Fondant Crab Cake and a Crab Fest

This past Saturday we had a crab fest. I hired my niece to bake the cake. Then we both decided to decorate it together. =) We made our own fondant....super easy but a pain all at the same time. =) 


Marshmallow Fondant

Ingredients:

·   8 ounces miniature marshmallows (4 cups not packed, or half of a 16-ounce bag)

·   1 pound powdered sugar (4 cups), plus extra for dusting

·   2 tbsp water (optional)

·   Food coloring or flavored extracts (optional)

Preparation:

1. Dust your counter or a large cutting board with powdered sugar. Place the marshmallows and the water in a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute, until the marshmallows are puffy and expanded.

2. Stir the marshmallows with a rubber spatula until they are melted and smooth. If some unmelted marshmallow pieces remain, return to the microwave for 30-45 seconds, until the marshmallow mixture is entirely smooth and free of lumps. If you want colored or flavored fondant, you can add several drops of food coloring or extracts at this point and stir until incorporated. If you want to create multiple colors or flavors from one batch of fondant, do not add the colors or flavors now. Instead, refer to step 6 below for instructions.

3. Add the powdered sugar and begin to stir with the spatula. Stir until the sugar begins to incorporate and it becomes impossible to stir anymore.

4. Scrape the marshmallow-sugar mixture out onto the prepared work surface. It will be sticky and lumpy, with lots of sugar that has not been incorporated yet--this is normal. Dust your hands with powdered sugar, and begin to knead the fondant mixture like bread dough, working the sugar into the marshmallow with your hands.

5. Continue to knead the fondant until it smoothes out and loses its stickiness. Add more sugar if necessary, but stop adding sugar once it is smooth--too much sugar will make it stiff and difficult to work with. Once the fondant is a smooth ball, it is ready to be used. You can now roll it out, shape it, or wrap it in cling wrap to use later. Well-wrapped fondant can be stored in a cool room or in the refrigerator, and needs to be kneaded until supple before later use.

6. If you want to add coloring or flavoring to your fondant, flatten it into a round disc. You might want to wear gloves to avoid getting food coloring on your hands during this step. Add your desired amount of coloring or flavoring to the center of the disc, and fold the disc over on itself so that the color or flavor is enclosed in the center of the fondant ball.

7. Begin to knead the ball of fondant just like you did before. As you work it, you will begin to see streaks of color coming through from the center. Continue to knead until the streaks are gone and the fondant is a uniform color. Your fondant is now ready to be used or stored as outlined above.

Anyway, we had 5 couples come to our house. We had a lot of fun eating. haahaa! =)

the end result of our fondant crab cake

I love the crabs on the top! They are sooo adorable =)

brown sugar was our "sand"

We used mini chocolate chips for the eyes.

Lifesavers for after dinner...and to make it look more nautical. =)

The unfortunate crabs

To make it look more festive I put newspaper down to cover the tables and put a runner of the brown craft paper down the center. When the guests would eat their crabs they could throw everything on the table and all we would have to do to clean up was roll up the newspaper. =) Wish I could do that for every meal. =)

Yellow roses with red tips (which means 'desire' if you didn't know...& they happen to be my favorites) in old jars and small Mason jars with sand and white candles were down the center of the table as well. Just to add a splash of color...and bring the beach a little closer to home. =)

My husband is in his glory! He LOVES crabs! =)

Haahaa!! My friend, Nikki, was getting a little grossed out by everyone pulling apart the crabs....she did not eat any crabs. We had hot dogs and hamburgers for those who weren't up for dissecting their dinner. =) She did however make this fantastic 'Snicker Salad Dessert', for which I will be needing the recipe for and I'll post it when I get it from her. =)

Playing with their food at the table...

the aftermath...

Everyone is happy and full =)

He's having way too much fun with that poor crabby....he must not get out much =) haahaa!

We had a great time. We later went down in our basement to play some ping pong and video games. We dug into the cake before everyone left. They loved the fondant crabs! =) They were really impressed with how good the fondant tasted. So that's always a plus. =)