Finding the Perfect Fondant

Fondarific!

I have been doing some research on different fondants. I only just started using fondant. I tried Wilton's rolled fondant, which is awesomely stretchy and pliable, and contrary to what everyone else out there says, I don't really think it tastes THAT bad. I mean, I wouldn't want to cover a whole cake in it, because it really isn't the tastiest thing in the world, but when in a pinch.... 
I also tried making my own marshmallow fondant. It tastes like marshmallows, so if you like that kind of thing, then great... but it doesn't stretch at all. I had a horrible time trying to get it onto a cake without tearing. In the end, I mixed bits of the wilton rolled fondant into my marshmallow one and that saved the day. 
Although the combination worked, it was a very stressful ordeal and making marshmallow fondant is sooo messy. So I started to look online to see if there is an affordable fondant out there, that is just as nice as Wilton, but tastes good too. Through my search I found Fondarific. They make fondant in a huge variety of flavors AND they sell samples, so of course, I had to get my hands on some. I purchased 2 sample packs and got: 

Almond
Buttercream Antique White
Cinnamon Bun
Cherry
Chocolate
Lemon
Melon
Coffee Mocha
Vanilla

Here are my thoughts. I started with what I thought would be the least flavorful and worked my way down.

Vanilla - tastes very sweet, like a white chocolate flavored marshmallow fondant. The flavor is ok, but a little too sweet for my taste. It was very pliable, which is nice when you're making figures. But its stretchability is nothing compared to Wilton. I tried to stretch it a bit in this picture.

Buttercream Antique White - when I opened the bag I got a bit whiff of buttercream. The taste was less sweet than the vanilla, but had a stranger aftertaste. I can't quite put my finger on it... but it tastes a bit, like those wilton candy melts. Although I liked it being less sweet, I preferred the flavor of the Vanilla. My sister also agreed that the Vanilla tasted better. 

Almond - ooh I was excited for this one. I really like almond. It smelled so lovely and the initial taste was just as I expected. Except... the aftertaste was really gross. I got that same strange taste that I had in the buttercream. It almost tasted stale or something. Maybe I'm just having an off day with my taste buds, but I did not like the lingering stale, almost chemical taste in my mouth. My sister's reaction: "oooh almond! ...  oh, ... yuck!" So I guess my taste buds are spot on.

Cinnamon Bun - Oh I love cinnamon. When I opened the bag it smelled like cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting. Drool. After the last two though, I wasn't expecting much...  but behold! It was tasty! Yay! It tasted just like frosted cinnamon rolls. I love it. But, it's unfortunate that I can't just use it on any cake because the flavor is so specific. As for stretchiness, it's about the same as the vanilla. Not stretchy at all. Still..  awesome flavor.

Chocolate - Tastes like a tootsie roll. End of story. It was surprisingly stretchier than the vanilla, but still not stretchy. I think I would have preferred it taste more like rich cocoa than a tootsie roll. I tried to add some gum tex to it to see if I could get it to stretch more, but that didn't help all that much.

pre-gum tex

after adding gum tex

Coffee Mocha - the smell was...  a combination of Vanilla Fudge and.. something bitter and gross. I was scared to put it in my mouth. But I did. and it was quite tasty. It tasted like those instant cappuccino thingies. Not bad. It would probably be pretty good on a cupcake, taken in moderation. My sister, who doesn't like coffee, also agreed that it was pretty good. It was very pliable, which made it nice to work with.

Lemon - smells like a lemon scented eraser. yikes. The taste was, extremely overpowering. It wasn't like a lemonhead candy, but the lemon flavor was super concentrated. My sister said it tasted like the lemon creme filling in girl scout cookies. It was also super pliable like the mocha.

Melon - smells like watermelon flavored gum. Bubblelicious? My sister says it smells like Lip Smackers chapstick. I thought it tasted like taffy. Or maybe a bit stronger. Maybe closer to skittles? Either way, tastes like candy. If this flavor was a little less concentrated, I might like it better. It was probably the most stretchy of all the samples. It was even a bit sticky. I had to wash my hands well after touching that one. 

Cherry - smells like playdough. eek. Really? oh well, I think we've all eaten playdough at some point in our lives. The taste was... almost like a starburst, but still had that lingering playdough taste. Not so nice. My sister said the flavor reminded her of a cherry scented anesthetic she was given when she had surgery as a child. Enough said. Nasty. It was about as stretchy as the chocolate.

Overall, I was not incredibly impressed. Of course these tasted much better than Wilton rolled fondant, but because they don't stretch as well, I don't think I will purchase them again. I read reviews saying that Wilton is hard and difficult to work with, but I personally haven't had much trouble. So, unless I have use for the Fondarific cinnamon bun flavor, I think I would rather add flavoring to Wilton, since it's cheaper anyway. But I do plan on trying some other fondant brands too, so perhaps the perfect fondant is still out there!

April 6, 2013

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Wilton

Wilton is obviously trying to monopolize the cake decorating industry. You can find their products anywhere. While their fondant doesn't taste the greatest, it stretches really well and is conveniently found almost anywhere. While I'm still trying to find the perfect fondant (great taste AND consistency), Wilton will do as long as I'm using it in moderation (for small accents and figures). Really, I don't think it tastes THAT bad. It's better than Fondarific's cherry.
Meanwhile, my search continues...  Here are a couple videos comparing Wilton's stretchability and Fondarific (after I added gum tex).

 

Fondarific Chocolate (with gum tex added)

Wilton Rolled Fondant

April 6, 2013