I remember the folks in the Something Awful cake thread being a big fan of marshmallow fondant. The consensus was that it was pretty easy to make, worked just as well as regular/commercial fondant for most applications, and tasted much better. (That's not to say that it tastes amazing, but the impression that I've generally gotten is that commercial fondant is basically inedible, so MMF is a big improvement on that.)

Despite all the rave reviews, I was still somewhat reluctant to try it. It sounded fiddly and easy to mess up. I was convinced that I'd end up with a sticky, unworkable mess on my hands. And I don't have that much call for fondant and molded decorations in the first place anyway, so I just haven't bothered with it until now.

I wanted to make some extra decorations for the Kidlet's class treats though and marzipan was out since that would've been an allergen nightmare, so I figured marshmallow fondant was the way to go. And, as it turns out, it wasn't too difficult or fiddly at all!

Marshmallow Fondant

From The Spruce Eats

Ingredients

• 225g marshmallows
• 2 Tbsp. water
• 450g icing sugar

Directions

1. Heat the marshmallows and water, stirring frequently, until melted and smooth. I did 30-second bursts in the microwave, but very gentle heat on to stovetop¹ would also work.
2. Add the icing sugar. Stir until the mixture starts to get stiff, then turn it out onto the work surface. There will still be a lot of sugar not mixed in; this is expected!
3. Knead the marshmallow like bread dough, gradually working in the remaining sugar until the mixture becomes smooth and pliable without being overly sticky. (You might not need all of the sugar.)
4. If you manage to knead in all of the sugar and the mixture is still too sticky to work with, dust the work surface and your hands with a little more icing sugar mixed with cornstarch and knead for a few more strokes.
5. If the mixture is still sticky, then adding a bit of food grade glycerin might help. I haven't tried this, but I've seen it recommended online. Shape the "dough" into a disc, pour ~1 tsp. of glycerin into the centre of the disc, and then fold it over and knead it in.
6. I've also read that greasing your hands and the work surface with vegetable shortening can help if you're having issues with your fondant sticking to everything.
7. And, if all else fails, the Internet recommends trying a different brand of marshmallows. I used No Name mini marshmallows and they seemed to work really well for this.
8. If you want to add colour to your fondant, you can separate out however much you want to colour, shape it into a disc, add some food colouring drops or gel, and then knead it in. If you'd like to colour the whole batch of fondant, you can mix the food colouring in when you first melt the marshmallows rather than waiting until after the sugar is added.
9. Wrap the fondant tightly if not using immediately and store at cool room temperature.

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¹ I've seen people recommend using a double-boiler set-up, but I think very low direct heat would also be okay. ^Back