Fondant Issues!! Please help!
Hi everyone,
I have been doing cakes now for 4 years and LOVE it! I have been using Wilton fondant (I know “gasp” – the horror!!! LOL!!!) But honestly I loved working with it! It was always a little harder in texture to work with but I found that to be helpful – I had very few issues with cracking or cakes being to soft… honestly I thought working with fondant was so easy!
NOW wilton has changed their fondant – great I suppose for some people. Now it tastes a lot better and is much softer (which is handy when you have to work a large amount of fondant).
My problem is that now the fondant is sticky to work with (I have always used shortening before and it worked great) now I have a combination of shortening and cornstarch that I work with…. kind of trial and error right now. I just finished a 3D minion cake (the little guy doing the hula) and I put him in the fridge last night – now he is sweating when I take him out of the fridge. I know that fondant cakes are not supposed to go in the fridge – but I was always able to do this before….. grrrrrrrrr wilton!!!!!!!
My question is to all of you fondant experts out there – if you cover your cake in fondant and leave it out – how do you get your cakes to not go all soft on you? If I had not put this guy in the fridge – his arms would have pulled down the side of the cake, the grass skirt would have ripped and his coconut bra would have pulled down :( He is a raised cake – the dress is actually hanging – it is attached about an 1" up the body.
Is there any fondant that can be refrigerated? Are there any ticks that I can use with my future cakes? Generally I work with buttercream, but sometimes you NEED to use fondant! I am REALLY hating the wilton fondant right now and need some help with how to work around these issues in the humidity or a better fondant to work with.
I have a wedding cake next week that needs to be covered in fondant and I am now worried about using the darn wilton fondant!!!
Any ideas/tips/etc would GREATLY appreciated!!!! Thank you in advance!!!!
7 Replies
As I understand it all fondant goes like that in the fridge but then comes back good after being out a while…I live in the cool UK so can’t advise I’m afraid. Hope someone can help :)
Mel, Yorkshire, http://www.facebook.com/doncastercustomcakery
I put all my cakes covered in fondant in the fridge, some sweating is totally normal, it’s cakes way to adjust to the room temperature… cake dries out with time, just don’t touch it when it has a lot of condensation, because you will leave permanent prints on it….
The other day I saw people posting this tip about a bottle of water, put it in the fridge until it gets totally cold, take it out and check how long time it will take for the bottle to dry (the condensation that builds up on the outside)… that way you will know how long time your cake will need to adjust to the room temperature.
Another trick is to put it in a cardboard box and seal with a plastic bag while it’s in the fridge, when you take it out, take off the bag but leave the cake in the box for a while until it adjusts…..
If you need a quick fix, you can try placing your cake in front of a fan but be careful not to blast it on and ruin your decorations.
Hope this helps, keep us posted :)
Selma S. ~ Little Apple Cakes
I had a similar issue on the “Toilet Paper Roll” cake I made. I used Satin Ice. I usually don’t have problems with it. The humidity was very high here, 94%. My cake sweated terribly. I also had a bubble come up, top dead center, on the front of the cake. It was 2 inches across. This time, the sweat worked for me. It kept the fondant from drying out so I could work the blister flat.
I will be watching this discussion. I also want to know how to keep the fondant cakes from settling after they have been covered with fondant.
Psalm 127:1 Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain.
Mike McCarey told our class to put them in a plastic bag with a pipe cleaner to close it up. It does really help, much like the box/bag suggestion above. It is difficult when there are delicate decorations on the cake. You can chill it for a while and then put in a bag to reduce on the boo boos. We always chill our fondant and deal with the condensation. I will only travel with a cold cake. It’s not the fondant that is giving you the problem, it’s the temperature and humidity. Best of luck!
Jenniffer White, Cup a Dee Cakes - http://cupadeecakes.blogspot.com
Condensation occurs when there is a sudden sharp change in temperature. Therefore, in order to minimize condensation on your refrigerated cakes, ensure that you have a cool air conditioned room to transfer the cake to when it leaves the fridge. An air conditioned room has the added benefit of having drier air than normal (if you live in a place with 90%+ humidity 365 days a year as I do). If you are able to gradually raise the surrounding temperature, you can minimize condensation and in most cases, I can almost eliminate it completely.
Chef Nicky - The White Ombre (Singapore) - http://thewhiteombre.com - http://www.facebook.com/thewhiteombre
I refrigerate all my fondant cake, some with gum paste flowers attached. I always box them, tape the edges (I use painters tape) to seal away the humidity. I leave them in the box for a few hours while they come to room temp. Any condensation goes to the box. I have never had a problem. Hope everything works out for you.
I live in fl eeek for cakes… but I have found that if i let my cake set up and dry out a bit and then put it in the fridge i dont get a hole lot of condensation.
Sammi'sweets
