Fondant cakes taste nasty???

BriaCow · July 2012

Alot of cake decorators in my area advertise their cake designs that use fondant. I would want my guests to be able to eat some cake and enjoy it. Does fondant taste good? If not what are my other options for a creative cake?

NOLAbridealmost · July 2012

Most people aren't wild about fondant, but it's very, very easily peeled off. As long as your cake has icing underneath the fondant it will still taste delicious if people peel it off.

That said, a great baker can make buttercream frosting look just as smooth as fondant in most circumstances (some designs REQUIRE fondant, but not all of them do). Buttercream icing is beyond yummy and often much cheaper than a fondant wrapped cake. You can show us the designs you like and we can tell you if it could be done without fondant; some bakers might be pushing the fondant because they can make so much more money off of it.

BriaCow · August 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_food-cakes_fondant-cakes-taste-nasty?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:23Discussion:debe06c0-3669-4c2d-af0b-ea89742d933bPost:37bcc02e-4e15-4786-b59b-18e401dd5f4f">Re: Fondant cakes taste nasty???</a>:
[QUOTE]Most people aren't wild about fondant, but it's very, very easily peeled off. As long as your cake has icing underneath the fondant it will still taste delicious if people peel it off. That said, a great baker can make buttercream frosting look just as smooth as fondant in most circumstances (some designs REQUIRE fondant, but not all of them do). Buttercream icing is beyond yummy and often much cheaper than a fondant wrapped cake. You can show us the designs you like and we can tell you if it could be done without fondant; some bakers might be pushing the fondant because they can make so much more money off of it.
Posted by NOLAbridealmost[/QUOTE]

<div>Thanks for helping. I'm really just trying to incorporate one of my wedding colors (teal/turqoise) into the cake. I'm open to suggestions, I am sure that whatever other designs are out could be substituted with a different color</div><div><img src="https://encrypted-tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSaJMWVaI3t_kRGiSYvikbLyVJ6IJaBcv7r2RQhkFteBmIuJ7Mv" alt="" /> </div><div><img src="https://encrypted-tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQiMlrBy444VFksbE2lAMKd5558bkXMzrqqBBTfI0E9v3igdQL3" alt="" /> </div>

NOLAbridealmost · August 2012

I think you could do either of those designs using a buttercream base and either an inedible ribbon or a small strip of fondant to mimic the look of ribbon. I don't think fondant is a 'must' for either of those designs.

But again, if you go with fondant with a layer of icing under the fondant, it will easily peel off and still taste great.

rlavach · August 2012

Like PP said, the fondant itself doesn't taste amazing. Just like colored sugar, which is what it is. Most just peel it off & eat the cake inside, which is still good. We just did buttercream for our cake since we had a cupcake tower. I like the look, but wasn't willing to pay the price.

MrsKathyC · August 2012

We had buttercream and used ribbon to incorporate our color

*edited - That's not sloppy decorating, we had requested a "textured look" for the cake,.

Maggie0829 · August 2012

I agree that both of those cakes you posted could very easily be done in buttercream.

divinemsbee · August 2012

I'm not a fan of fondant at all, so my cake will have buttercream, and I was surprised at all of the designs that I thought were fondant that can be done with buttercream by an experienced baker, I think both of the ones you showed pics of could be done easily. My friend who just got married had a cake with an all over damask pattern in brown on her white cake and I thought there was no way that could be done without fondant, but it was. They must have laid a stencil over the top and carefully shaken cocoa powder over it to impost the pattern. So cool.

littleluckypenny · August 2012

Like PPs said, both those designs can be done in buttercream. Any great baker can do it. If they can't, then they don't have real skills :P.

The baker can also just have the "scroll" designs in fondant so the cake isn't entirely covered with fondant.

I'm usually in the camp of "fondant tastes gross", but the baker we used did a cake for me (I used my wedding baker for a birthday cake too) and she had some fondant pieces on it and it tasted fine. Maybe because she only uses marshmallow fondant (if a client requests fondant). Our wedding cake didn't have fondant but only looked liked it did.

BGaff · August 2012

I have the worst sweet tooth so I actaully really love the taste, however I am the only person I know who enjoys it. I also bake for fun and have used fondant in the past and you can see them do this in any of the cake shows, in between the cake and the fondant they add (buttercream usually) icing and call it a "crumb layer" ... it allows the fondant to go on smoothly, so I wouldn't worry about if people will enjoy the fondant or not, it peels off easily and there will be more icing underneath for them to enjoy

Amsdragonfly · August 2012

My friend who makes wedding cakes for a living says the problem with fondant is that people who use it often don't roll it thin enough before placing it on the cakes. When it's too thick it is too sweet (basically like straight sugar). She said that if you're thinking about using fondant (because it does look smoother than other options) you should ask to see examples of other cakes made by the person you're going with, especially pictures of the cake cut into so you can see how thick the fondant is. It is supposed to be 1/8" of an inch thick and no thicker. (They roll it thicker because they are either inexperienced or they are afraid of tearing it.)

cwaggoner07 · August 2012

I hate fondant, and I especially wasn't willing to pay more for it. Our buttercream cake was gorgeous and yummy.

rascal17 · August 2012

Some fondant tastes good and others do not. If your unsure ask your baker for a sample. You also need to talk to your baker about your reception details. I make wedding cakes and I wont do a buttercream only cake for an outdoor wedding unless Im there to keep an eye on it. Fondant will slow down the melting of the icing underneath. If thats not an issue then the designs you posted (like other pps said) can be done in buttercream and that if you do go with fondant then guests who dont like it can peel it off.

[Deleted User] · August 2012

Fondant tastes a lot better than it used to, but it's still not the greatest tasting IMO. Like Amsdragonfly said, a lot depends on how thinly it's rolled. It can also be flavored somewhat. So you might, if it's not too much of an extra cost, see if you can have a fondant sample at your cake tasting. Almond flavor seems to be popular, as does marshmellow fondant. I've heard of lemon as well.

Both of the example cakes can be done with a BC base. It won't look as smooth, but there are a lot of tricks to make a buttercream cake not have tons of spatula marks.

Stencilled and damask designs (like on the first cake) are often easier with fondant, but you might look into a royal icing option if available (buttercream stays too soft and makes damask stencilling messy and easy to smudge and smear). On the second cake it looks like the black accents are hand piped, other than the letters.

Bows (and other 3d elements) can't be done with buttercream. Usually gumpaste is used because it sets hard, like ceramic (fondant is doable but doesn't dry quite as firm and is more suceptable to softening because of heat). You can also use real ribbon but if you're putting ribbon around buttercream, you should very lightly cover the back with a thin layer of crisco and let it absorb before putting it on the cake. Otherwise your ribbon will get grease spots from the buttercream. (This isn't necessary with fondant).

Fondant will be more expensive. At the end of the day, buttercream is a safer taste option, but fondant is more versatile for many designs.

jrshaul · August 2012

If you can find a baker who works with it, marzipan can be substituted for fondant in some applications. It's much more expensive, less versatile, and a lot harder to work with, but I think it tastes fabulous.

emeejeeayen · August 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_food-cakes_fondant-cakes-taste-nasty?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:23Discussion:debe06c0-3669-4c2d-af0b-ea89742d933bPost:b42dd82c-e3c2-49e6-b320-8a2d972511f3">Re: Fondant cakes taste nasty???</a>:
[QUOTE]If you can find a baker who works with it, marzipan can be substituted for fondant in some applications. It's much more expensive, less versatile, and a lot harder to work with, but I think it tastes fabulous.
Posted by jrshaul[/QUOTE]

<div>I've also seen chocolate of some kind. (Molding?) </div><div>
</div><div>I've been curious about it. Is it fondant mixed with chocolate?</div>

[Deleted User] · August 2012

Modeling/Molding chocolate is a lot like chocolate for candymaking, and for simple designs can be the same thing. Generally you take chocolate and melt it, often with something like corn syrup to keep it pliable if you are shaping it instead of using a mold. Some places can cover a cake with chocolate similar to fondant. You can also get it in colors by using a white chocolate base although you don't have as much chocolate flavor if you do that. It is more susceptible to heat than fondant, and doesn't get as firm as gumpaste. Think the consistency of a good quality chocolate Easter bunny. It definitely tastes better than fondant.

skantrowitz · August 2012

I vote buttercream! Our baker could make most designs in buttercream as pretty as fondant, unless you needed it to be "structural." he used ribbon and frosting flowers for color; the "branches" were wire coated in frosting.

Wifee13 · August 2012

Fondant, especially large amounts does not taste particularly good. However, as a bakery owner/ decorator, I will tell you that both of the designs you pictured could easily be done in buttercream. Also, if you wanted another type of icing, that could also work as long as the decorating particulars were buttercream. Finally, in hot and humid climates buttercream does get soft, well if there's fondant, it will fall off, if not, your cake is just less rigid. Therefore, a buttercream design will not only look cleaner but taste better too, so you get the best of both worlds :

Fondant cakes taste nasty???

Re: Fondant cakes taste nasty???

Choose Another Board

Search Boards