Nothing beats a freshly baked piece of cake. We all have our own favorites but there’s no denying how fun and therapeutic it can be to bake something at home. Still, anyone who has ever been to a professional bakery knows that there’s a wide range when it comes to decorating baked goods. Many amateur bakers may be pretty good with a piping bag and a frosting spoon, but there’s always room to improve. The most intricate baked creations typically use fondant to decorate their cakes and cookies—so isn’t it time we learned an easy way to do the same thing at home?
Typically we think of fondant as some strange that that only the professionals use. In truth, you can actually make it right at home with some marshmallows, a microwave and a little bit of patience. It’s super easy to work with and actually ends up tasting better than professional fondant! Let’s get started.
Here’s what you need:
- 1 16-ounce bag of mini marshmallows
- 1/4 cup of water
- 1/4 cup of butter
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 2 pounds of confectioner’s sugar, divided
- food dye
Here’s what you do:
1. First, put your butter in a shallow bowl and set it to the side. After that, open your bag of marshmallows, pour them into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave them on high for 30 seconds to a minute to melt them down.
2. Next, pour in your water and vanilla extract and stir the entire mixture until it’s all even and smooth. Once it’s smooth, pour in half of your powdered sugar one cup at a time (be sure to keep one half of the confectioner’s sugar for later). Once everything is well-combined it should result in a fairly stiff dough.
3. After that, rub your hands with the butter from before and begin to knead the sticky dough you’ve made until it gets softer and more pliable. Dust a surface with the remaining sugar and keep kneading the fondant until its completely smooth and stops being sticky. All told, this process should take five to 10 minutes.
4. Once that’s done, roll your fondant into a ball, wrap it up tightly in some plastic and refrigerate it overnight. When you’re ready to use it, take it out and let it come back to room temperature. Once again, roll it out onto a surface dusted with sugar and then cut and form it as you see fit. You can also cut your dough into thirds and use a drop or two of food coloring on each chunk to make it all different colors.
As you can see, making this tasty topping couldn’t be easier. It’s cheap to make, delicious and incredibly easy to work with. Although you can cut fondant into strips and ribbons to make cakes look like they’re wrapped in bows, there’s virtually no end to the designs you can make. For those who really want to step their cupcakes up a notch, why not use the fondant to make little petals that you can form into decorative flowers? The choice is yours… happy decorating!
Have you tried this recipe out for yourself? Let us know what you think in the comments area below.
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