Stretchy fondant

[CurlySue]

I normally buy SatinIce fondant and really love it. I ran out, I don't have time to buy it and get it in time for an order I have this weekend. I can live without it (do buttercream instead) but would like to try and make some instead. I tried a batch yesterday, the recipe from Scott Wooley's book, and although it tastes great, it doesn't stretch worth a darn. This has always been my problem with homemade fondant, tastes great but doesn't work. I require stretch and lots of it because I am fondant challenged.

What in the ingredients provides the stretch? I don't see anything other than the gelatin that might make this product stretchy, hence my problems (I'm assuming) with no stretch.

Does anyone have a surefire recipe I can use that will make STRETCHY fondant? And yes, I know fondant is the devil, but it makes lovely dresses on doll cakes!

[K8memphis]

I just use two parts marshmallow fondant to one part candy clay. You need the recipes?? It's nice and stretchy and forgiving too. Easy to work with. Tastes great. Crusts later rather than sooner but stays put too.

But I mean I'm sure you'll get some great recipes. That's just what I use & like.

[CurlySue]

Yeah, I've had a couple people mention the marshmallow fondant now and I would really prefer not to go that route. I don't want to have to keep a special ingredient on hand (like marshmallows) just to make this. I normallly have all the other ingredients for a normal fondant recipe available. Also, I've made the MMF in the past and really don't like working with it. Thanks though.

[Sugarella]

It's a combination of the gelatin and glycerine that makes it stretchy. I'm not familiar with the Wooley recipe so I don't know how much of either there is, if any. (That and heated vegetable shortening/water hitting the sugar.... p. sugar has some cornstarch in it.)

[MightyD]

i use the fondant recipe from the cake bible but up the gelatin to 1.25x. the usual recipe is not stretchy enough and 1.25x the gelatin makes it wonderfully stretchy but can be tricky to work with. because there is more gelatin, the fondant is very difficult to roll out - it literally bounces. i just throw it into the microwave for 15 - 30 seconds to warm it up and it works beautifully.

i've even upped the gelatin to 1.5x and it still works but you'd have to nuke it a little longer to get it workable. otherwise, your arms will just fall off from all that rolling and your table legs will give out.

[CurlySue]

Thank you, I had no idea those ingredients caused elasticity. So, if I were to play with my recipe, can anyone advise how I adjust the gelatin/glucose to make it more stretchy? I don't have the recipe memorized but assuming there were equal parts of each I'm assuming I could up each ingredient an equal percentage and go from there.

Is there anyway to save the bunch that I already have made? Can I knead in more gelatin/glucose or is it too late?

edited to say: sorry, I meant gelatin/glycerine, not glucose!

Edited August 9, 2006 by CurlySue (log)