Day one:
Since I've got the morning all to myself, with a night shift starting at 4pm, I figure that now is the time to seize the day and finally attempt vegan fondant.
Attempt One - 1 cup of organic sugar, 1/2 cup water, good shake of cream of tartar. Well heck.. I didn't realize that boiling sugar can go from a happy and stable 175 degrees to a raging 300 degrees in the time it takes to check an email.. boo, boiled the pot clean and restarted with slightly less inflated sails
Attempt Two - Since the organic sugar is now down the drain, 1 cup white sugar, 1/2 cup water, good shake of cream of tartar. This batch is now setting up in the cooling pan.. seems to be far too dark and solid for a soft-ball stage.. but that sugar really seems to rage once it hits the threading stage. Will wait and see in half an hour after it's period of uninterrupted rest.
Here's the full recipe and method comprised from many online postings about vegan fondant:
2 cups of sugar
1 cup water
1/8 tsp. cream of tartar
Bring water and sugar to a boil in a narrow pot (less surface area in the bottom of the pot to reduce variations of temperature) and add cream of tartar. With candy thermometer firmly in place, leave the pot alone. On a medium heat, boil the sugar mixture until it reaches the soft-ball stage of 240 degrees*. At this point, you should pour the sugar into a prepared cooling pan or marble slab with barriers.
Let the sugar cool for at least 45 minutes, or until it is about room temperature.
Now, you need to work the sugar until it becomes quite white, creamy and opaque. Using a wooden spoon or heat-proof spatula, stir the sugar until you can knead it and continue on from there. This process may take up to 30 minutes of vigorous handling. If you are so lucky as to own a stand mixer, use the dough hook attachment and just givver.
Fondant then needs to be tightly wrapped in plastic wrap and let to ponder it's existence for at least 4 hours, best if you give it 24. It also keeps quite well in a low-humidity, cool environment for upwards of a month.. supposedly you can also freeze the wrapped balls of it for months.
Work fondant well with your hands to make it malleable once again before using in a project. The more that you play with it, the smoother and shinier it will become.
The ideal thickness for covering cakes is 1/4 inch. This allows for even coverage with sufficient ability to smooth out corners.
Colourings can be added to re-worked batches by adding a small amount of (preferably paste icing colourings) colour to the fondant as you're kneading it once again for the project.
Also, while you're working with batches of fondant and making small decorations, please make sure that you keep the main balls of fondant covered with a slightly damp cloth or tightly wrapped in plastic wrap. Air is an enemy to fondant! Once you wish to dry your decorations, leave them still for several hours, preferably overnight. Do not refrigerate your finished product, the humidity level in the fridge is too high and will cause your fondant to melt. (same thing for caramel apples, I ashamedly admit to figuring out)
*Please note my comments on this process above.. the tricky sugar will rapidly move from 200 upwards. You may wish to lower the temperature from this point onwards to better monitor the progress.
