I will first show you how I assemble the cake before cakeing, this will make it easier for us to cake later.
First we need to make buttercream from butter and boiled condensed milk. You can make it from plain condensed milk, but boiled condensed milk is thicker and will taste better.
Butter must be taken without any admixtures of other oils. I mean butter, which you take out of the refrigerator and is already soft, is not very suitable for quickly spreading on bread. You need to take a solid consistency. Here in Germany I buy the cheapest oil, Deutsche Markenbutter, which can be bought in any store. I got the butter from Aldi this time.


The butter needs to be taken out of the refrigerator in advance so that it is at room temperature, it’s better to even take it out of the refrigerator overnight, then you definitely won’t forget.
I caked two honey cakes with a diameter of 25 cm and a height of 8 cm and a chiffon sponge cake with a diameter of 24 cm and a height of 6 cm.
For two cakes I needed 2 packs of butter (room temperature) + one and a half cans of boiled condensed milk


The butter must first be ground to a smooth consistency, adding boiled condensed milk to it. Then mix everything at low mixer speed until smooth and homogeneous.


Now let's move on to the cake. When I work with a cake, I place cardboard stands under the cake. You can buy them from us, one side of which is covered with impermeable paper. This will be cleaner and then more convenient to transfer the cake to the finished dish, and you will see it for yourself in the photographs.

So, take our cardboard stand and lightly grease it with butter cream so that the cake does not slide off it later, as in the photo


I started with a chiffon sponge cake, placed the first layer on our blot


I first lightly soaked it in peach juice.

Now you need to prepare two pastry bags for buttercream and cream

with which you will coat your cake. I have cream based cream. For cream, a bag is needed for those who are afraid that they will put more cream than necessary. Whether the attachment is a star or a hole does not matter. You can just take bags for freezing food and cut off a small corner at the tip. You will see below why I am doing this. To make it easier to fill the bag, place it over a glass or large mug


Now squeeze out a line of buttercream along the edges of the sponge cake, as in the photo


Now fill the middle with cream, whatever you like. This can be done from a bag, it will be smoother. I filled it just with a spoon, as in the photo


Since mastic melts on butter and similar wet creams, an oiled rope will make the cake task easier for us later. Because of it, the buttercream will not run out to the edges. and do the same with subsequent cakes. But do not lubricate the topmost cake with cream, there is no need to make a side either, but so that the cake is not dry, soak it in any syrup


This is what our biscuit looks like after assembly


Now you will need to put it in the refrigerator for 2 hours so that it hardens. I did the same with honey cakes, unfortunately there are no photos, the camera didn’t sit on time.

Now you will need to add crumbs to our remaining buttercream. I had cakes from a honey cake, which I ground in a blender


You can make it from a biscuit, if you don’t have one at home, you can make cookie crumbs. Add enough crumbs so that it is not completely liquid, but not thick, but so that it can be spread on the cake. I did it by eye, so I can’t say how much I added, this is what the finished mixture looks like


Take our frozen sponge cake out of the refrigerator and begin to cake it, starting from the sides


I did this with a small spatula, but you can replace it with a wide knife or a plastic scraper. and so applying the mass to the sides, move the spatula from left to right so that the mass is distributed evenly


We also do it with the top of the biscuit


If your top is not level, then with the help of this mass you can level it. That is, where there are depressions, put more there, also on the sides of the biscuit where there are dimples or depressions, everything can be covered with this potato mass. This is what our sponge cake looks like, completely covered with crumbs and cream.


Now we need to prepare hot water, boiling water in which we will wet our spatula or wide knife and smooth out the biscuit


Now we dip our spatula or knife into boiling water, shake off excess water, but do not wipe it off, and begin to smooth the sides with it. You need to do this in small steps, re-wetting the spatula in boiling water so that the cream does not drag on it. And so smooth the whole side


If you do it for too long and the water has cooled down, then you need to pour in new boiling water. We also smooth the top of the cake. You will have some unevenness on the edges; they need to be smoothed out as in the photo. Soak in boiling water, starting from the bottom, rounding the cake with a spatula to the top, constantly wetting the spatula and shaking to remove excess water.




This is what the place where you smoothed will look like


And this is what our top looks like after smoothing


This is what the side looks like


Well, the whole sponge cake is ready after cakeing


I made the honey cake according to the same principle. This is what he looked like smeared with potato mixture


And after smoothing with a spatula



Now after smoothing, you need to put it in the refrigerator for another half hour.
Now to cover the mastic we need to prepare a rolling pin, a sharp knife or a pizza knife, if you have a special one for smoothing, I forgot the name of the cutter, you will see in the photo. Well, a bag of starch for dusting the table and mastic


I made the powder bag myself from a new dishcloth, you can make it from gauze. Pour starch onto it and tie it in a bag as in the photo, then store it in a small dose



To cover the honey cake, I took extra mastic, about 850 grams


I made the rollfondat myself and gave the recipe here. It is better to take the mastic out of the refrigerator overnight so that it is at room temperature. I would not recommend heating it in a microvel; it will then become dry and crumble. So the mastic needs to be kneaded further so that it is plastic and homogeneous. To do this, wipe the work table dry and lightly grease it with coconut or white vegetable fat, also grease your hands with vegetable fat and begin to knead it with your hands, as in the photo. From the warmth of your hands it will warm up and become more plastic and homogeneous.





Cover the finished mastic with a glass cup so that it does not air or dry out while we are doing something else.


Now I took the honey cake out of the refrigerator and held it with my left hand. The cake is on the edge of the table, if you have the strength, you can hold it completely on your hand and cut off the excess cardboard stand along the edges with scissors, as in the photo



Now dust the table and the mastic itself with starch from our bag, but not too much


And start rolling out our rollfondat, lifting it carefully from time to time, without pulling our layer in different directions, so that it does not stick to the table. If necessary, dust a little more


Carefully roll our layer onto the rolling pin without pressing it, this will make it easier to apply the layer onto the cake



And cover the cake by rolling it out from a rolling pin, here I unfortunately accidentally erased the photo
First, smooth the top and then the sides of the cake with your hands. The edges of the hanging mastic on the sides must be carefully laid out on the sides, but without pulling carefully. And start slowly smoothing the sides of the cake from top to bottom so that there are no wrinkles, slowly spreading the mastic to the sides



Cut off the excess so that it does not interfere


Then, using a sharp knife or a wheel for cutting pizza, cut off the excess along the bottom of the honey cake in a circle, after you smooth the sides and top well with your hands or a special cake smoother

Mastic will turn even a simple cake into a confectionery masterpiece. You can create any decoration from it. Anyone can learn the basics of working with mastic - it's not difficult. From the article you will learn how easy it is to make mastic with your own hands, how to cover a cake with it, and what is the difference between the types of mastic.

Covering a cake with fondant or creating decorations with it is an easy way to turn ordinary baked goods into a confectionery masterpiece. You can buy mastic or make it yourself. You can gain basic skills in the art of working with mastic paste using master classes with photos and videos.

Ready-made sugar mastic is always available in the online store Supermarket for confectioners in this section. You can buy online products made in England, the Netherlands, Turkey and other countries. Both “basic” white mastic and colored ones are available for sale. The price of a package of colored mastic is about 240 rubles.

This mastic for professionals and novice confectioners has all the necessary properties:

  • homogeneous;
  • stretches well, does not crumble;
  • with a neutral sweet taste or with different tastes.

In addition, you can immediately purchase exactly the type of mastic that is best suited for your purposes. There are three categories:

  • universal;
  • for covering;
  • for sculpting.

If you want to try making a plastic mass with your own hands, then this is also possible.

Mastic at home

First, determine for what purpose you need to make mastic. Dairy (based on powdered or condensed milk), chocolate and marshmallow mastic are suitable for covering cakes. To create figures - chocolate, sugar and marshmallow.

Homemade marshmallow mastic is the most popular and simplest recipe. If you follow all the steps step by step, you will get an almost universal mass.

In total, you need four components - marshmallows (100 g), powdered sugar (250 g), a little citric acid and water.

  • Place the marshmallows in a bowl, add a pinch of citric acid diluted in a tablespoon of water.
  • Place the bowl in the microwave at maximum power. The marshmallows should melt well.
  • Start mixing powdered sugar into the mixture. Work like you would with dough - the mastic should become smooth and elastic.
  • Roll the finished lump in powdered sugar, wrap in film and place in the refrigerator for half an hour. After this, you can begin the cake decorating process!

This delicious and simple cake fondant can be easily colored with food coloring. There are two ways to add color to the mass:

  • add dye while kneading - this will give you delicate shades;
  • color a ready-made cake or figurine. The color will be brighter, you can combine tones and paint complex decorations. But be sure to let the surface dry!

Another type of mastic intended for sculpting jewelry and figurines is gelatin. It is snow-white and hardens quickly. It is good for sculpting trees and bridges. You will need:

  • 0.5 tsp gelatin (2 grams),
  • 2 tsp water (10 ml.)
  • 100 gr. powdered sugar
  • a couple of drops of lemon juice.

You need to let the gelatin swell in water, then melt it in a water bath. After dissolving, add powder little by little, kneading like dough. Make sure that the mixture does not become too thick - if it starts to crack, add lemon juice.

Working with mastic

Working with mastic is not as complicated a process as it might seem. You just need to take into account a few important rules.

  • If you make your own mastic, use high-quality powdered sugar. It should be free of grains - the sugar crystals will cause the mastic layer to tear.
  • To glue the fondant decoration onto the cake, moisten the desired area of ​​the surface. Parts of the assembled figures can be glued together with egg white.
  • Large figures must be made in advance and allowed to dry.
  • Complex and voluminous flowers should be stored in the refrigerator after drying, and glued shortly before serving the cake. Otherwise, they will absorb moisture from the air and may lose their shape.
  • To make the surface shiny, brush the cake with vodka 10-20 minutes before serving. The alcohol will quickly disappear and the cake will be shiny.
  • Dry and gel dyes are best suited for coloring.
  • You can easily color the mastic at the kneading stage by rolling it into a ball and making a depression in the center. The dye is applied with a toothpick. Then knead.

Don’t immediately tackle complex shapes and figures: cover a round cake, make simple flowers or decorations cut out using shapes.

The nuances of working with mastic for cakes

If you want to cover the cake with mastic, you need to first prepare the surface of the product. Chocolate ganache, butter or caramel cream, and marzipan are suitable for mastic. This “layer” will help the mastic retain its shape: it “floats” from moisture, so it cannot be applied to impregnated cakes or sour cream.

Sometimes it is recommended to cover the top crust and sides with apricot jam. But in this case, the mastic “wrapper” of the cake will swell from moisture.

A few more tips:

  • Pre-level the surface: apply the cream, smooth it with a spatula, let it harden in the refrigerator, and then check that the layer is even. Mastic will not hide unevenness.
  • It is better not to store the finished cake in the refrigerator for a long time. If you take out the product and it is covered with microdroplets of water, do not wash it, let it evaporate on its own. Otherwise, stains will remain on the mastic.
  • Don't roll out the mixture too thin. The ideal thickness is 3-4 mm. The table or board should be sprinkled with powder or starch. A silicone mat will also work well.

Working with cake fondant is easier if you use a few useful tools. These include:

  • perfectly smooth rolling pin;
  • leveling iron;
  • rotating stand;
  • roller for trimming edges.

All this can be purchased in the section “for mastic and marzipan” on the online store website Supermarket for confectioners.

Decorating a cake with fondant - how to do it

To make a cake with mastic - simple or complex, there is no need to rush. Then even a novice pastry chef will be able to make his own little masterpiece. The algorithm for a simple cake wrap looks like this:

  • roll out a circle of mastic. The diameter of the circle should be approximately equal to twice the height of the cake plus its diameter. Add to this a couple of centimeters “for trimming”;
  • roll the mixture onto a rolling pin and transfer it to the cake;
  • Smooth the top with an iron, being careful not to stretch the mass. Then smooth out the corners;
  • Carefully press down the sides to remove any creases. Walk the iron over the surface;
  • cut off the excess with a roller.

On average, a cake with a diameter of 15 cm and a height of 10 will require half a kilo of mastic. And for large ones, with a diameter of 35 cm - two kilograms.

If you didn’t calculate correctly and there are still bubbles on the surface, you can get rid of them by lifting the edge of the layer and laying it down again. If you have leveled the top and moved on to the sides, there is no need to return to it and smooth it further, because the mastic will stretch.

Decorating a cake with fondant can be done using prepared circles exactly along the diameter of the cake and ribbons of a contrasting color for the sides.

A textured surface can be easily created using tongs. Using pastry tongs, like tweezers, “grab” a piece of mastic and pinch it. With this device you can make geometric patterns, leaves, hearts.

Mastic cake decorating ideas

Mastic decorations can be used to decorate cakes of any size. Elements made from this mass go well with sugar beads or pearls, sprinkles and other confectionery decor.

An elegant and simple option is to cover the cake with elongated triangles of pearl fondant. The elements need to be layered on top of each other to create a ruched effect on the fabric. You can place several large sugar beads in the center.

A very effective decoration for mastic cakes is the use of figures cut out with cookie cutters. Snowflakes, hearts, and leaves look good against a contrasting background.

Delicate and very romantic decor - multi-colored “skirts” made of mastic on the sides of the cake. You need to cut out the ribbons, carefully make “assemblies” using a wooden knitting needle or stick and glue them to the cake. For more reliable fastening, you can use needles or pins - when the decoration dries, they can be easily removed. Additionally, you can cut out mastic bows.

You can make “marble” or “zebra” decor from mastic of different colors: contrasting ribbons, thin ribbons should be placed on a mastic circle, and then rolled out until smooth.




Mastic cake secrets for beginners

The best cake layers for a mastic-coated cake are sponge cakes, but there are recipes that allow you to use shortbread and even soufflé. However, if you want to make a soufflé cake, there should be sponge layers on top and bottom. Otherwise, the mastic will flow and the cake will lose its shape.

The basic version for a sponge cake is a dough made from eggs, sugar, flour and butter. Proportions vary depending on the recipe. The cake layered with the selected cream must be placed in the refrigerator for soaking. You can even press it on top with a press so that it takes shape.

Then you need to trim the sides to make it easier to cover with mastic. If the cake is made up of several parts, you need to make the desired shape. For convex elements, you can make a mixture of biscuit crumbs and mastic cream. It’s easy to mask unevenness with it.

A simple cream recipe - made from butter and condensed milk. Beat a stick of butter with a mixer until a white mass is obtained and add half a can of condensed milk. Whisk again. Cover the cake with cream and put it in the refrigerator. Then use a heated dry spatula to smooth out any unevenness.

You can start covering the cake with fondant!

For beginners, you can apply any design or inscription to a mastic cake using a stencil and a special dye or food markers.

Simple flowers are made using cups and other containers of different diameters: circles are cut out, and then the flower is assembled.

Simple mastic cake, basic recipe

If you want to make a cake quickly, the easiest option is to use ready-made cake layers. Next you need to “assemble” the product:

The “inner” cream with which the cakes are layered can be used in almost any way to your taste, for example, creamy, custard, butter.

  • To make the cake tastier, the layers can be additionally layered with dried fruits, fresh fruits that do not get soggy, or alternate between cream and sour jam;
  • The top layer is covered with butter cream.
  • An even simpler option is to use ready-made chocolate spread. You need to heat it slightly so that it spreads better, and then cool the cake in the refrigerator.
  • Cover the finished cake with fondant as usual. If the excess mass is trimmed unevenly, the bottom edge of the cake can be decorated with sides or cut out openwork ribbons.

This is the simplest mastic cake, a basic recipe - you can even make it with your children, who will enjoy sculpting from a pliable mass, like plasticine.

IN Supermarket for the pastry chef You can purchase felt-tip pens for drawing with mastic, equipment for creating flowers and figures, ready-made sweet flowers and much more. You can make your own little confectionery masterpiece in just a few hours.

Tips for beginners on working with sugar mastic.

TIPS FOR WORKING WITH MASTIC

Why sometimes does the base begin to show through through the coating of sugar mastic?

Any type of sugar mastic used to cover the cake is very sensitive to humidity, so it is necessary to protect the cake covered with sugar mastic from moisture.
First, you need to use dry biscuits, butter cakes or store-bought biscuits as the base.
Secondly, don’t be too zealous when soaking the cake in sugar syrup or liqueur.
Thirdly, a cake covered with sugar mastic should be stored in tightly closed airtight boxes or plastic bags.

How long can a cake covered with sugar fondant last?

If the cake is wet then it will take longer for the cake to dry
If the cake is very dry, then there is a danger that after two days the mastic that covers the cake will warp.
It is also necessary to keep in mind that in dry and hot climates the shelf life of a cake covered with fondant is shorter than in cool and humid climates.

Why does sugar mastic break?

When rolling out sugar mastic, it is worth considering that its thickness should not be very thin. It is enough to roll out the mastic to a thickness of 2-3 mm.
In addition to the fact that the thinly rolled mastic may tear while covering the cake, all the unevenness of the base of the cake is visible under the thinly rolled mastic.

On what basis do you roll out sugar mastic?

There are several options for rolling out mastic.
1) sugar mastic can be rolled out on a table sprinkled with powdered sugar or starch
2) it is convenient to roll out the sugar mastic between two large sheets of polyethylene, which are greased with vegetable oil.

The advantage of the second method is that it is not necessary to separate the mastic from the polyethylene to cover the cake. After the mastic is rolled out to a thickness of 2-3 mm, it is enough to remove the top sheet and transfer the mastic on polyethylene to the cake and only when the mastic already covers the cake, separate the polyethylene from the mastic.

With this method, I did not get a smooth surface of the mastic because I used thin polyethylene, which, when rolled out, slid down and formed folds. But I liked the resulting “structured” surface of the mastic, so I did not take thicker polyethylene.

I think polyethylene, which is used for greenhouses, will allow you to get a smooth surface, since it is dense enough not to form wrinkles when mastic is rolled through it.

How to make sugar mastic on a cake shine.

To make the sugar mastic on the cake shine, after you have finished decorating the cake, cover the mastic with a solution of honey in vodka in a 1:1 ratio.
To do this, take a soft brush and, moistening it in the solution, apply a honey-vodka solution to your creation. After a few minutes, the vodka will evaporate and your cake will become shiny.

How to store mastic and for how long?

Any sugar mastic can be stored for several days, up to a week, in well-closed plastic bags or plastic containers.

There is nothing to spoil in sugar mastic; it is important to simply protect the mastic from air so that it does not dry out and from moisture so that the mastic does not get wet.

A few tips when working with marshmallow mastic

1. When buying candy, the name does not have to be "Marshmallows". It is enough that the name contains the combination "..mallows.." or "..mallow..".
For example, "Chamallows", "Frutmallows", "Mallow-Mix", "Mini Mallows", "Banana Mallows", etc.
In Russia, marshmallows are produced by the Nestlé company - “Bon Pari, tutti-frutti soufflé” and “Bon Pari, soufflé”.
2. Powdered sugar for mastic should be very finely ground. If there are sugar crystals in it, the layer will tear when rolling.
Depending on the type of candy, you may need much more powdered sugar than indicated in the recipe, so you need to stock up in large quantities in advance.
If the mastic remains sticky for a long time during mixing, then you need to mix in the powder until you get the desired consistency.
3. Mastic coating should NEVER be applied to a damp base - to soaked cakes, to sour cream, etc. Mastic quickly dissolves when exposed to moisture.
Therefore, there must be a “buffer layer” between the fondant and the cake. This could be marzipan or a thin layer of buttercream.
If you are using buttercream, then before applying the mastic, you need to let the cake sit in the refrigerator until the cream hardens.
4. To glue different parts of mastic figures or to glue decorations onto a mastic coating, the gluing area should be slightly moistened with water.
5. When exposed to air for a long time, the mastic dries out.
Some figures, for example, flowers, cups, spoons, plates, tables and chairs, are best made in advance and allowed to dry well.
6. Marshmallow figures can be decorated with food coloring on top.
7. If the mastic has cooled down and began to roll out poorly, then you can warm it up a little in the microwave or hot oven and it will become plastic again.
8. You can store unused mastic in the refrigerator (1-2 weeks) or in the freezer (1-2 months), after wrapping it in plastic film.
9. Finished dried mastic figures should be stored in a tightly closed box in a dry place. These figurines can be stored for several months.
Marshmallows are often mistakenly called marshmallows. But this is not marshmallow, although it is similar to it, but it is prepared without eggs. Marshmallows are marshmallow-like candies consisting of sugar or corn syrup, food starch, softened water, gelatin, dextrose and flavorings, beaten into a sponge.

Marshmallow tastes like marshmallow or marshmallow, but more airy and viscous.

This is a soufflé that was originally made from marshmallow. The name “marsh mallow” itself is translated as “marsh mallow,” that is, marshmallow. A sticky jelly-like white mass was obtained from marshmallow root. Over time, marshmallow was replaced with gelatin and starch. Modern "puffed" marshmallows first appeared in the United States in the 1950s. They began to be produced by Kraft. The new generation of Americans no longer knows the true taste of “swamp mallow” sweets; all that remains is the name.
Small pieces of marshmallow are added to salads, desserts, ice cream, and decorated with cakes and pastries. American children love to put marshmallow pieces in a cup of hot cocoa. It is also a traditional delicacy at picnics. A piece of marshmallow is pricked onto a long stick and lightly fried over an open fire.

Marshmallows are also used to make mastic for decorating cakes and pastries.
Compound:

Marshmallow - 90-100g (one pack of marshmallow candies)
lemon juice or water - ~1 tbsp. spoon
powdered sugar - ~1-1.5 cups

To do this, add a tablespoon of lemon juice or water to 100 g of marshmallows and heat in the microwave for 10-20 seconds or in a water bath until the marshmallows slightly melt and increase in volume.
Then gradually add sifted powdered sugar and stir the mass with a spatula until thickened.
Then put the mixture on a table sprinkled with powdered sugar and knead it with your hands until a plasticine-like mass is formed that will not stick to your hands.
The mastic is wrapped in cling film and placed in the refrigerator for half an hour. The finished mastic is rolled out with a rolling pin and figures are cut out or sculpted from it to decorate desserts.

If the layer of mastic that covered the cake breaks

And all these seams and patches can be easily removed with a wide brush, which you dip in water and “plaster” until the surface is perfect, smoothing out the mastic and sealing the seams and imperfections. And where there is an air bubble under the mastic, you can simply pierce it with a needle and smooth out this place with your hand.

what cream is better to use under the coating?

It is better to level the cake:
- butter cream
- boiled condensed milk
- ganache
- marzipan mass

In the first three cases, the cake must be refrigerated so that its surface hardens.

At what stage is oil added to the mastic?
I added oil when I put the mastic in the microwave.

how to mix marshmallow mastic:

The mastic should become homogeneous, dense, non-porous, non-sticky, and plastic. If during work the mastic becomes too elastic and hard, you need to heat it a little in a micro, knead it with your hands, or if it overheats, mix it in the powder and continue working. If the mastic begins to crumble, you can add a little water or lime. juice and knead again.

A little about the batch itself. I read a lot of tips on how to make marshmallow mastic. I am categorically against completely melting marmyshki and stirring them until smooth. I heat them up, wait for them to swell and immediately pour them into the pan. powder and knead. If you overheat them, the mastic will become grainy and crumble. And one more moment, when the marmyshki are very heated (actually melted) when adding sugar. powder it (powder) begins to gather in lumps very. dense and these lumps then interfere with your work...

how to cover a cake evenly with fondant

There will be no folds on the sides if you roll out the mastic with a large margin and when you start covering, the mastic will stretch well under its own weight and lie flat. Only the leveling cream under the mastic should be very strong. well cured so that no dents appear during coating.
When I cover a cake with fondant, I have at least 10-15 cm left around the entire circumference. Then she has weight and can stretch out. I first smooth out this entire stock on the table so that it lies without wrinkles, and then the sides of the cake are easily smoothed. And then I just use a pizza knife to cut everything evenly in a circle, leaving 0.5 cm in reserve (otherwise the mastic may rise).

Sugar mastic is a unique confectionery material that is widely used to create decorations: with colors, figures, ruffles, reliefs, inscriptions. Mastic is similar in structure to plasticine, so invite your little helpers to mold the decorations themselves. Modeling will allow you to develop fine motor skills, and unlike plasticine, mastic does not contain harmful substances, so it’s not scary if the baby eats a piece.

Special equipment, silicone molds, and plastic forms expand the boundaries of mastic use. You can view and purchase all the most necessary tools on our website in the “tools for working with mastic” section.

Despite the fact that working with sugar tests is not difficult, there are a number of subtleties and nuances, knowledge of which will be useful for both novice confectioners and professionals.

The first difficulty encountered when working with mastic is This is excessive stickiness. It appears from increased room temperature, from the warmth of the hands and even from excessive humidity (for example, if the palms are sweaty) and, if the mastic was prepared independently, due to incorrect proportions of the ingredients.

Powdered sugar and regular cornstarch (or rice) will come to the rescue here.

If your homemade mastic is very sticky, then just continue kneading it with powdered sugar. In essence, mastic is a sugar dough where powder acts as flour.

If store-bought mastic sticks, just dust the work surface and hands with cornstarch and continue working.

The mastic should be rolled out on a flat surface sprinkled with starch and powdered sugar or on specialized embossed mats that will give the mastic an original pattern.

You rolled out the mastic and were about to transfer it to the cake, but it broke? You are definitely overdoing it: you need to roll out the sugar dough to a thickness of 2 to 4 mm. Rolled dough too thin not only breaks, but also reveals all the unevenness of your cake.

Now, perhaps, about the most important question: how to properly cover a cake with mastic. First of all, you need to prepare its surface.

Confectioners use a thin layer of marzipan, ganache or butter cream to smooth out the mastic. No other creams, including butter cheese, will work because the sugar dough may leak.

The most convenient way to level the surface of the cake is in three stages:

· Coat the surface of the cake, from which all bumps and irregularities have previously been removed, with a thin layer of butter cream to remove all excess crumbs. Place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

· Remove the cake from the refrigerator and coat the cake with a thick layer of cream. Place in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.

· Take the cake out again and use a hot knife or spatula to remove excess cream and level it to a perfectly flat surface. Place in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes.

The cake can be covered with fondant as soon as the cream has hardened.

Apply a layer of sugar dough to the side of the cake, then roll the mastic from the rolling pin onto the surface of the cake using a rotating motion away from you.

Press the mastic with your palms, being careful not to touch or press with your fingers to avoid indentations on the surface.



There will be no folds on the sides of the cake if you roll out the mastic “with a margin”. First of all, it is necessary to smooth out the “stock” so that it lies without wrinkles and folds.

If everything is smooth, you can trim off the excess. It is convenient to do this with a special mastic knife, which can be purchased in our store.

Flowers or figures from mastic should be sculpted in advance and allowed to dry for at least a day.

It happens that when covering the mastic, bubbles appear: it is enough to simply pierce them with a needle and smooth out this place. The same should be done if the mastic is torn. The most convenient way to smooth the mastic on the cake is with a special iron, which you will also find in our store.

A cake covered with fondant should be stored in the refrigerator, covered with a box, so that moisture does not accidentally get on it.

It happens that a cake that is taken out of the refrigerator is covered with droplets of water. This phenomenon is called condensation. It appears on the cake due to a sharp temperature change.

It is very important to let the cake dry naturally, that is, there is no need to rub the mastic with dry cloths. Such actions can lead to damage to the appearance. If the cake was painted with paints, then don’t worry: they won’t flow from condensation.

How to decorate mastic?

To add shine to the surface of the sugar dough, you need to mix honey and vodka in 1:1 proportions. Apply the mixture to the cake with a soft brush and let it dry. The vodka will dissipate and a shine will appear.

A cake decorated with kandurin looks very impressive.

There are two ways to decorate:

· Dry method. Use a brush to take some paint from the can and shake it onto the cake. The dry method is more convenient to use on large surfaces.

· Solution. Add vodka drop by drop to 1-2 grams of kandurin. The consistency should not be thick, but not liquid either. This method is convenient for drawing details and patterns, and for decorating flowers from mastic.

The mastic should be colored with gel dyes. You can, of course, use powder dyes, but the consumption of such dyes is much higher, so getting a rich color can be difficult and expensive.

Gel dyes are odorless and tasteless and, importantly, do not change the structure of either purchased mastic or homemade mastic.

To glue the parts and secure the figures on the cake, you can use a neutral confectionery gel, plain water, and even fresh egg white. The principle is simple: lubricate the base of the part with the required amount of gel, water or protein and secure it to the cake.

How to store mastic? Be sure to wrap tightly in cling film to prevent moisture from getting in and to prevent the sugar dough from drying out.

Should be stored in a cool, dry place.

If the mastic does dry out, it can be revived with confectionery glycerin.

Mastic is a universal assistant for the confectioner. With its help it is easy to turn your fantasy into reality. Don't have enough time to make and dry figurines or flowers? We are happy to offer you ready-made decorations. Take a look at the “Mastic Decorations” section: we are sure that you will find a bouquet or funny sugar and marzipan figures to your liking.

Inspiration to you, friends!

Mastic is a very tasty and beautiful decoration. Most pastry shops are filled with culinary masterpieces, and when you see them, it’s hard to believe that such a miracle can be created with your own hands. However, an original and bright cake is quite easy to make yourself.

Cooking technology

For mastic you need powdered sugar and water, as well as lemon juice and gelatin. Some masters use oil and glycerin in their recipes; this is done so that the mass remains suitable for work longer and does not dry out. The prepared mixture must be kneaded for at least 15 minutes.

It is recommended to knead on a table that has been previously sprinkled with powdered sugar or starch. This is done to prevent the mass from sticking to the surface and hands. Homemade mastic is beautifully colored using the juice of carrots, beets or spinach. Pigments that are sold in stores are also great. To prevent the mixture from drying out before starting work, it must be packed in cling film.

Marshmallow mastic

To prepare you will need 100 grams of marshmallows, 1 tbsp. l. butter, 350 grams of powdered sugar and various dyes. The first two ingredients are combined in one container, then heated in a water bath in the microwave until the marshmallows increase in volume. Next, powdered sugar is added to this mass, and the mixture is kneaded until it resembles plasticine in composition. If it is necessary to mold colored elements, the necessary dyes are added to the composition.

Chocolate mastic

To prepare, you need to have 100 grams of dark chocolate, 100 grams of marshmallows, 1 tbsp. l. butter, 35 grams of 30% cream and 350 grams of powdered sugar.

The chocolate is broken into pieces and added to preheated cream. Then you need to wait until the products are completely dissolved. Next, butter and marshmallows are combined together, and, as in the first recipe, the mass is heated until the marshmallows increase in size in a water bath. Then we collect all the ingredients in one container. Then mix in the powdered sugar and bring the composition to the state of plasticine.

How to roll it out?

There are several options for how to work with mastic so that it turns out smooth and covers the product beautifully.

1. To do this, you can use a rolling pin and use it to roll out the mass on a flat surface with previously sprinkled starch or powdered sugar.
2. Another convenient way is to use two polyethylene sheets. Before starting work, they are lubricated with vegetable oil, and the mass is placed between them. After rolling out and giving the desired shape, the top layer is removed, and the coating is transferred to the product directly on the second sheet. After covering, all excess is removed.
3. There is also a special silicone mat to which the ingredients do not stick.

How to cover a cake with fondant?

1. The required amount of mass is cut off and kneaded well.
2. Using a ruler, measure the top of the cake and its sides. Next, on a table sprinkled with powder or starch, a layer slightly larger than the measurements, 3.5 mm thick, is rolled out.
3. Use special spatulas to level the surface and remove excess powder with a brush.
4. Then the cake is covered with mastic, for this it is lifted from the table using a rolling pin on which it was previously rolled, and then gradually laid out on the product.
5. Using a special tool or your palms, smooth the top of the cake, starting from the center and moving towards the edges.
6. Next, it becomes more clear how to work with mastic, so the same procedure is performed with the side parts. In this case, the mass needs to be pulled out a little when applying. You need to smooth out the covering very carefully so that wrinkles do not appear.
7. Excess coating is carefully trimmed with a sharp knife or tucked under the base.
8. If you need to apply a design or embossing to the cake, then this is done immediately, before the mass hardens.

Making figurines

Once it has become clear how to cover the cake with fondant, you can begin making a variety of decorations.

Since the structure of the mass resembles plasticine, with active imagination the necessary fragments are sculpted. To connect the parts, they are moistened with a small amount of water and fastened. To add color to the elements, it is not necessary to use colored paste; you can make figures from white mastic, and then simply paint them. It is better to make large decorations in advance so that they have time to dry well. Details such as flowers are laid out immediately before serving, but a master class will help you understand the technology for attaching the figures. Cakes with such decorations should not sit in the refrigerator for a long time, otherwise they may absorb a lot of moisture and simply fall off.