Glucose for fondant

[MJBee]

I have a recipe for fondant that requires 1 tablespoon of liquid glucose, however I cannot find liquid glucose anywhere over here. I have tried cake shops, chemists and super markets with no luck. Three questions:-
1. do any other expats know where I can get hold of it in France?
2. I can get powdered glucose does anyone know the proportions of powder/water to reconstitute "liquid glucose"?
3. Is there an alternative (perhaps golden syrup) that I could use?

 

[BKF Admin]

Super cook do it in Tesco's ect.

Have you tried a local carrefour if you have one?

Only a couple of pound online HERE

 

[MJBee]

Thanks Admin,
There are two big supermarkets Casino and Carrefour guess which one I HAVE NOT checked:
Sadly Supercook do not deliver outside the UK and Channel Islands. The search continuesMike

 

[Rock_Chick]

I don't know how to make fondant,but I know of a beekeeper that uses Honey insted of
glucose!!
would it work,please let me know and let me have the recpie

 

[marcros]

I have a recipe for fondant that requires 1 tablespoon of liquid glucose, however I cannot find liquid glucose anywhere over here. I have tried cake shops, chemists and super markets with no luck. Three questions:-
1. do any other expats know where I can get hold of it in France?
2. I can get powdered glucose does anyone know the proportions of powder/water to reconstitute "liquid glucose"?
3. Is there an alternative (perhaps golden syrup) that I could use?

If you have no joy at carrefour, i will chuck some in the post for you- we are only talking about a couple of quid, and you seem a good chap!

 

[Frisbee]

2. I can get powdered glucose does anyone know the proportions of powder/water to reconstitute "liquid glucose"?

It doesn't matter how much water you use since the water is evaporated off before the temperature of the boiling mixture can rise. Just sprinkle a tablespoon of powdered in with the sugar. There is a recipe for baker's fondant as a sticky in the Beekeepers Forum. The glucose keeps the fondant from drying out too quickly. I don't know if golden syrup will perform the same task but I doubt it.

Frisbee

 

[marcros]

It doesn't matter how much water you use since the water is evaporated off before the temperature of the boiling mixture can rise. Just sprinkle a tablespoon of powdered in with the sugar. There is a recipe for baker's fondant as a sticky in the Beekeepers Forum. The glucose keeps the fondant from drying out too quickly. I don't know if golden syrup will perform the same task but I doubt it.

Frisbee

I read somewhere a post about whether it was worth making fondant. Somebody argues that it was, because he were starting with two tonnes of sugar, and he may have had a fair point. To us hobbyists, the price of buying fondant is cheap as buying the sugar alone, let along making it powder and the rest of the ingredients. I would suggest that a quick trip to the cash and carry is worth doing.

This may be different in France, I cannot imagine a French patisserie producing a piece of bread with a lump of fondant on top- very much a British thing!! I may be wrong. I forget how many hives you have, but invite the relations over for the weekend, and fill their car boot!

 

[MJBee]

Thanks everyone for your help.
Capri1600l - The recipe is a "sticky" in the "Beekeeping Forum" section. I don't think honey would work because of the high temperatures involved in the making.
Marcros - Many thanks for your very kind offer, I am going to try Frisbee's suggestion to just use the powdered glocose first, I'll keep you posted. The big blocks of fondant that are available in the UK are not available over here, the equivalent "Apifonda" is ?6+ for 2.5kg - ouch)
Frisbee - good idea I will give that a try.

 

[MJBee]

Had a go at Frisbee's recipe today - it didn't go completely to plan!
Sugar, water and powdered glucose brought to a boil and boiled until 115C was reached(Google told me 240F = 115C). Then cooled in a water bath stirring (something I'm good at) continuously - then IT SET LIKE CONCRETE
I Chipped it out of the pan and put the bits in a blender and blitzed it until it was a coarse powder. I then added honey a teaspoon full at a time until it was the consistancy of putty, gave it a good hand knead and voila FONDANT
It took ages to clean the utensils and kitchen but managed it before the better half came to see what I was up to.
I will see how the bees like it before I have another go. incidentally we had wall to wall sunshine all day today and +16C all colonies were flying hard and loads of pollen was going in - lovely to watch.
Regards Mike

 

[Frisbee]

Hmm - 115c is 240f, sounds like your thermometer is not too acurate or you gave it a bit longer "just in case"

The temperatures for sugar boiling and the results are :-

240f = soft ball - if you drop a splodge of mix into a bowl of water the resulting cool ball of sugar will be soft like a chewy mint.

250f = hard ball - same splodge, hard ball (I think this is what you boiled to)

280f = small crack - used for spun sugar (candy floss)

310f = hard crack - used for more brittle sweets like barley sugar

345f = caramel

When I learnt my sugar boiling skills at catering college we didn't use thermometers as the state of the syrup is better at showing the temp than a dodgy thermometer.

Once the water has gone and you are boiling pure sugar the temp rises reasonably quickly.

Not a million years ago (last year actually) I put some sugar and water on the stove to dissolve for winter syrup, I just put it on a low heat, but then I went out and forgot it . . . . several hours later I returned home and the syrup was just starting to caramelize - it had colour but wasn't quite there, so quick as a flash I put the kettle on to boil and added boiling water (tricky as it spits well) added enough to original water level. It made a nice syrup and the bees ate it.

I'm pleased you ressurected it.

Frisbee

 

[MJBee]

Thanks for the info Frisbee. While I was cooling the mix I tested to see how hot it was, the test sample did indeed set clear and hard. I will check the thermometer in boiling water tomorrow and have another go.
Mike

 

[Frisbee]

Okay - well when you've got the mix to boiling point, observe the boil, when the water has gone and it's just the sugar, the boil changes, I suppose the nearest way to describe it is that it slows down. Have a small bowl of cold water by the cooker and after 5 minutes of this slow boil, using your wooden spoon just drop some into the water, if it hasn't boiled for long enough it will just disperse, when it stays in a ball follow with your fingers and get hold of the ball, it should stay as a ball and you will be able to manipulate it, then it's ready. At college we had to dip our fingers in the cold water then into the boiling mix to grab some and then back into the cold water It worked and you didn't burn your fingers, but I wouldn't do it now

Frisbee

 

[MJBee]

Cracked it
Your detailed instructions did the trick Frisbee - many thanks. It looks as if my Jam thermometer is running 5C "slow", so I did overboil the first lot.
I now have 5kg of fondant available for the price of 2.5kg of ready made, got to be worth it.
Mike

 

[Frisbee]

That's great news MJBee - well done.

Frisbee

 

[BKF Admin]

Nice thread

 

[macow]

Hi All,
Is it possable to use glycerine instead of glucose when making fondant (bought the wrong thing begining with G) i see it is used in royal icing

Marc.

 

[RoofTops]

I suspect glycerine was what was supposed to be used in the original post. It is used to keep the fondant pliable.

 

[Frisbee]

Glycerine isn't the right thing at all.

Glycerine is a by-product from soap making, soap being a mix of oil and alkali, in olden days or when people want to make soap, they use wood ash which is very alkali and drip water through it and mix that with some kind of fat. I don't know where glycerine comes into it (or out of it) but as I say it is a by-product.

Nothing at all do do with glucose which is some kind of sugar......inverted or something like that, I'm good on the practical but not so good on the theory

Ultimately, don't use glycerine as a glucose substitiute.

Frisbee

 

[Frisbee]

Someone on here is a food technologist and knows exactly what glucose is......

If you can't get any for fondant then you'd be better making it without, or golden syrup might do a similar job.

Frisbee

 

[BKF Admin]

How much glycerine did you buy?
I would expect you anly have around 100mls.

I use a little with warm honey and lemon for a cold.