[xcugat]

Hello,

I would like some assistance in the making of fondant.

My receipe calls for sugar, water and small amount of vineger.

Heat to 234 and then stop heat. When the temperature drops below 200 stir and pour into molds.

First time I over heated it by 5 degrees and the resulting "candy" was grainy and hard as a rock

Second time I followed the temperature closely, and instead of fondant I ended up with neatly made sugar bricks.

I see that this thread here


http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?263746-Sugar-Blocks/page2
shows the same temperature to heat to to make BRICKS, but I was aiming for soft fondant.

I am no candy maker, but isnt beekeepers fondant supposed to be like play dough and soft?

someone tell me my blunder

 

[philip.devos]

Fondant IS a pain. I did the candy thermometer thing, as you did, 2 seasons ago; the result was OK, like taffy. This last fall I mixed sugar, water and raw apple cider vinegar into a slurry, and placed it on a mold to lose the water and become firm, for about 2 - 3 weeks. That worked out to be much easier. There are several different recipes. MIne is:

1/2 cup Braggs apple cider vinegar
2-1/2 cups water
10 pound bag of sugar.

I mixed in a 5 gallon bucket, and dumped the mixture onto a plastic tote lid which I had greased with vegetable oil, then put newspaper. (when the stuff dries it tends to stick). The cake was about 3/4 to 1 inch thick. It came out somewhat crumbly, and tended to break up, but the girls liked it.
NO COOKING! Just let it sit undisturbed for at least 2 weeks.

I used it as winter emergency food.

Hope you can find a better recipe.

 

[T0ADMAN]

Why do you want it to be soft? I like my sugar to be hard enough to not fall through the frames. But then again I put mine on early and want it to also soak up the moisture. There is never a problem for my bees to get enough moisture to eat it.

 

[KPeacock]

i have never tried fondant. I saw my wife make some for a cake she wasdecorating and though to myself, "Are you kidding me? My bees don't need anything this labor intensive and messy." I just mix water with sugar (a pint per 10#, so about 1.5oz per pound) and pack into whatever mold or shape i want. next day its solid as a rock. Ity's easy to make, easy to feed, and best of all, it can be done outside (betond my wifes sphere of control) and dirties no more than a bucket, a stick from the yard (used to stir) and a water measuring device. I just eyeball the water amount as poured from a gallon jug.

 

[BeeCurious]

I have successfully made fondant that resembles purchased baker's fondant. Baker's fondant is made with sugar, water, and corn syrup.

AND YES! It's an awful task to make actual fondant that isn't grainy.

Otto Brehm in Yonkers is where some of us buy 50 pound blocks of the stuff for about $44


SugarBags are cheaper than fondant and easier than "cakes" imo....

 

[bruce todd]

Listen to Beecurious! Go down to Otto Brehm in Yonkers and buy some. Thats where we get it. $42.00 for 50 pounds.
Phone # 914 968-6100. Tell them your a beekeeper, the salesman at the first desk on the left will treat you very well.

 

[ShawnL]

I can't speak for other recipes, but I make this one: http://candy.about.com/od/fondantcandyrecipes/r/basic_fondant.htm

This is the only receipe I've used and it's turned out perfect every time. As long as you don't leave it exposed to air, it stays flexible even when frozen. The bees like it. My only recommendation is to ensure you stir constantly to prevent burning and remove the solution from the heat source once it hits 235-240.

 

[Andrew Dewey]

I buy my fondant already made - two 50lb blocks this year. Yes qty is an issue for someone with a few hives.

 

[camero7]

I buy my fondant already made - two 50lb blocks this year. Yes qty is an issue for someone with a few hives.

:thumbsup:

 

[D Coates]

Where do you find it?

 

[TNTBEES]

Use Lauri Millers recipe for sugar blocks. No cooking, easy and the bees love them. She also has a great pollen sub. recipe. You can find the recipes on this forum or at her facebook page. Miller Compound and Agriculture. My 12 colonies thrive on both her recipes. Follow her recipes exactly and make sure you mix well and compact the sugar well into what ever form you use. Doesn't get any easier or cheaper. My hives are going through two big scoops of pollen sub per week right now as we are weeks away from natural pollen.

 

[camero7]

Where do you find it?

I get mine through a doughnut shop. They just add it to their order and sell it to me. Comes in 50# blocks and is easy to use. Try a bakery or a doughnut shop. Some get theirs through WalMart's bakery - I've never tried that. Dawn foods also sells it if you have a distributor in the area.

 

[WBVC]

I have made cooked blocks and raw blocks that I dry. I prefer working with the cooked blocks.
5lb sugar, 2 cups water boil to 240 degrees and pour out into 1.5" deep aluminum cake pans. Do 2 pots at a time and sometimes double up on batch size. If I run out of time will do an uncooked batch like Lauri posted.

 

[Acebird]

Gelatin or glycerin is added to make fondant more like dough. I don't know if these two ingredients will harm bees. I don't see why you can't just spray / mist the sugar to make it stick together and solidify. Your feeding bees not baking a cake.

 

[xcugat]

Thanks for all the replies on this.

Other than Bee curious, has anyone else made bee "fondant" that was soft--fondant is supposed to be soft otherwise it is a misnomer and instead is just a sugar brick

Maybe beekeepers mean sugar bricks when they say fondant?

View attachment 9687 View attachment 9688 View attachment 9689

Here is my second attempt on this--the first time it was a crumbly mess, the second time nice bricks, but I reused the sugar and I fear that I may have burnt it--note the off white color and slight carmalized smell.

People say that "burnt" sugar is deadly to bees--is this really the case or just oft repeated?

Would you call this burnt then?

 

[xcugat]

Here is my second attempt on this--the first time it was a crumbly mess, the second time nice bricks, but I reused the sugar and I fear that I may have burnt it--note the off white color and slight carmalized smell.

People say that "burnt" sugar is deadly to bees--is this really the case or just oft repeated?

Would you call this burnt then?

 

[rwlaw]

Scorched sugar is supposed to give bees dysentery, wouldn't know, if I thought that I burnt a batch, I'd give it to my bear hunting buds. They got a lot of bait for one reason or another lol!
Ya, yours looks a little dark, keep trying, it's not an art but once you catch on, first time everytime!

 

[Rader Sidetrack]

Commercially made fondant does not necessarily contain gelatin or glycerin. See this ad listing fondant in truckload quantities made only from sugar, corn syrup and water:
http://www.beesource.com/forums/sho...ar-and-Fondant-for-sale&p=1075205#post1075205


High heating of sugar (burnt sugar) can lead to formation of HMF (hydroxymethylfurfural), which can be toxic to honeybees if they get too much of it. More here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydroxymethylfurfural

 

[camero7]

Like Radar said, the fondant I get is only sugar, HFCS and water.

 

[Marysia2]

Like Radar said, the fondant I get is only sugar, HFCS and water.

I thought high-fructose corn syrup was bad for bees?