may look rather odd.

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monogatari Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 10:25pm
post #9 of 16

Quote:

Originally Posted by LizzieAylett 
 

To chip in my tuppence-worth, if you are thinking of using store bought fondant for the bottom two tiers and home-made for the top, then be aware of the potential for differences in colour, texture and finish between the two.  It may work with your design, or it may look rather odd.

 

I did not think about that at all :-o Thanks for the tip! I still need to discuss with the bride about the design (she contacted me just now, one week before the wedding. How about that) but maybe I can mask the differences in color. Otherwise, I think I better have them all uniform. 

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virago Posted 24 Apr 2014 , 10:32pm
post #10 of 16

Quote:

Originally Posted by CMLayton 

1. You can mix mmf by hand. That's the only way I do it. I do however buy my gumpaste. Just easier for me!
2.For marshmallows I use the Walmart brand and have zero problems.
3. It is fine to leave room temp but make sure it isn't too humid.
4. You can make the figures way in advance. I usually do a week ahead of time.
5. You can leave it out but it will harden some.

Hope that helps!

 

everything @CMLayton says, plus...

 

1. here's a good recipe for MMF, http://sugarsweetcakesandtreats.com/2010/09/recipe-marshmallow-fondant-mmf.html

2. I use Campfire marshmallows.

4. I usually add tylose to MMF for my figurines. FYI...the figurines I made at Halloween and Christmas last year are still perfectly preserved, although I would not recommend making figurines that far in advance.

 

HTH

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mattyeatscakes Posted 25 Apr 2014 , 2:07am
post #11 of 16

AAlso if you're making homemade MMF, make and colour it atleast a day ahead to let it "rest". Or else it'll be too sticky or stretchy to work with. Good luck :)

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drea88 Posted 25 Apr 2014 , 4:23am
post #12 of 16

AI have never used a stand mixer to make MMF, and I always use Kraft jet puffed marshmallows (since the blog I originally used to learn to make MMF specifically said to use that brand). I have some pinecones that I made last fall still sitting around in a box. They seem fine, although I probably wouldn't use them on anything I was going to eat (I just keep them around in case I want to use them on a practice cake).

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monogatari Posted 25 Apr 2014 , 6:29am
post #13 of 16

Quote:

Originally Posted by virago 
 

 

everything @CMLayton says, plus...

 

1. here's a good recipe for MMF, http://sugarsweetcakesandtreats.com/2010/09/recipe-marshmallow-fondant-mmf.html

2. I use Campfire marshmallows.

4. I usually add tylose to MMF for my figurines. FYI...the figurines I made at Halloween and Christmas last year are still perfectly preserved, although I would not recommend making figurines that far in advance.

 

HTH

 

Thank you for the recipe! I'll be sure to hunt for tylose too just in case I can't find any gum paste. 

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by mattyeatscakes 

Also if you're making homemade MMF, make and colour it atleast a day ahead to let it "rest". Or else it'll be too sticky or stretchy to work with. Good luck icon_smile.gif

 

Great advice! I'll make it a few days before to avoid surprises. Let's say I'm trying to put it on the cake on Saturday, do I make the MMF on Friday and then roll and drape it on Saturday? And then do I have to let the MMF dry on the cake before I attempt to put decorations on it or transfer it?

 

How do I let it rest? Just wrap it twice in shrink wrap and put it in a ziplock bag overnight? 

 

Thank you! I'm a beginner at this and I'm still confused about a lot of things...

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by drea88 

I have never used a stand mixer to make MMF, and I always use Kraft jet puffed marshmallows (since the blog I originally used to learn to make MMF specifically said to use that brand). I have some pinecones that I made last fall still sitting around in a box. They seem fine, although I probably wouldn't use them on anything I was going to eat (I just keep them around in case I want to use them on a practice cake).

 

That's good to know :) I'll make the decorations this weekend. 

 

The cake the bride decided on is something like this http://www.pinterest.com/pin/105482816247395947/ which seems doable enough...

 

The groom wants a freestanding tree but honestly I don't think I'm skillful enough to pull that off. Better safe than sorry...

 

But now they want strawberry filling :T And now I'm reading all sorts of horror stories about refrigerated MMF covered cake...

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LizzieAylett Posted 25 Apr 2014 , 6:51am
post #14 of 16

Are they wanting it in that vivid red?  If so, be warned that it is very tricky to get home-made fondant with that depth of colour (some of you experts out there may disagree...).  Given the fact that the wedding is only a week away, I would recommend you go with pre-made, pre-coloured fondant.  It won't taste as nice, but you can add extract flavourings to help with that.

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monogatari Posted 25 Apr 2014 , 7:11am
post #15 of 16

Quote:

Originally Posted by LizzieAylett 
 

Are they wanting it in that vivid red?  If so, be warned that it is very tricky to get home-made fondant with that depth of colour (some of you experts out there may disagree...).  Given the fact that the wedding is only a week away, I would recommend you go with pre-made, pre-coloured fondant.  It won't taste as nice, but you can add extract flavourings to help with that.

 

No, she wants it in white (phew!) with the flowers in a kind of tiffany blue color.

 

But I think she wants a cherry blossom tree branches in black, so I should probably get a black pre-colored fondant since I heard getting a black fondant is really hard.

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mattyeatscakes Posted 27 Apr 2014 , 4:53am
post #16 of 16

AYes, make the fodant Friday the latest and decorate on saturday. By rest, yes, i meant to store your fondant in cling wrap. Rub a little shortening to the fondant before covering with cling wrap to avoid drying out.

You don't have to wait for the fondant to dry to add the decorations. You can add them right away. Good luck! :)

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