News Too Good Not To Share!!!

This post may make me look crazy, or like someone who has too much time, but after some fussing in the kitchen I have found a great recipe for Fondant Icing! Yes, Fondant Icing!  I was making a practice of my christmas cake - don't ask about the Xmas Cake, TIP: when it says 160oC do it at 160oC not 190oC!  Rather crispy outside to my cake!  That is why I need icing, icing covers all sins!!!

I have been wanting to make my own fondant icing for AGES now, for various reasons:

• It is always better to make your own, a little bit more of an 'I made this feeling'
• In the case of icing being able to make exactly how much you need rather than being left with stuff you can't use or have to throw away.
• And in the case of icing being able to make different colours of fondant icing for alsorts of cakes - this last one was my biggest reason for wanting to make my own.

I had found several recipes before but they all used gelatin and as soon as I see gelatin in a recipe I just turn away.  I always just end up with a blob (or blobs) of gelatin in my 'whatever-I'm-making'.  But then I found this recipe that uses just marshmallows and Icing Sugar (Confectioner's Sugar)!  I couldn't believe it would be so simple, I saw the recipe - Melt Marshmallows - this could get messy, I thought imagining everything stuck to everything else after I had finished.  I was wrong!  If you ever need icing you HAVE to try this it was SO easy and simple.

Fondant Icing

6 oz white marshmallows

12 oz Icing Sugar

(basically you need to use twice as much sugar as marshmallows)

2tbsp water

Put the water and marshmallows into a large bowl and microwave for 1 minute.  Stir mallows with a spatula.  If they are still a bit lumpy give them another 30 - 40 seconds.

SLowly start adding your sugar until the mixture appears to take no more and has lost some of its stickiness.

Turn out your icing onto a board dusted with icing sugar and begin kneading, if you have any sugar remaing then knead that in as you go, until the icing is smooth.  

Use straight away or seal in airtight container and keep in the fridge!

If you want coloured icing add your food colouring after melting the marshmallows.  To colour pre-made icing just make a disc with the icing, add a couple of drops of colouring and fold icing over.  Begin kneading and keep going until the colour is uniform!