This weekend found me avoiding the grocery store like it was the plague. I'd planned to attempt a marshmallow fondant recipe for a week or so - so those supplies were in hand. What I didn't have were complicated cake supplies, so I spent a bit of time searching for a recipe that used a small amount of ingredients that are often commonly found in a home with a baker. I settled on a recipe passed down to me by my husband's mom - Grandma Dot's Butter Cake! Simple ingredients - butter, flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, eggs, and vanilla - were all that I needed to bring my weekend cake dreams to life!
The most exciting part about the cake, for me, was figuring out the topping. I'd searched for several marshmallow fondant recipes (since I do not like the taste of traditional fondant), and settled on this recipe by Missy on the blog How Does She. Missy's marshmallow fondant recipe only had a handful of ingredients - one bag of marshmallows, one bag of powdered sugar, and a little bit of water! That's it!
Making the fondant was very easy. Tip to those out there thinking about trying this as well - remember to add the water to the marshmallows. I completely forgot, so was frustrated when the marshmallows took forever (!!!) to get to the right consistency. Never fear though - you can add it late, and the result is the same. I recommend a helper as you knead the powdered sugar into the dough. I had my dad at hand to add sugar, a little at a time, and that way I could constantly knead.
The most exciting part about the cake, for me, was figuring out the topping. I'd searched for several marshmallow fondant recipes (since I do not like the taste of traditional fondant), and settled on this recipe by Missy on the blog How Does She. Missy's marshmallow fondant recipe only had a handful of ingredients - one bag of marshmallows, one bag of powdered sugar, and a little bit of water! That's it!
Making the fondant was very easy. Tip to those out there thinking about trying this as well - remember to add the water to the marshmallows. I completely forgot, so was frustrated when the marshmallows took forever (!!!) to get to the right consistency. Never fear though - you can add it late, and the result is the same. I recommend a helper as you knead the powdered sugar into the dough. I had my dad at hand to add sugar, a little at a time, and that way I could constantly knead.
Every part of making this cake was so fun! Once my dad and I had finished up the fondant, I rolled it out into a thin sheet of "dough" and draped it over the butter cake. Once trimmed, it was time to watercolor!
Water-coloring cake is a big trend these days, and I was excited to try it. As my sister likes to say, "Naomi, you're not good at water-coloring". I know, I know - but I still thought it looked neat! I followed the general cake watercolor directions described by Lee Schellenberger on Brit & Co's tutorial: How to Make a Gilded Watercolor Cake That Will Majorly Impress Your Guests.
Here is what I took from the tutorial:
1) You mix the food coloring with a clear extract to create the paints.
That's basically it. The recipe called for clear vanilla extract. What's that? Never heard of it? Me either. So I substituted lemon extract, since that is clear as well, and I always like a bit of lemon in my cakes. With a basic pattern in mind, I painted a rosemary-inspired wreath, and then finished with an "R" in the center - an initial cake in honor of my new last name.
Hope you love the cake! What would you paint on it?
I've got a lot of fun crafts and recipes coming up! Until next time.
Naomi
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