Fondant for Cakes and Candy
Ingredients
Directions
Make the syrup
Combine sugar and water in a kettle and stir until dissolved.
Bring to a boil, stirring a little at the beginning.
Add acetic acid and wash down the sides of the kettle with a wet cloth.
Cover the kettle and let the syrup steam and boil for about 3 minutes.
Insert a candy thermometer into the boiling syrup and monitor closely.
When the thermometer reads 239°F, remove the kettle from the heat.
Pour, cool and knead
Prepare a marble slab or large meat platter by wiping it with cold water.
Quickly pour the fondant onto the slab or platter without allowing it to drip.
Let the candy cool completely; it should not stick to your hand when pressed.
Knead the fondant with a paddle, scooping from the edges to the center.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Sugar
- Forms the sweet crystalline body of the fondant as the syrup cools and sets.
- Acetic acid
- Adds a little acidity that helps keep sugar crystals small, giving a smoother fondant.
The step that matters
Removing the syrup at 239°F. The final temperature sets how much water remains in the syrup. Pulling it off the heat too early leaves the fondant soft and sticky, while going too far makes it hard and brittle once cooled.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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