How to Use Fondant Icing on Wedding Cakes

Fondant smoothes out the contours of your wedding cake for a clean look.

Flexible fondant rolls out easily for no-mess wedding cake coverage, and can be dyed any hue imaginable with high-quality food dyes. To class up any wedding cake, use a base layer of fondant icing. Fondant decor lets you tie in the happy couple's wedding colors. If you're nervous about covering the wedding cake, practice on foam rounds first until you get your technique down.

Things You'll Need

• Buttercream or other frosting
• Offset spatula
• Washcloth (optional)
• Confectioner's sugar
• Rolling pin

Instructions

1. Cover the cake with a thin layer of frosting, such as buttercream. Apply the frosting with an offset spatula. The frosting will act as a glue and seal the fondant onto the cake.

2. Work the fondant between your hands as if you're kneading dough, to get it malleable. Seal your tub of fondant, or cover it with a damp washcloth to prevent the rest of the fondant from drying out, while you roll one layer at a time.

3. Sprinkle a thin layer of confectioner's sugar on your counter top, and place your fondant on top of the sugar. Sprinkle a bit more sugar on top; this prevents the rolling pin from sticking. Use the rolling pin to roll out your fondant to 1/8-inch thick.

4. Cut a piece of fondant large enough to drape the cake, using your offset spatula. For example, if your cake is 9 inches in diameter and 3 inches thick, you would need a circle that is at least 15 inches in diameter, so it can go over the cake and fully cover the sides.

5. Roll the cut fondant over your rolling pin, then pick up the rolling pin and position it over the cake, at one side. Unroll the fondant, so it covers the cake. If you positioned it right it will cover the cake. If you didn't align it right, re-roll the fondant back onto the pin and try again.

6. Smooth the fondant against the cake using an offset spatula, a smoothing tool or even your fingers. Begin in the center of the cake and gently but firmly press the fondant into the cake to remove air bubbles and seal the fondant into the icing layer.

7. Cut off extra fondant with your offset spatula after you've sealed the fondant onto the cake.

8. Repeat this process for additional layers.

9. Roll out dyed fondant, then cut out designs to apply to the cake. Try stripes, circles, or flowers. Use cookie cutters to get the shapes.

Tips & Warnings

• If you need to color your fondant dye it before you roll it out.

References

• Wilton: Covering Cakes with Rolled Fondant
• "On Baking: A Textbook of Baking and Pastry Fudnamentals"; Sarah R. Labensky; 2005