TABLE
OF CONTENTS
What Is Sugar Paste ... ?
What Are The Problems With Sugar Paste ... ?
How Long Can Sugar Paste Be Stored ... ?
What Do I Use As Glue ... ?
How Do I Prevent The Paste Sticking ... ?
How Thinly Can The Paste Be Rolled Out ... ?
What
Is Sugar Paste... ?
Sugar
paste is the term I use for a paste made from icing sugar, egg white and CMC.
See the recipe page.
What
Are The Problems With Sugar Paste... ?
Items made with this paste are susceptible to
humidity in the atmosphere, and a completely dry flower can wilt, as if alive,
when exposed to humidity. This is a major problem fro those people living in
monsoon areas and I suggest using a recipe with Gum Tragacanth instead of CMC.
I only find this wilting a problem if I expose the items to a sudden
change in atmosphere, say from an air conditioned house to a car, and then back
into an air conditioned room. I now transfer all cakes, flowers etc. In cooler
boxes and this has alleviated my problem.
Sugar
ants and cockroaches love this medium and the only way round this situation is
to be very clean while working and poison around the base of cupboards etc. Be
very careful not to let your work come into contact with poison – it is after
an edible art form.
How
Long Can Sugar Paste Be Stored ... ?
I
have very successfully store paste for more than a month. However I do not
recommend using stored paste for items that will be eaten. Use a fresh paste for
those items and use the stored paste for things like the inside of cone of a
wired rose.
What
Do I Use As Glue ... ?
I still use egg white on
flowers and leaves. If however I am working directly on the cake I prefer to use
a little water.
How
Do I Prevent The Paste Sticking ... ?
This paste has sugar as a major component and so
is prone to sticking to tools, veiners and hands. I use several different things
to combat this problem.
A
small quantity of vegetable fat can be used on your hands and the
edges of cutters to stop the paste from compacting on them. ( be careful not
to over use fat as it causes dust colours to “blotch” )
Potato
flour can be dusted onto veiners to prevent the paste sticking to them.
How Thinly Can The Paste
Be Rolled Out ... ?
I find that the paste can be
rolled out very thinly. This actually is easier to work with as the paste does
not dry out as quickly as thickly rolled paste. (
strange but true! )
You
will need to handle items made with sugar paste very carefully as it is
extremely fragile.
