What is mastic for cakes. How to make mastic for a cake at home: recipes. Composition of sugar mastic

But no one says how this consumer well-being was achieved. After all, only the confectioners themselves see the composition of industrial mastic.

1. Sugar, glucose syrup- so far so good. Sugar must be included, glucose syrup too. Glucose is just a type of sugar that allows mastic to be elastic.

2. Water also does not cause concern.

3. Modified potato starch. He also hides under the name Thickener and additives E415, E1422, E466. Here is a little more difficult.

Additive E1422-E1422 is an acetylated distarch adipate (modified type starch) treated with adipic and acetic anhydrides. For some reason, in our country, this additive is recognized as absolutely safe, and it is used even in the production of baby food. But what is it really? It can greatly harm the pancreas, and even cause a terrible disease - pancreatic necrosis.

Modified starch slows down the processing of food, provokes bloating, indigestion, nausea and pain. In some cases, it causes a stoppage of the stomach and serious intoxication of the body.

4. Equivalent to cocoa butter, vegetable margarine. Here, probably, it is already clear to everyone. Now the cheapest and most common product behind these names is palm oil. Margarine uses stearin, a type of palm oil with a melting point of 48-52 degrees. The harm of the product is due to the high content

Mastic is a confectionery mass based on sugar and thickeners used to decorate cakes. There are many recipes for making mastic at home, all of them are quite simple to perform, they can be used for simple decoration or sculpting beautiful figures to decorate a dessert.

Mastic is used to decorate confectionery, it is a sweet mass based on sugar and other ingredients, which is quite simple to prepare on your own. Bright and beautiful cake mastic at home is made from natural thickeners with sugar.

There are two main types - gelatin and milk mastic, each of which has its own composition and method of use. Dairy masses are very simple; powdered sugar, regular, condensed or powdered milk are used for their manufacture. Such a mass is very plastic, it is easy to work with it, mastic can be used to decorate and sculpt figures.

Gelatin mastic made at home takes more time to cook, it is very important to take into account the solidification timeso that the mastic turns out to be elastic and not hard.

On the basis of these confectionery mastics, with the addition of other ingredients, marzipan, protein, chocolate and other types of decorations are produced. The recipe for all of them will be different, in addition, you can use natural dyes that will give the dessert a brighter, more attractive appearance.

There are several recipes for a cake at home. In total, there are two main types - dairy and marshmallow-based (white soufflé), easily dyed in the desired shade.

Ingredients such as chocolate, honey or egg white can be added to the mass. In addition, mastic masses are separated for purposes such as:

• sugar for covering dessert, modeling, sculpting simple figures;
• flowery with good plasticity, it rolls easily, dries quickly, which is used for modeling flowers, decorations;
• modeling, which dries very slowly, which is used to create complex figures (mastic on the outside is dry, inside remains soft for a long time).

In the manufacture, it is also taken into account what exactly the mass is used for. For tightening, mastic with a large amount of thickener is used, this allows you to get thin and plastic layers. They will not tear, allowing you to create smooth and beautiful surfaces for desserts.

For modeling, a mass with a small amount of a thickener is used, which allows the material to retain plasticity and ductility for a long time. This makes it easy to create the most beautiful figurines without worrying that the mastic will dry out quickly or start to crumble.

According to the composition, they distinguish 5 main types of mastic:

• from marshmallow;
• from chocolate;
• based on protein;
• milk mastic;
• gelatin composition.

Stylish and beautiful decorations are made from marshmallow-based mastic. This will require the following components:

• pure water - 60 milliliters;
• marshmallows (preferably white) - 200 grams;
• any pigment;
• finely ground powdered sugar.

Sweets must first be heated with a water bath, then mixed with the rest of the ingredients. The mass is thoroughly mixed, when it stops sticking to the fingers, you can start modeling the figures. When rolling out the surface of the table, it is recommended to lightly sprinkle with powder.

To prepare a mixture need to take:

• powdered sugar of very fine grinding - 125 grams;
• dark chocolate - a tile per 100 grams;
• cream (suitable 30%) - 50 milliliters;
• butter - a tablespoon;
• cognac - 10 milliliters.

Heat the chocolate over low heat, then add all the other ingredients, mix thoroughly. Before sculpting, the mastic cools slightly, for which it must be wrapped in cling film.

For mastic from protein are used ingredients such as:

• fresh protein;
• powdered sugar - 500 grams;
• glucose syrup - 2 tablespoons.

Additionally, you can use honey or chocolate, the amount of which is regulated during cooking. Depending on the purpose, chocolate can be white or dark. It is only necessary to immediately decide what shade the mass is needed before making flowers or decorations from mastic.

After kneading, the mass is wrapped in a film and put in the refrigerator for two hours. Before sculpting, it must be kneaded again, you can add a little powder if the mastic sticks to your fingers.

For milk mass are used ingredients such as:

• dry milk - 160 grams;
• dyes of the required shades;
• cognac - a teaspoon;
• condensed milk - 200 grams;
• powder - 160 grams;
• lemon juice - 2 teaspoons.

All ingredients, except dyes and lemon juice, are mixed, the mass should be elastic. Then juice and dyes are gradually added.

Milk mastic always has a beige tint; it is impossible to get a white color. But with the help of pigments, you can achieve other, bright or pastel, shades that correspond to the idea and future design of the cake.

To obtain a gelatinous mass, you will need ingredients such as:

• gelatin - 10 grams;
• dyes;
• lemon juice - 2 teaspoons;
• powder - 200 grams;
• water - 60 milliliters.

The gelatin is soaked. After it dissolves in water, you need to add the remaining components, except for dyes, stir the mass until elastic. Pigments are added to the finished mastic. If it turns out not elastic enough, the amount of lemon juice can be increased.

Features of coloring mastic on a cake

The made mastic can be dyed in any color, for which natural dry food and gel dyes are used. In order to give the mass the desired shade, a small amount of dye is enough, after which the mass is intensively kneaded to give it a uniform, beautiful color.

When using dry compositions, you must first mix the pigment with water (a couple of drops are enough), then stir the resulting paint. It should be added drop by drop to the mastic in different places to ensure uniform coloring.

Black natural dye does not exist, usually artificial pigments have to be used to obtain the desired color.

Rules for working with mastic on the cake

Before you make mastic at home and use it to decorate a cake, you need to take into account the features of working with the mass. This will allow not only to realize all your ideas exactly, but also to make the confectionery product really beautiful, to keep the beautiful appearance of the dessert for the required period of time.

The main rules for using mastic are the following principles.

1. When using powdered sugar, make sure that it is very finely ground, otherwise the mass will begin to tear during rolling.
2. Mastic should not be applied to wet surfaces, including cream, as it will dissolve and the dessert itself will lose its attractive appearance. It is recommended to do this only on marzipan layers or on butter cream, after keeping the dessert in the refrigerator until it hardens.
3. When sculpting figurines, you often have to glue individual parts together. To do this, slightly moisten the surface, and then fasten the mastic figures together.
4. In the air, the mastic dries up, which is used when sculpting various figures and decorations. But voluminous flowers are best done and placed on the cake at the very end, so that they do not have time to collect moisture from the surrounding air. If you do not follow this simple rule, then flowers and petals from mastic can fall off and lose their attractive appearance.
5. Sometimes it happens that condensation appears on the surface of the mastic mass from the refrigerator. It is very easy to remove it, you need to use a regular cloth or dry the surface with a light jet from a fan.
6. Sometimes the mass loses plasticity, which can be easily corrected. To do this, it must be heated in.
7. Store the finished mass in the refrigerator, tightly wrapped in cling film. The shelf life in the refrigerator is up to two weeks, in the freezer - up to two months.
8. Ready-made mastic figures can be stored for a long time, for this they must be placed in a dry, tightly closed container. Storage time - several months.
9. Mastic can be dyed with food coloring, most often this is used for marshmallow mass.

The mastic must be handled correctly and accurately, if the modeling or storage technology is violated, the mass will begin to crumble and lose its shape while decorating the dessert. Wet cakes should not be covered with mastic, and only finely ground powder should be used when cooking.

Finally

Mastic is used to decorate a dessert or sculpt figurines on cakes. Various ingredients are used to make the mixture, but powdered sugar remains the main one. As additional, you can add chocolate, honey, proteins or milk, natural and synthetic dyes to obtain the desired shade.

Mother of two children. I have been running a household for more than 7 years - this is my main job. I like to experiment, I constantly try various means, methods, techniques that can make our life easier, more modern, richer. I love my family.

The fashion for decorating cakes with sugar dough, or, as we call it, mastic, came a few years ago from America. And today this type of design is becoming more and more popular! Such a cake invariably catches admiring glances at any holiday. And this is not surprising, because with the help of mastic you can create almost any decoration for a “sweet masterpiece”.

Homemade cake is the most delicious dessert and many housewives already know how to cook it. All stages of its preparation, subject to the recipe and the use of fresh and high-quality products, are not particularly difficult. In addition, modern household appliances greatly facilitate work and reduce the time spent on in the kitchen, which is a great advantage compared to those not so distant times when, to get a fluffy cream or biscuit, you had to rotate the whisk until exhaustion by hand.

The cost of homemade desserts is an additional argument in favor of making them yourself.

But the question of decorating a homemade cake for many causes a feeling of insecurity, at least. There are different ways to solve this problem: the cake is simply not decorated, or ready-made confectionery products are used - chocolate medallions, pieces of marmalade, nuts or raisins in chocolate or glaze. Of course, this is the way out. But such a way out does not satisfy those for whom confectionery is a favorite hobby, in which there is a desire to constantly improve their skills.

First you need to know that there are several types of mastic for homemade cakes. Consider the most common and affordable options.

Knowing the features of the preparation and use of each of them, you can easily make mastic to decorate your cake at home.

Milk mastic prepared on the basis of condensed milk, powdered sugar and milk powder.

To make buttercream for the cake, take 1 cup of powdered milk, 1 cup of powdered sugar (and keep 1 cup of powder in stock), 150 g of condensed milk and 1 tsp. lemon juice. Sift the powder, discarding all unsifted lumps (when kneading the mastic, they will not dissolve, and the mastic will turn out with grains). Mix a glass of powder with a glass of powdered milk, pour condensed milk and lemon juice into the mixture and knead the mastic dough. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if necessary. The mastic for covering the cake should be homogeneous and elastic, should not stick to your hands. Give the finished mastic a little “rest” in the refrigerator and you can decorate the cake!

This type of mastic is perfect for covering cakes, because. mastic has a pleasant milky taste. However, it is important to know that this mastic will never turn out snow-white, but will have a creamy tint. If you want to make fondant for the cake in rich bright colors, then use food coloring. Coloring mastic with natural juices (beets or spinach) will be problematic, because. they will greatly "thinn" it.

To do marshmallow cake fondant(“marmyshkovy”), you will need marshmallow marshmallows (“Bon Pari”, “Clouds-Tyanuchki”, or others), lemon juice and sifted powdered sugar. For 100 g of marshmallow - 200-250 g of powder, 2 tbsp. lemon juice.

Put marshmallows in a large container, sprinkle with lemon juice and heat in the microwave until doubled in size. It takes me less than one minute. During the heating process, you can mix the marshmallows once or twice. When the marshmallow “disperses”, it must be thoroughly kneaded and kneaded with a spatula (the mass will look like chewing gum). Gradually add powdered sugar and knead the mass like dough. Keep in mind that while the mass is hot, it is able to take in more powdered sugar than necessary. Do not rush to add powder more than the specified weight, let the mastic “rest” a little and cool down (ideally, an hour or two). You can add powder, if necessary, to the already prepared cold mass, but remove it if you knead too much - no longer.

The indisputable advantages of this type of mastic include the fact that this mastic is suitable both for covering cakes and for sculpting figures: they added a little butter (1 tbsp) and a little less powdered sugar during the kneading process - you get a soft and pliable mass for coatings. Without oil and with a lot of powder - dense, tight mastic for modeling.

Another advantage of this mastic is that you can get a perfectly white color using white marshmallows or a colored mass using multi-colored marshmallows. A great option for those who do not have a set of food coloring in their kitchen arsenal. Mastic has a pleasant sweet taste and aroma of airy marshmallows (vanilla, strawberry, lemon - depending on which flavor was added to the "marshmallow").

In order to make chocolate buttercream cake("shokomastika"), take 100 g marshmallows, 100 g chocolate, 1 tbsp. butter, 2 tbsp. fat cream, 200 g of powdered sugar.

First, melt the chocolate (in a water bath or in the microwave), add marshmallows and mix. Heat until marshmallows increase in volume and stir well. You should get a homogeneous viscous mass. Pour warm cream into this mass and add butter. Mix well, until completely homogeneous. Now gradually add the sifted powder and knead like a dough. The finished mastic is soft and pliable, but no longer sticky to the hands. Wrap it in cling film and let it rest. Such mastic can cover cakes and sculpt figures from it. Remember that for sculpting the mass should be denser than for covering (the density is adjusted by adding powdered sugar and / or a small amount of starch).

Chocolate mastic has a pronounced taste and aroma of chocolate and can be brown or creamy in color, depending on which chocolate you used. If desired, this mastic can also be tinted with food coloring, but only if you decide to make a mastic based on white chocolate. It is best to add dye at the stage of kneading the "dough".

And the last type of mastic that is easy to make at home is mastic on gelatin.
For its preparation you will need: 1 tsp. gelatin, 40-50 g of cold water, 0.5 tsp. lemon juice, powdered sugar, dye - optional.

To make this mastic, soak the gelatine in water until plump (according to package instructions, this can take anywhere from 10 minutes to 1 hour). When the gelatin swells, heat it until it dissolves, but in no case boil it - this will cause the gelatin to lose its properties! Add lemon juice and, if desired, coloring to the warm gelatin solution. Now stir in the sifted icing sugar. I can’t say exactly how much powder is needed (about 100 g). Look at the mass - it should be soft, plastic and not stick to your hands. Try to stretch the mastic - it should stretch well.
At this stage, it is no longer necessary to add powder (if you overdo it, the mastic will quickly become “oak”). Wrap the mastic in a film and, according to tradition, remove the “rest” for a couple of hours.

Excellent figures are obtained from gelatin mastic, because. it dries fairly quickly. But for the same reason, it will not succeed in wrapping the cake. The taste of gelatin mastic is neutral (just sweet), because, in fact, it contains nothing but sugar.

Well, now a few specific recipes for making mastic for cakes:

SUGAR MASTIC

One of these methods is sugar mastic for a cake. At home, this decoration option does not present any difficulty at all. To overcome a far-fetched fear - “I definitely won’t be able to do that” - it’s enough to remember how in childhood each of us sculpted figures from plasticine. Then, after all, there was no fear? So everything will work out.

You can buy ready-made sugar mastic for the cake in specialized stores. At home, cooking it is also not difficult.

Sugar mastic for a cake at home - basic technological principles

To begin with, let's look at the question of what mastic is, and what result you need to get in order to easily create decorations of any complexity from sugar mastic for a cake at home.

As already mentioned, in consistency it should be similar to plasticine: flexible, with a connected structure, without lumps. Sugar mastic for a cake at home should not harden immediately. This condition is feasible when using the appropriate components for binding.

Such properties are inherent even in ordinary wheat flour dough: after all, the dough also dries out, retaining a certain shape, if left in the air. If wheat flour is brewed, it turns into a sticky mass. But this ingredient is not quite suitable in terms of taste properties for sugar paste. Therefore, professionals introduced sugar flour, that is, powder, into the composition of confectionery mastic as the main ingredient.

Carbohydrates make up almost 100% of the mass of sugar. They, although they have binding properties, do not have the flexibility inherent in flour due to the lack of protein, unlike flour. Flour contains approximately 70% carbohydrates, but the remaining 30% contains moisture and fat, as well as proteins that can absorb and retain moisture. That is, this small amount of proteins is enough to create the necessary plasticity. But the fats contained in the flour will significantly weight the mastic. Therefore, another component is needed, with a lighter structure. Starch does not contain fat, it has both a loose structure and binding properties, so adding it to powdered sugar creates the desired consistency of sugar mastic for a cake at home.

Confectionery mastic in industrial conditions is created on the basis of collagen contained in gelatin. Due to the use of industrial technology, a paste of higher quality is obtained. Gelatin does not contain fat, and the high content of animal protein allows you to bind crystalline sugar carbohydrates to get a plastic paste.

Sugar mastic can have a different density, taking into account its purpose. So, by adding more water, you can get a liquid consistency enough to cover the surface of the cake by pouring. Making figures, flowers, lace from sugar mastic for a cake at home requires a thick sugar dough in order for it to retain the desired shape.

In a word, in order to quickly and easily learn how to work with mastic, you need to know its biochemical composition and physical properties.
This will help not only to successfully cope with the confectionery mastic purchased in specialized stores, but also to prepare the desired pasta yourself.

Adding acid to the mastic does more than just add flavor to the confection. Lemon juice or acid crystals diluted in water retard the drying of the mastic and allow extra time to create decoration before the mastic dries.
Sugar flowers are flavored with different flavors, with the help of additives. For this purpose, it is possible to use fruit syrups, but then the amount of added water must be reduced, taking into account the moisture contained in the syrup.

Another important nuance: often in sugar mastic recipes there are ingredients such as glycerol And glucose. Please note that these items are only sold in specialized stores. Although they have a similar name to the components used in the manufacture of confectionery products, they differ somewhat in composition from glucose for injection and glycerin for external use sold in pharmacies.

On food coloring quality helping to create culinary masterpieces should also be paid attention. When buying multi-colored powders, make sure they are edible. Otherwise, it is better to use improvised natural paints contained in ordinary products. Here are some examples:

Orange color can be obtained from carrot juice;

Yellow- when adding turmeric powder, Indian saffron to sugar mastic for a cake at home;

Raspberry, any shade of pink- from beet juice;

Red color- from the juice of cranberries, pomegranates, strawberries, raspberries, cherries; If you add a little lemon juice to cherry juice, you get a blue color;

Blue color can also be obtained from the juice of red cabbage, blueberries, red grapes;

For getting Green colour it is necessary to squeeze the juice from spinach leaves (it has a neutral taste, without aromatic oils);

Brown color for mastic can be obtained by mixing powdered sugar with cocoa powder or adding melted dark chocolate to the mastic.

Other colors and shades can be obtained by combining the listed food colors. Remember that orange and red fruits contain a fat-soluble vitamin, β-carotene: therefore, to obtain a rich color, the juice from the fruits must be extracted using a small amount of vegetable or animal fat. You can get the desired color by infusing the listed products in alcohol, followed by its evaporation.

Now you can get sugar mastic for a cake at home in any color and realize your most daring and sophisticated ideas for decorating your own culinary masterpiece. It remains only to prepare the mastic by choosing an acceptable recipe:

Milk-based sugar mastic

Ingredients:
Fine powdered sugar 120 g
Powdered cream of any fat content 160 g
Corn starch 80 g
Condensed milk 8.5% 110 g
Glycerin (special) 50 ml
Vanilla or fruit flavor, alcohol
Citric acid 5 g
Water for acid solution 20 ml

Cooking:
When using dry milk concentrates, you can use products with any fat content, since the dry matter, when kneading sugar mastic for a cake at home, will not have time to transform the fats contained in it and transfer it to the dough. Fats will begin to work already when using the product, participating in the creation of taste and in the process of digestion.

Dilute citric acid in water. You can use lemon juice instead. Combine all dry ingredients of mastic.

If you need mastic of different colors, then the dyes can be dissolved in an acidic solution, dividing it into the desired number of colors. In this case, it will be appropriate to replace the water for the citric acid solution, for example, with beetroot juice, which will allow you to get a bright pink or crimson mastic.

To achieve pale pink shades, combine beetroot juice with water to reduce the concentration of food coloring, but do not reduce the acid content, otherwise the fondant will dry out very quickly, making it difficult to work with it when creating decorations.

Be sure to sift the powder so that the mastic turns out to be very plastic and the sugar crystals do not break the structure. Add the dry mixture to the condensed milk, first stirring intensively with a silicone spatula, and then transfer the dough to a silicone surface and continue kneading with your hands.

When making jewelry, take the right amount of mastic, and cover the rest with a film so that it does not weather and does not dry out.

It is also better to roll out the mastic with a thin layer using silicone rolling pins of different thicknesses. If necessary, the work surface is crushed with powder. To give gloss, finished mastic products are smeared with a brush dipped in syrup with the addition of glycerin.

Sugar mastic on a gelatin basis

Ingredients:
Powder 600 g
Lemon juice 30 ml
Starch, corn 50 g
Gelatin 20 g
Glycerin 1 tbsp. l.
Water 200 ml (for jelly and for dissolving gelatin)
Vanilla 2-3 g
Glucose 10 ml

Cooking:
Boil starch in water. When it cools to room temperature, add glycerin and glucose to the resulting jelly. Separately, dissolve the gelatin in a water bath, without bringing the heating temperature above 40ºϹ. Sift powdered sugar more than the required amount for making mastic, so that if necessary, use it for the desired consistency, sprinkle the surface of the desktop on which you will knead the sugar dough. From the bulk of the powder, knead the dough, pouring starch jelly into it first, and then melted gelatin.

Add liquid ingredients gradually, while working intensively with a silicone spatula and mixing the whole mass. Continue kneading the mastic on a table or silicone mat until the mastic acquires the desired plasticity, uniformity and at the same time stops sticking too much to your hands. Cover the finished mass with a film and leave for a while so that all the ingredients react with each other.

If you need to get mastic of different colors, then divide the finished white mastic into parts, add the dissolved dye and continue kneading the dough until an even, uniform color is obtained. When sculpting flowers and figures, use powdered sugar to roll out layers, sprinkling sugar dough.

During the modeling process, all the colors of the mastic must be covered with a film so that a dry crust does not form: take only the amount that is necessary to make a flower or figure, and immediately hide the rest under the film. Think in advance how to lay the desired flowers and figures for drying, prepare the necessary forms for them to fix the dough in the desired position.

Bulk sugar mastic

Ingredients:
Milk 200 ml
Water 200 l
Powder 800 g
Perfume
Lemon juice 50 ml
Gelatin 40 g

Cooking:
The consistency of the finished mastic should be similar to thick sour cream. This mastic is designed to smooth the surface of the cake, when complex relief patterns are not required.
Pour powdered sugar into boiling milk and, having dissolved it with stirring, remove the milk syrup from the heat and cool it to 30-40ºϹ.

Dissolve the gelatin in water and, having strained it, pour it into the milk mass, beating both parts with a mixer at low speed. Add vanilla or the desired fragrance, dye, if you need to give the coating a certain color and lemon juice.

When the finished mastic has cooled down and thickened a little, pour it onto the surface of the cake, starting from the center: the mass should flow randomly from the cake. Put the cake on a stand with a rim so that the mastic does not spread over the work surface and stain the refrigerator shelves.

The surface of the torus must be perfectly smooth. To prevent the mastic from slipping on its surface, it is advisable to make a layer of marzipan, or crush the top of the cake with starch, cocoa powder or powdered sugar - depending on which ingredients are suitable for the product.

Also, before filling the cake with mastic, it is advisable to cool it well so that the mastic freezes faster. Carefully collect the remnants of liquid mastic that escaped onto the dish when pouring. You can add powdered sugar to them, knead a cool sugar dough and make curly decorations for the cake: border, bow, lace. Glue the details of sugar figures to each other with a brush dipped in water.

Sugar mastic protein

Ingredients:
Proteins 5 pcs.
Cognac or liqueur
Vanilla
Lemon juice 50 ml
Powder 1.0 kg
Gelatin 30 g
Water 100 ml
Glycerin 40 ml

Cooking:
Beat the chilled egg whites until a stable foam, gradually add the sifted powder, without stopping beating. Enter lemon juice into the protein mass, add vanilla and cognac.
After dissolving the gelatin, pour it hot into the proteins, continuing to knead the dough. When the mass thickens, transfer it to a work surface sprinkled with powder and bring the mastic to the state of a stiff dough, cover with a film and after a couple of hours the mastic is ready to work with it.

Sugar mastic honey-chocolate

Ingredients:
Dark chocolate 2 parts
Honey, floral 1 part

Cooking:
For chocolate cakes, or cakes covered with chocolate icing, this sugar fondant recipe is a real find for decorating a chocolate dessert in style.
Making chocolate honey paste is pretty easy. The only drawback: chocolate-honey mastic must be prepared in advance, because for plasticity it must be kept for at least 24 hours in the refrigerator, in plastic packaging.
Melt the chocolate for a couple and pour in the honey, without stopping stirring, until a thick mass is obtained that will stick off the dishes. After cooling slightly, wrap the mastic in cling film.

Sugar mastic with marshmallow

An effective way to get the desired consistency of sugar mastic for a cake at home is marshmallows. They are sweets based on gelatin and corn syrup. In industrial conditions, these ingredients are whipped to the state of a sponge, adding flavorings and food coloring. Adding these sweets to the composition of sugar mastic for a cake at home greatly simplifies the task of preparing sugar dough. If you want to get the best result, then use these sweets only as an additional ingredient for dough viscosity, in combination with gelatin mastic prepared according to recipe 2 described above.

Ingredients:
Marshmallow 1 part
Gelatin mastic 2 parts

Cooking:
Knead the sugar dough as directed in the second recipe above. Steam the marshmallows, but do not overheat. Grind the sweets first so that they dissolve as quickly as possible. Don't use the microwave: it will dry out the marshmallows, making it difficult to work with the dough. Warming them up for a couple and thereby moistening the mass, make it easier for yourself when kneading the dough.

Only you need to prepare the mastic with marshmallow in advance, letting it rest at room temperature, in an airtight package. Make sure that the sweets used are fresh and choose a white color so that the mastic does not turn out to be ugly, with a gray or brown tint.

Sugar mastic from marmalade

The composition of marmalade includes a fruit base and agar-agar. Only marmalade for mastic needs to be sorted by color to get a certain color of mastic.

Ingredients:
Powdered sugar 700 g
Marmalade 250 g
Water 50 ml (or lemon juice)

Cooking:
Prepare a water bath for marmalade. Cut it into small pieces, put it in a smaller container, fill it with water and put it on steam, stirring constantly with a silicone spatula. Bring the fruit mass to a temperature of 60-70ºϹ so that it acquires a gelatinous consistency.

Sift the powder, pour it into a slide on a silicone surface and make a recess into which pour the melted marmalade in small portions and quickly knead the mastic. For such a mastic, heat is needed. When working with it, keep the mass sealed in a film, near a heat source.

Marmalade mastic can be used to make flowers. To cover the surface of the cakes, add more water to the mass and use the pouring method.

Sugar mastic for cake - tips and tricks

-Sugar mastic is a troublesome type of decoration. To make sure that the decoration from it will turn out to be successful, prepare both the mastic itself and the decorations from it in advance, before baking the cake.

-Sugar mass in a sealed package can be stored for up to two months in the cold, except for protein mastic. Finished jewelry should dry indoors, with low humidity.

-To work with mastic, on the one hand, it is convenient to lubricate the hands and the mat with food glycerin, but on the other hand, the readiness of the sugar dough can be determined by how easily it comes off the hands. Shortly before the consistency of the mastic becomes visually plastic, to check it, wash off the glycerin film from your hands and test the sugar mass with your hands without a protective coating to determine its readiness.

How to cover a biscuit with this sugar-gelatin mastic:

First, the biscuit must be smeared with cream, boiled condensed milk or jam to even out all the irregularities of the biscuit.
On the surface of the biscuit prepared and primed with cream, boiled condensed milk or jam, sugar mastic will lie evenly and smoothly, there will be no protrusions and irregularities.

After the surface of the biscuits is prepared, you need to measure the diameter of the workpiece to cover the cake.

The diameter should be no less than the diameter of the biscuit, plus double the height and another 5 centimeters for folds and bumps. For example, if you have a cake with a diameter of 20 cm and a height of 5 cm, then you need to roll out the mastic to cover the biscuit to a diameter of at least 35 cm = 20 + 2x5 + 5.

It is convenient to roll out confectionery sugar mastic on a table greased with butter and sprinkled with powdered sugar, and even better between two sheets of plastic film, the mastic rolled out on plastic film is very easy to transfer to a biscuit, this can be done directly with the film, which then you just need to separate from the mastic and continue leveling the mastic on the surface of the biscuit.

The thickness of the rolled sugar mastic to cover the biscuit should be about 5 mm, after you put it on the cake and level it, it will stretch to the required 2-3 mm.

If you roll out sugar mastic immediately to a thickness of 2-3 mm, it can easily tear when working with it.

If there are no professional tools, then buy plasticine in a box with modeling tools attached. You also need 2 irons for covering the cake and a knife for cutting mastic, such as for cutting pizza, a food felt-tip pen, if you make an inscription directly on the mastic.

On a note! Any mastic - from marshmallow, sugar-gelatin or milk - will perfectly replace marzipan at home. Just keep in mind that it is not always desirable to cover the entire cake with mastic - mastic coatings, although very beautiful, are quite hard.

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“Cooking mastic at home”

“Making a rose from mastic”

“Chocolate mastic”

“Making a bear from mastic”

- This is a mass using sugar and thickeners (natural or artificial), which is used to decorate baked goods. You can cook it at home or buy a product that is produced by an industrial method. The first option is preferred by supporters of "natural" products.

Home mastic

• Gelatin. It contains gelatin or agar-agar.
• Dairy. Mastic with condensed milk and starch.
• Honey. A mass in which honey is used instead of sugar, which makes the product more elastic.
• Marzipan. Mastic with the addition of almond crumbs, which is used only for covering cakes, since it is not viscous enough for sculpting figures.
• From marshmallow. A mass that is prepared from melted marshmallows.

Making sugar mass at home is a laborious process that requires experience, certain skills and time. It is necessary to start sculpting or rolling mastic in a strictly defined period, after which the mass becomes unusable. Therefore, professional confectioners prefer to use ready-made mastic, which is sold in specialized stores.

Industrial confectionery mastic contains sugar, thickeners, dyes, preservatives. This is a homogeneous elastic mass, which is easily molded and rolled into layers. The advantage of this product is time saving and a guaranteed beautiful result - minimal experience and skills are required to work with it.

Mastic by appointment

• for modeling. This is a mass that contains only a little thickener, which allows it to maintain its ductility for a long time. A variety of figurines and details for decorating cakes are created from such mastic. Mastic for modeling does not thicken while working with it.
• For wrapping. This mastic is used for rolling into plates and for coating the surface of the cake. The thickener in the composition of such a mass contains a little more than in the mastic for modeling, so after rolling it is necessary to quickly cover the cake with mastic, tighten and smooth out the defects.

The store for confectioners "Tortlandia" presents universal confectionery mastics that can be used both for wrapping and decorating finished products.

Mastic by color

• Colored. It can be mixed to get a variety of shades.
• White. Such mastic is colored by adding food coloring to it, as well as by applying pigment to the surface of the covered cake.

The online store "Tortlandia" presents various types of mastics. Products in factory packaging are optimal for small and medium-sized businesses, and packaging in small volumes (from 500 g) is suitable for amateur confectioners and craftsmen working at home.

Confectionery mastic is a pasty elastic material, similar to plasticine, used to cover cakes, create edible decorations, flowers, shapes, and much more.
It is also known by other names: sugarpaste (sugar paste), pastillage, modelpaste, etc.
In different countries of the world it can be found under the following names:

The table shows that the term Fondant (fondant) is used in the USA. But in Europe and Russia, wiki fondant is another material that differs in properties from mastic in greater pliability and plasticity.

The first recipe was published in 1609 in Delights for Ladies, where a paste is made from fine white sugar, starch and wiki tragacanth gum.
First, mastic became known in the form of sweets, and then they began to use it in glazing - small cakes were dipped into a heated paste and left for a while. Large cakes were decorated with such cakes. Now the mastic is cooled and applied to the cake.

In the fifth edition of Mrs. Frazer's Practice of Cookery, Pastry and Confectionery, published in 1806, the following reference is found:
“If you choose to ornament the cake, put a Crown in the middle, and other small fancy figures on the top; waving small shells up and down the sides of it, and placing within the crown a bunch of artificial flowers of different colors; the crown, figures and shells are of sugarpaste, the flowers and leaves of different colored paste, and the stalks of lemon peel".

Practice of Cookery

Practice of Cookery p.202

Practice of Cookery p.203

“If you decide to decorate the cake, put the crown in the middle and other small pieces on top; on either side of them, lay out small shells up and down in a wave, and also place a bouquet of flowers inside the crown; crown, figures and shells from sugar paste, flowers and leaves from multi-colored paste, and stems from lemon peel.

However, sugar paste began to be actively used only in the 20th century:
“Sugar was a luxury in Europe until the 18th century, when it became more widely available. It then became popular and by the 19th century, sugar came to be considered a necessity. This evolution of taste and demand for sugar as an essential food ingredient unleashed major economic and social changes.”

“Sugar was a luxury in Europe until the 18th century, when it became more affordable. Then it gained popularity, and in the 19th century sugar was considered a necessity. This evolution in taste and demand for sugar as an essential food ingredient has brought about major economic and social changes.”

Now mastic is one of the most demanded materials in the confectionery world. Cakes are covered with it, flowers and figures are made. There are many varieties of pasta, they differ in composition, plasticity and purpose.
Products from mastic eventually harden and become solid. The main ingredient is powdered sugar. And also the composition may include egg white, gelatin, starch, marshmallow wiki, chocolate, honey and much more.
Industrial mastic contains glucose, due to which crystallization slows down. The following brands are represented in Russia: Wilton (USA), Pettinice (Sweden), Polen (Turkey), Top Product (Russia), Laped (Italy) and others.

Mastic can be prepared at home.

- in some recipes it is called pastilage (pastillage). Dries very quickly, ideal for creating flowers but not suitable for topping cakes.

• Gelatin - 1 tsp
• Water - 5 tbsp. l.
• Lemon juice - 10 drops
• Powdered sugar - 480 g

Pour gelatin with water and soak for 40-60 minutes. Heat the mixture on a steam bath with continuous stirring until complete dissolution. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until done. The mastic is immediately ready for use.

- universal, suitable for covering cakes and sculpting figures.

• Powdered sugar - 500 g
• Condensed milk - 2 tbsp. l.
• Lemon juice - 2 tbsp. l.
• Infant milk formula (or powdered milk) - 4 tbsp. l. with a slide
• Potato starch - 2 tbsp. l. with a slide

Mix all ingredients. Mix well the sugar paste. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 1.5-2 hours.

- also universal, this is one of the most popular types of mastic.

• Marshmallow - 90 g
• Butter - 30 g
• Powdered sugar - 160 g

Melt the marshmallows and butter in the microwave for about 30 seconds. And then gradually introduce powdered sugar into the melted mass. Knead the mastic until ready.

- here, instead of powdered sugar, honey is used, so it is more pliable. Universal. One of the most delicious.

• Chocolate - 100 g
• Honey - 2 tbsp. l.

Melt chocolate with honey in a steam bath, wrap the resulting mass in cling film and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Decorations can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in a cool, dark place, away from heat and moisture, which can soften the fondant.

If the product is thin, it dries quickly, and if it is thick, it can dry for 24 hours or more.
Mastic, unlike fondant, can be rolled out thinner, which will make the flower petals more realistic. The parts can be glued together with food glue, vodka or water. Thus, it becomes possible to create large compositions from several smaller parts.
Sugar paste can be dyed any color using food coloring.

Working with mastic resembles the work of a sculptor. Requires patience and practice.

Sources:

1. Lynn Oliver. The Food Timeline. US, 1999.
2. Sir Hugh Plat's. Delightes for Ladies. UK, 1609. wiki
3. Lindy Smith. Sugarpaste & Fondant are they the same? UK, 2011.
4. Sidney Mintz. Sweetness and Power: The Place of Sugar in Modern History. Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-009233-2. US, 1985.