Marzipan should be kept in airtight containers until ready to use. A layer of frosting should be used as a barrier between the cake and marzipan. Marzipan can be shaped and colored before being draped over the cake. Additional coloring and sugar crystals can be added for visual interest.
When decorating with marzipan, the dough should be protected from air and moisture until used. Once this paste-like icing has been placed on the cake or pastry, it begins to dry out and harden. All shaping, coloring and glazing must be completed before decorating the final surface with this type of paste.
This cake decorating icing can be made at home or purchased at a local grocery store pre-made. It is typically sold in pre-made tubes, which can be shaped or tinted with color according to the chef’s needs. Marzipan can be mixed by hand using finely ground almonds, sugar and egg whites or water. It can be mixed into a dough-like paste or baked on a hot stove until it resembles playdough.
Once the marzipan has been made or purchased, it is essential to keep it in airtight containers until it is ready to use. This pastry product tends to dry out after being exposed to air and can become too brittle to use if it gets in too much moisture. To protect homemade marzipan, chefs can divide their dough into fist-shaped balls and store them in airtight plastic bags in the refrigerator. Similar techniques can also be used for store-bought marzipan, which allows chefs to separate the large quantities they need to purchase into more usable formats.
Decorating with marzipan on top of a cake can be similar to decorating with traditional icing. A barrier should first be created between the decorative marzipan shapes and the cake, which typically contains more moisture than the small decorations can handle. The icing can be used as a barrier for pound cakes, angel cakes and pies. Frosting that uses powdered sugar as a base can be used to frost single-layer and multi-layer cakes.
A layer of marzipan can then be placed on top of this protective coating. This layer should only be to cover the surface of the cake and separate additional pieces can be used for smaller more complex decorations with marzipan molds. The starting marzipan ball can be placed between two pieces of plastic or wax paper and rolled to a thickness of about 8mm (about 3 millimeters) using a rolling pin. This plastic layering protects the marzipan from drying out or becoming brittle. One layer of plastic at a time can be removed, and the marzipan can be draped gently over the cake like foil with the excess or uneven parts being trimmed off.
The last step in decorating with marzipan shapes involves shaping and arranging the pieces for drying or firing. The colorful coloring can be kneaded into the dough before placing these shapes into their individual moulds. The additional coloring can be diluted with water and brushed into the surface of the shapes to intensify their hues. Colored sugar crystals can be sprinkled into this final layer as it dries to add visual interest or effects to pieces.
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