If you give your next cake covering a smooth, clean finish, it will look professional. Providing a few rules are followed, it is quite easy to make. Here are my top recommendations (could there be any more T words?) for making a wonderful smooth cake.
Locate a fondant that works for you.
There are various brands to pick from, and each performs differently. There are also brands that dry out very quickly; some crack more than others, and some are quite sticky. Goldilocks was right when he said that you have to find the right one for you. You can generally purchase little amounts of fondant to get a feel for it. If you are a member of a sugar craft guild, chat with other members to acquire suggestions and guidance. Most users are eager to share their thoughts, as we all do, which is why this page exists.
Begin with a clean workspace.
When you work, if you’re anything like me, you’ll produce the sugar equivalent of a volcanic explosion. Fondant is prone to attracting dust and particles. If you roll out your fondant and adhere it well to your marzipan, then there shouldn’t be a lump that needs to be taken out afterwards.
Place a layer of marzipan on top of the fondant.
If you or your recipient dislikes marzipan (as some people do), replace it with fondant. The purpose of this marzipan layer is to offer a sugar coating that will improve the final covering. Allow at least 12 hours for the marzipan layer to solidify and offer an excellent foundation for your final fondant coating. Leaving out the undercoat will leave you with something that looks like a kids’ cake from a budget supermarket. These are good for youngsters who simply want to eat cake, but not for your lovely celebration cake.
Make your fondant.
Prior to coating your cake in bakery boxes with window, knead your fondant. The quantity of kneading will depend on factors such as temperature; in the midst of summer, the fondant will likely be rather soft and may not need much kneading. If you don’t need your fondant well enough, you’ll get a minor workout while rolling it. As soon as the fondant has softened, place it in a tightly sealed container until needed.
Sherry-brush your marzipan
It is the point when you should have your marzipan cake on the cake board. One of my pet peeves is when individuals labor so hard to construct a cake that they are extremely proud of, only to showcase it on an exposed silver cake board. It takes around 15 minutes to cover a cake board with fondant, and you may prepare it ahead of time to allow it time to firm before putting the cake on. You may color coordinate it with your cake to give it a more professional appearance. Okay, my rant is finished.
Coat your cake using a no-lose black paintbrush. This way, if any of the hairs fall out, you’ll be able to see them and remove them simply. My brushes have never shed a hair in all the years I have had them. Brush the sherry over the marzipan sparingly yet thoroughly. If you wet the brush, it will drop down and darken the fondant on the board. Upon applying the fondant, it will pool at the cake’s base, as well as bubble out. Marzipan and fondant will create air bubbles if you fail to properly cover the cake. Rosewater or boiling water might be substituted with alcohol.
Unroll your fondant.
This should be done on a clean and dry surface. For this, I use a nonstick cutting craft mat. These may be purchased at art and craft stores as well as haberdashery stores. Alternatively, you may roll out directly onto a clean work surface. Use white fat when making fondant sticks—the word little is what you need to know. Using too much fondant will cause you and your fondant to slide around the worktop. To determine the size of your fondant piece, use your rolling pin as a reference.
As you roll out the cake available in Bakery boxes, use your thumb to guide you. Once you’ve laid out the entire length on the pin, you’ll know how broad and deep to roll the fondant. You must ensure that the rolled fondant includes this size, for example, if the size of the top and sides of the cake are equal to half the length of the rolling pin. Phew! I hope that was clear. The thickness of your rolled fondant should be around 0.5 cm. To achieve consistent thickness, you may purchase spacers to put around your fondant. Alternatively, you might rely on your own judgement and obtain an even coating without paying any money.
Roll the fondant onto the cake.
You should put the rolling pin on the furthest edge of the fondant away from you. Let the fondant cover the top as you roll it back towards you. When you roll the pin back, make sure the fondant overlaps a lot to prevent the fondant from sticking to it. When you pick up your fondant, you’ll know if you have enough overlap. You will lose a lot of flour if you don’t do that. Perhaps you can stop it from attaching to itself if you’re lucky. But if not, you may curse briefly before restarting.
Cover the cake with fondant.
You must ensure that the cake is close to the fondant rolled before you raise it. If not, it will need to be moved a considerable distance. The bottom border should align with the side of the cake when lifted with the rolling pin. Allow for slightly additional fondant at the cake’s foundation. Over the top of the cake, lower the fondant working away from you. If there are any air bubbles between the two layers, release them with your fingertips when you drop the fondant onto the marzipan. Smooth off any rough edges and dents. Press the fondant onto the marzipan on the sides of the cake with your palms once the top of the cake is smooth. Smooth the fondant along the edge of the cake, removing air bubbles as you go.
