HISTORY OF FONDANT

ASSALAMMUALAIKUM

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Did you know about a fondant?... what is fondant?.. read this if you want to know.. just silent and read. okay

History of fondant

·         Invented in the 16th century, fondant has long been renowned as a frosting for its versatility and pliability. Unlike other frostings, fondant may be stored for long periods of time. Its texture lends itself easily to molding and shaping. Cake makers prefer to use fondant as a base frosting for any elaborately decorated cakes, such as wedding cakes, as it provides a smooth foundation on which to build. Today, bakers usually combine fondant frosting with piped frostings and other decorations, using royal icing to "glue" fondant into the shapes they desire.

Origin

·         Early fondants were made with rosewater, sugar, lemon juice, egg white and gum paste. Fondant gains its pliability from its chemical composition -- unlike other types of frosting, it is basically a sugar-water paste and contains no butter. The word "fondant" comes from the French word "fondre," which means "to melt." Likely this term was applied because fondant tends to melt in the mouth.

·         Early fondants first found popularity as candies, only later being adapted into a cake icing. Fondant icing did not achieve much popularity until the early 20th century, perhaps due to the prohibitively high cost of white sugar before that time.

Early Uses

·         Unlike modern fondant icings, early fondant was not chilled and then applied to cakes. Rather, small cakes were dipped in warm fondant and allowed to set. Because fondant icing has such a strong, sugary taste, flavorings were often added it.

These included chocolate, almond extract and citric acid. Some bakers also would ameliorate the sugary taste of fondant by beating marshmallows or other types of frosting into it. Small fondant-dipped cakes were sometimes used to decorate larger cakes.

there are type of fondant

Poured fondant

is a creamy confection used as a filling or coating for cakes, pastries, and candies or sweets. Its simplest form, it is sugar and water cooked to the soft-ball stage, cooled slightly, and stirred or beaten until it is creamy consistency. Sometimes lemon or vanilla is added to the mixture, mainly for taste. Other flavorings are used as well, as are various colorings.

Rolled fondant

 fondant icing, which is not the same material as poured fondant, is commonly used to decorate wedding cakes. Although wedding cakes are traditionally made with marzipan and royal icing, fondant is increasingly common due to nut allergies as it does not require almond meal.

It includes gelatin (or agar in vegetarian recipes) and food-grade glycerine, which keeps the sugar pliable and creates a dough-like consistency. It can also be made using powdered sugar and melted marshmallows.

 Rolled fondant is rolled out like a pie crust and used to cover the cake. Commercial shelf-stable rolled fondant often consists principally of sugar and hydrogenated oil. However, different formulations for commercial shelf-stable fondant are available and include more natural combinations such as sugar, cellulose gum and water.

Sculpting Fondant, is similar to rolled fondant with a stiffer consistency, because of its consistency it is used to sculpt objects,

What Are the Different Types of Fondant: 

Tips

Although you've figured out what are the different types of fondant, you still may not feel confident working with them all. Try out different recipes before you find one that works the best in your kitchen and tastes the best on your cakes. Other tips for working with the various types of fondant include:

• Store the fondant frostings in a cool but dry place in an airtight container.
• The refrigerator is usually not an ideal storage area, as condensation can occur, making fondant soft.
• Rolled fondant usually has a buttercream crumb coat beneath it. Buttercream melts in high humidity and high temperatures, which can cause fondant to droop or sag.
• Use a thinned fondant adhesive to put figures together or attach flowers to cakes. The adhesive is edible, making it safe for using directly on your cake.
• Pick up some ready-made fondant from craft stores, kitchen supply stores or cake decorating stores if you do not have time to make your own.
• Flavor and tint fondants before you place them on your cakes.

Fondant cake decorating produces stunning, professional results. Although it may seem like an intimidating frosting to work with, it simply takes practice, like any other decorating skill. Trial and error will result in finding the best recipes and tricks for making fondant work on your cake. Practice making fondant frosting and soon your cakes will look like they came straight from a celebrity chef's bakery.

Fondant tool

To decide what kind of tools would best serve your cake decorating needs, it's a good idea to think about your style and the way you prefer to decorate. If you most often use buttercream frosting for your cakes and you only use fondant occasionally, you may want to consider borrowing a friend's tools or purchasing just a few. You can learn a lot about working with the icing if you're just a beginner by spending that time hand-cutting designs and doing imprints by yourself. Then, when your skills are more advanced, you'll be able to do more with the tools you do buy.

Cutters

Fondant flower cutters and other shape cutters are very similar to cookie cutters and are used in the same way.

1. Sprinkle a flat work surface and a rolling pin with cornstarch or confectioners' sugar.
2. Roll out the fondant evenly, to your preferred thickness, ideally no thinner than 1/8 inch.
3. Press the fondant cutters firmly into the rolled fondant, then use a flat spatula to dig under the edges of the designs until you can pull them free of the work surface.

flower cutter

Imprints

Imprint mats are smooth, pliable mats with designs and pattern that can be gently pressed onto rolled fondant to create an imprint.

1. When the fondant is rolled out to your preferred thickness, use a flat spatula to loosen its edges.
2. Pull up the entire sheet of fondant and press it gently over the imprint mat.
3. Peel back the sheet of fondant and use it to decorate as normal.

imprint for fondant

another shape from rolling pin

Forming Cups

With a curved shape, these forming cups are ideal for rounding flowers or other smooth shapes. Let cutouts dry in the forming cups before you place them on the cake, and they'll keep a gentle curved position.

1. Gently press already-cut fondant flowers into the forming cups.
2. Let them dry. If necessary, use the holes in the forming cups to tweak the curve of the shapes

forming cup..

fondant show.credit by youtube.