Problem making Marzipan

[oli]

This is the first time I worked with Marzipan and it was a royal PITA. I am not sure what happened but I have an idea. My problem was in the making of the Princess Cake and laying on the Marzipan layer. I mixed the products up and then rolled it out but it would stick to everything. I would add more conf. sugar in hopes of reducing the stickiness but to no avail., and I even added more almond paste and that too didn't change anything. So with the help of another person and using plastic wrap on the rolling pin, we gingerly flopped it on the cake. This was after 3 hours.

My suspicion is that I may have overworked the dough in the mixer.

Does this formula look okay: 3 C conf sugar, 1 lb. almond paste, 3 T corn syrup, 2-3 T water and 1/4t food coloring?

Any suggestions for the next time?

Thanks

[pastrymama]

When I make marzipan, I never add water. Just the corn syrup.

[oli]

When I make marzipan, I never add water.  Just the corn syrup.

←

Any ideas why it's so sticky? Do you think I overmixed it?

Edited June 9, 2008 by oli (log)

[chefpeon]

First, I don't think the water was needed, so on your next try leave that out.

I'm not really sure if you overworked it on the mixer, but if you did, that is fixable by perhaps

adding more powdered sugar or even cornstarch.

I find that cornstarch does a pretty good job of absorbing excess goo. Also when I roll out marzipan, I use cornstarch as my dusting medium, not powdered sugar. Also remember that marzipan by nature IS somewhat sticky. You need to use a lot of dusting medium on your work surface.....more than you're probably using now.

[oli]

First, I don't think the water was needed, so on your next try leave that out.

I'm not really sure if you overworked it on the mixer, but if you did, that is fixable by perhaps

adding more powdered sugar or even cornstarch.

I find that cornstarch does a pretty good job of absorbing excess goo. Also when I roll out marzipan, I use cornstarch as my dusting medium, not powdered sugar. Also remember that marzipan by nature IS somewhat sticky. You need to use a lot of dusting medium on your work surface.....more than you're probably using now.

←

Thanks, I will remember to try cornstarch next time. When I mixed it in the mixer after adding the conf. sugar, water and colouring, it clung to the blades, making it difficult to remove. I should have stopped at the cookie dough stage and paid attention to just incorporating the ingredients. I did try adding more conf. sugar, but that didn't help. It stuck to my parchment paper, and to my saran wrap it stuck to as well. I remember reading yesterday that if you overwork it, it will become sticky and flaccid, which is exactly how mine felt.

[alanamoana]

any reason why you don't just buy marzipan? the commercial stuff i use isn't very difficult to work with at all.

edited to add: i'm assuming availability is a factor...

Edited June 10, 2008 by alanamoana (log)

[Tiny]

Marzipan is a fat in water emulsion, if it is broken (oily and short) it can be repaired in a food processor (commercial one, home one will burn out) by adding a liquid, preferably a liquor or syrup a very little at a time till it comes back together.

If the mixture is too gooey and soft, it has too much liquid in it and the recipe should be adjusted.

[oli]

any reason why you don't just buy marzipan?  the commercial stuff i use isn't very difficult to work with at all.

edited to add: i'm assuming availability is a factor...

←

The commercial almond paste is much cheaper, about $4/lb, I don't know if can get marzipan commercially and at a good price.

[alanamoana]

any reason why you don't just buy marzipan?  the commercial stuff i use isn't very difficult to work with at all.

edited to add: i'm assuming availability is a factor...

←

The commercial almond paste is much cheaper, about $4/lb, I don't know if can get marzipan commercially and at a good price.

←

i'm not sure where you're getting almond paste for $4/lb, but that is a good price. Pastry Chef Central has both almond paste and marzipan in 7# cans for $42.99...the same price. Of course, you'd have to pay shipping with them. but i feel like the pricing shouldn't be all that different between the two products. especially because marzipan actually has less almond than almond paste.

[Amy Eber]

Break up 1 pound of almond paste and put into mixing bowl. Turn on mixer to chop it up a bit more then add 3 ounces corn syrup and flavoring (no water). When combined, turn off mixer and add 1/2 pound of confectioner's sugar. Mix until roughly combined. Pour another 1/2 pound of conf. sugar onto the counter, dump the almond paste mixture on top and knead together using a pastry scraper. When completely combined, add more corn syrup if too dry and more conf. sugar if too sticky.

This is the first time I worked with Marzipan and it was a royal PITA.  I am not sure what happened but I have an idea.  My problem was in the making of the Princess Cake and laying on the Marzipan layer.  I mixed the products up and then rolled it out but it would stick to everything.  I would add more conf. sugar in hopes of reducing the stickiness but to no avail., and I even added more almond  paste and that too didn't change anything.  So with the help of another person and using plastic wrap on the rolling pin, we gingerly flopped it on the cake. This was after 3 hours.

My suspicion is that I may have overworked the dough in the mixer.

Does this formula look okay: 3 C conf sugar, 1 lb. almond paste, 3 T corn syrup, 2-3 T water and 1/4t food coloring?

Any suggestions for the next time?

Thanks

←

[oli]

any reason why you don't just buy marzipan?  the commercial stuff i use isn't very difficult to work with at all.

edited to add: i'm assuming availability is a factor...

←

The commercial almond paste is much cheaper, about $4/lb, I don't know if can get marzipan commercially and at a good price.

←

i'm not sure where you're getting almond paste for $4/lb, but that is a good price. Pastry Chef Central has both almond paste and marzipan in 7# cans for $42.99...the same price. Of course, you'd have to pay shipping with them. but i feel like the pricing shouldn't be all that different between the two products. especially because marzipan actually has less almond than almond paste.

←

Wow, thats quite a bit more than I paid. I was lucky it was just off the fwy on my way home, so shipping costs for me. If I had to pay 42.99 I think I would do more shopping around.

Edited June 11, 2008 by oli (log)

[McDuff]

1 lb confectionery sugar

1 lb almond paste

4 oz fondant

4 oz glucose

put, in this order, into a bowl, the sugar, paste, fondant and glucose.

mix till combined.

throw onto the bench and knead briefly so it's all one mass.

store in a plastic bag.

this one works.

[reenicake]

too little sugar, too much liquid, and probably overmixed so the oils came out. This would work well as a filling but not as a covering. As pp said, bump up your dry stuff, use only corn syrup, and mix only enough so that it looks like crumb topping. Take fistfuls of the mixture and knead them together until they are uniform in color, then knead the whole mass together. Flatten into a disc and set aside for an hour if it does not feel cool to the touch.

In hot weather or if you have warm hands, put a little cornstarch in a cheesecloth bag and use that like a powder puff to dust your surface with. HTH!

[oli]

Thanks for the help. I really didn't know they is a difference for marzipan as far as a coating and as a filler

Any how, I am grateful for the help and suggestins.

Edited June 12, 2008 by oli (log)