Have you ever watched those baking competitions on TV? You know, the ones featuring the most talented cake decorators from all over the world, duking it out to see whose cake reigns supreme? These pastry chefs use a sugar paste called fondant to create beautiful sculptures and decorations for their cakes, cupcakes and other desserts. Want to know a little secret? You don't have to be a pastry chef to create beautiful and fun designs using fondant. Fondant is incredibly easy to use! I can't think of a better way to illustrate how easy fondant is than to show you a step-by-step tutorial for making snowman cupcake toppers.
VIDEO: How To Make Fondant Snowman Cupcake Toppers
Essential Tools
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All of my posts contain my recommendations for essential tools. I have researched these tools. Many of them are already in my kitchen. The ones that are not come highly rated. I do the research so you don’t have to and I only recommend high-quality tools.
If you are just starting to furnish your kitchen with tools or if you are looking to expand your kitchen toolkit, be sure to reference Expert Guide: Equip Your Kitchen for Less Than $200. This guide contains links to all of the equipment items I recommend for a basic kitchen set up.
My essential tools when making these festive fondant snowman cupcake toppers include the following:
Wilton Fondant, White
White fondant is essential for making the round cupcake toppers and the snowmen. It is also going to be the base you use to dye your green and orange fondant (unless you click here to buy fondant in those specific colors - green, orange).
Wilton Fondant, Black
Black fondant will be used to make the black hats on your snowmen. This fondant can also be used as the round cupcake topper, if you want to mix things up!
Gel Food Coloring
I only use gel food coloring when I'm working with fondant. Liquid food coloring makes the fondant incredibly sticky and powdered food coloring can cause your fondant to dry out prematurely. Gel food coloring creates the best consistency. To make the snowmen, I used green and orange gel food coloring on white fondant. Be careful! A little goes a long way!
Wilton 9" Fondant Rolling Pin
This is an essential tool when working with fondant! The 9-inch rolling pin is excellent for rolling out small amounts of fondant. It comes with 2 rings that make rolling fondant into ⅛" and 1/16" width a cinch! If you think you will be rolling fondant for larger baked goods, like cakes, a 20-inch rolling pin would be better.
Stainless Steel Dredge
It is very important to have a dredge filled with powdered sugar to sprinkle on your work surface while working. Fondant can be sticky to work with and a light dusting of powdered sugar (or cornstarch) helps it to remain pliable. Wilton also has a fondant dusting cup, which would also work. I just prefer a dredge because I can use it for other purposes in my kitchen.
Christmas Cookie Cutters
This is the set of Christmas cookie cutters I have. I used the snowman cookie cutter for this video, but I have plans to make more videos using these cookie cutters, so watch this space!
X-ACTO Knife
I do all of my precision fondant cutting using an X-ACTO knife. The knife is perfect for making small, clean cuts and it a perfect tool to keep in your kitchen, especially when working with fondant. Be careful! This blade is sharp!
Fondant Foam Pad
I use my fondant foam pad all the time. It makes the creation of decorations much easier. A countertop can work, but I really recommend the foam pad for anyone who is serious about fondant. The countertop is smooth and fondant can be sticky, which is a recipe for a sticky situation and a lot of frustration!
Cake Decorating Brushes
When working with fondant, it is important to have a set of kitchen paintbrushes. For obvious reasons (like poisoning), I do not recommend using brushes in your kitchen that have come in contact with paint. Therefore, I recommend these Wilton Cake Decorating Brushes. I use these brushes all of the time when I'm working with fondant. They are essential for smoothing rough fondant cuts and painting water on fondant so it may be "glued" to another piece of fondant. I also use my brushes when working with small pieces that need a delicate but firm touch.
Finally... Sprinkles!
I use a variety of holiday-themed sprinkles on my cupcake toppers! Here are some of my favorites:
FAQ's
A lot of people have questions about fondant/cupcake toppers. I'm here to help!
Can You Make Fondant Cupcake Toppers In Advance?
The answer to this question is YES! Fondant cupcake toppers need to dry and set completely. When you finish making your cupcake toppers, store them in an airtight container at room temperature for 24-48 hours before attaching them to the cupcakes.
How Do You Put Fondant Toppers On Cupcakes?
After the fondant has dried for 24-48 hours, you may place the topper flat on the top of the cupcake or you may place it on top at a slight tilt (as seen below).
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