Since I am a glutton for punishment, I decided to add to my schedule making dessert for Piper’s 3rd birthday. It just so happened that it coincided with the Easter party at their preschool as well, so I felt like the dessert needed an extra little flair.
Over Christmas, I first began experimenting with fondant. I made brownies, and placed a fondant Santa on top of each one that was placed using a little dab of buttercream. For a first try, I thought they were adorable. So, for Easter, I decided I would make a little fondant chicken. Also as a little homage to how much Piper loves the new backyard chickens.
In my first blog post, I mentioned a great recipe for kids treats, so instead of reinventing the wheel, I used that same recipe. However, for this particular recipe, I decided to make petit fours. I mentioned I’m a glutton for punishment. I like the idea of a petit four because it is essentially a personalized little cake, and the perfect little size for anyone to enjoy.
Instead of making the cake in cupcakes, I baked it in a sheet pan. Once cooled, I cut the cake in half and spread with a filling of pineapple jam and a quick buttercream, then cut into 1.5″x1.5″ squares. They were then placed in the freezer until it was time to pour over the fondant and add the cute little fondant chickens.
The great thing about the little fondant chickens was that they could be made ahead of time and stored in an airtight container. This allowed me the option to put on some music, or even a movie, and start making the chickens whenever time allowed. There were a few tools I needed to make the fondant chickens: fondant cutters in the shape of a heart, as well as a flower, a paint brush, and a little patience.
I was able to buy yellow fondant, but purchased white fondant and orange gel dye to make the beak, comb and feet for the chicken. It was easiest to start with the body of the chicken which I sectioned off a little piece of the yellow fondant and shaped it into an egg. For the wings, I rolled out the fondant and used a small heart shape cutter. Once the heart was cut, it was then cut in half and each piece was placed on either side of the egg-shaped chicken body by using a little water to act as glue. I found it easiest to create all the bodies first, then cut out all of the hearts.
Once the bodies and wings were created, I got to work on the orange fondant. A few drops of orange food gel into the white fondant, and a little kneading created the perfect shade of orange. Using a floral shaped cutter with pointy edges, I cut out enough to make feet. One flower was the perfect size to make one set of feet for each egg. Then, using a floral cutter with rounded edges, I cut out one flower per chicken. This actually made the beak and comb by cutting off 2 petals to be the beak, and the remaining 3 petals were placed on the top of the chicken’s head for the comb. All of which were attached using a little bit of water as well. I have food coloring markers as well that I used to draw on eyes.
After all the chickens were done, they were stored in a container until I was ready to make the fondant to pour over the petit fours. In order to do this, over a double boulder I placed corn syrup, water, confectioners sugar and a little vanilla and heated until about 100 degrees. Once it reached temperature, I added in the white chocolate and used a ladle to pour over each individual petit four. When it was still warm, I placed the fondant chicken on the center of each petit four.
Now, this was a first attempt at a petit four and a pour over fondant, so it was by no means perfect. Sometimes the joy of homemade treats is that they look homemade. At least that’s what I tell myself.
Recipe:
make cake according to the recipe, except bake in a sheet pan. Once cooled, cut the whole cake into half. This does require a little work as you have to cut the whole sheet pan into 2 level pieces. Place pineapple filling over the bottom half, and buttercream over the top half and place back together.. like a sandwich. Freeze and cut into 1.5″x1.5″ squares. Pour fondant over each square and let harden.
Pineapple filling:
can of crushed pineapple
3 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 cup sugar
place all ingredients in a sauce pan and let boil until it thickens
Buttercream:
1 stick softened butter
3 cups confectioners sugar
splash of vanilla
1 teaspoon milk
Mix all ingredients together until it forms a frosting.
Pour over fondant:
2 tablespoons corn syrup
6 cups confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
Place the corn syrup, sugar, vanilla and water into a bowl on top of a double boiler. You will heat this until about 100 degrees until all the sugar is dissolved and the mix is warm. Add in the chocolate chips and stir until melted. If it is too thick, you can add a little water. Using a ladle, pour over each of your petit fours.
a goose and a gangster 