Not a single store cake can replace the warmth and care that is invested in homemade cakes. But for all the soulfulness of homemade sweets, they are rarely as pleasing to the eye as the products of professional confectioners. To correct this state of affairs, cooking mastic for the cake at home will help. We will tell you what it is, how to use it, and offer you some recipes and cooking hacks.

What is this?

Mastic is a sweet pliable mass, reminiscent of plasticine in consistency. It can be used to make voluminous or flat cake decorations, as well as completely cover one or more tiers of the cake, getting the effect of a smooth, satin surface. Powdered sugar is the basis of mastic, which is why great attention should be paid to its choice: the finer the grinding, the smoother and more elastic the mass will turn out.

How to prepare mastic?

First of all, you need to decide what you plan to use it for, because different formulations have different elasticity: for example, honey is great for wrapping cakes, but figurines from it keep their shape worse, especially in hot rooms. And sugar is excellent for creating jewelry, but if the proportions are not observed or the layer is too thin, it can crumble and crack. Have goals been set? Then go ahead and get to work! If you want to make your mastic colored, then gel food coloring can be added at the stage of kneading the dough.

sugar mastic

You will need:

• Powdered sugar - 500 g
• Water - 60 ml
• Gelatin - 1 tsp
• Lemon juice - 1 tsp
• Vanillin.

How to cook:

• Proseus powdered sugar through a fine sieve.
• Pour gelatin with water for 20-30 minutes, then, stirring, heat in a water bath.
• Add lemon juice and vanilla, and then start adding powdered sugar in small portions, stirring the mass.
• Continue kneading the sugar dough without bringing the consistency to a solid mixture.
• Wrap the finished mastic cling film and store in the refrigerator.

Marshmallow mastic

You will need:

• Marshmallow - 300 g
• Water - 60-80 ml
• Powdered sugar - 250 g
• Vegetable oil

How to cook:

• Melt marshmallows with two teaspoons of water in a water bath or in microwave oven stirring the mass every 30 seconds.
• Lubricate the mixer bowl and dough whisk vegetable oil, shift the melted mass there, add powdered sugar and the remaining water.
• Knead the sugar dough until a homogeneous elastic mass.
• Put the mastic on a board, greased with vegetable oil, and bring it to the ideal consistency by hand.

Honey mastic

You will need:

• Honey - 90 g
• Water - 25 g
• Instant gelatin - 8 g
• Powdered sugar - 500 g

How to cook:

• Sift the powdered sugar through a sieve.
• Pour gelatin with water and leave to swell.
• Send honey to a water bath and wait for the complete dissolution of all sugar crystals.
• Mix gelatin with still hot honey and stir until completely dissolved.
• Mix the honey-gelatin mass into the powdered sugar, avoiding getting too dry a consistency.

Ways to decorate with mastic

Cake cover

The mastic for covering the cake should be as elastic as possible, therefore, if your mastic was stored in the refrigerator, you should warm it up before covering it, or at least let it lie at room temperature for about an hour. If the mastic is sticky, grease the rolling pin and the board on which you will roll out the mass with vegetable oil.

Roll out the mastic evenly, achieving a uniform layer of 3-5 mm, then take the finished canvas and cover the cake with it. Start gently expelling air from the space between the biscuit and the mastic, if wrinkles form, it will be enough just to smooth them with a spatula or a pastry spatula. Cut off the excess fondant with a pizza cutter and smooth the mass at the base. The cake is ready!

"Lacy" decor

For this type of design, you will need an already covered cake and additional materials: for example, cutters. Cutter is a form for cutting dough or mastic, they are different forms: from simple, large and round, to complex and small. The mastic for lace should be a little denser and keep its shape well.

Roll out the mass on a greased or starched board until a layer of 3-4 mm is reached and cut it to the height of the side of the cake. Inside the resulting rectangle, start cutting “lace” with cutters, for example, flowers. The combination of colored covering with white lace on the side looks very nice. After the design is cut out, it remains only to carefully separate the fondant from the board and smooth it to the side of the cake. Pieces of cut decor can be used to decorate the top of your confectionery masterpiece!

Roses from mastic

You will need several round cutters of different diameters from 3 to 6 cm (glasses can be used), a rolling pin, a board, cornstarch, water, a brush, toothpicks.

Before work, the mastic should be properly kneaded in your hands so that it becomes more pliable, powder the working surface cornstarch, roll out the mastic into a thin layer no more than 2 mm and cut out with the help of mug shapes - 5 of a smaller diameter and 5 of a larger one.

Run your fingers along the edge of each circle to make it thin and slightly wavy like a real rose petal. Leave the petals to dry for 10-15 minutes and start assembling the flower.

In the center of each flower should be a "bud" - a small cone of mastic. Now each petal needs to be slightly smeared with water at the base and gently smoothed to the cone, forming a flower from the center to the edges. Put the base of the rose on a toothpick, bend the petals a little and leave the flower to dry. After the rose can be removed from the toothpick and decorate the cake.

How to dye mastic if there is no dye?

You made a great mastic, but there are no gel dyes in the house? You can add some color using the products that you can find in your kitchen!

Red color will provide cranberry juice passed through a sieve or raspberry syrup. Pink will help to achieve beets. Yellow will come from an infusion of turmeric or saffron. Carrot juice will give the mastic an orange color. Blueberries or black currants will create a beautiful shade of purple, and brown with cocoa powder or strong coffee.

That's all, now you are in full confectionery combat readiness and you can fight with your culinary talents at home and pamper them not only with delicious, but also with beautiful sweets!

Homemade cakes have a special energy: they convey the warmth of the hands of the mistress of the house, the special mood of the holiday for which they are prepared. It is ideal when this dessert is original, masterfully decorated. It will be very useful for a hospitable hostess to learn about the varieties of mastic and learn how to make mastic for a cake at home, and also cook from it holiday decorations, surprise your family and guests. Let's look into the variety of recipes and find out if it is so difficult to create such a sweet beauty.

Mastic is an elastic confectionery mass, reminiscent of plasticine in its properties. The most ornate confectionery decorations are made from it, but working with this confectionery requires a certain skill and skill that will be honed with experience. From the very beginning, you need to know some culinary tricks how to work with mastic.

The basis of mastic is powdered sugar, which is better to sift through a fine sieve before cooking. If unground grains of sugar get into the mass, it will tear when rolling. After cooking, the mastic must be wrapped in polyethylene and put in the refrigerator for 20 minutes - this time is needed for the mass to become more plastic. The finished mass, tightly wrapped in polyethylene, can be stored for 2 weeks in the refrigerator or 2 months in the freezer.

Dyes are added during the kneading process sugar dough. If you need mastic of different colors, first knead uncolored dough and separate a piece of the required size, and the rest of the mass will be placed in polyethylene to prevent drying. A piece of dough is formed by hand into a circle with a recess in the middle and, adding a few drops of dye there, knead until a uniform color is obtained.

At first, culinary equipment, which is in every kitchen, will come in handy for work. The mastic is rolled out with a wooden rolling pin on the table, the edges of the cake are cut with a round pizza cutter after the cake is covered, some figures are squeezed out with the help of cookie cutters. Skillful housewives use spoons of different sizes to make flower petals: they fill the recess with rolled dough, pick up the leftovers along the edges, and connect the finished petals.

When the passion for decorating cakes develops into a favorite hobby, it is worth purchasing special tools. The first purchases can be a smooth plastic rolling pin for rolling out the mastic, silicone mats with markings (larger size - to conveniently roll out the covering for the cake, smaller - for rolling out the elements of the figures). Stacks for modeling, cutting for a variety of flowers, leaves, butterflies, silicone molds will help in the work in order to form the same type of small shapes - letters, buttons, beads.

It is very important that the base of the cake, which will be covered with mastic, is not wet: first it must be covered with oil cream and put in the refrigerator until completely solidified, because the mastic will dissolve upon any contact with the wet cream. Crafts from mastic must be made in advance, preferably two weeks before the preparation of the cake, so that they have time to dry in the air. Finished jewelry is stored for several months in a tightly closed container.

Recipes for making homemade mastic for decorating cakes

First you need to figure out how to decorate, what idea you want to realize: for example, cover the cake with a patterned bedspread, sculpt a sophisticated rose flower, or make a model of a sports car. Then you need to choose which mastic is best suited for these purposes. For many housewives, it is important that the composition home mastic included available simple ingredients, and it had a universal use.

Honey

This mass is softer than sugar, does not crumble, does not crumble, so it is very convenient to use it for covering the cake, forming decoration details. Cooking Ingredients:

• powdered sugar - 900 g;
• honey - 175 g (in volume this corresponds to 125 ml);
• water - 45 ml;
• gelatin - 15 g.

We do this:

1. Soak gelatin in water for 30 minutes.
2. Heat a mixture of honey and gelatin in a water bath.
3. Set aside a glass of powdered sugar, pour the honey mixture into the rest, knead the sugar dough, gradually mixing in the remaining powder.
4. The mastic is ready if, when pressed, an indentation from the finger remains on it.

Sugar

Good for sculpting figurines, flowers. We will need:

• powdered sugar - 500 g;
• water - 60 ml;
• gelatin - 1 teaspoon;
• lemon juice - 1 teaspoon;
• vanillin.

The process is step by step:

1. Soak gelatin for half an hour, then heat in a water bath.
2. Addition of lemon juice, vanillin. Adding a little powdered sugar, knead the mass until the state elastic dough.
3. The mass must not be allowed to become too hard, because then it will crumble during operation.

Dairy

This mastic is made with the addition of powdered milk, sometimes baby milk formulas or powdered cream are used instead. For cooking, you will need 160 g of powdered milk and other ingredients:

• powdered sugar - 160 g;
• condensed milk - 170 g;
• lemon juice - 1 tsp.

Cooking method:

1. Mix dry milk and powder in a container.
2. Add lemon juice, condensed milk.
3. Knead plastic dough.

Chocolate

For its preparation is used dark chocolate- milky or bitter, but they also make mastic with tiles white chocolate. One of the recipes:

• Melt 100 g of dark chocolate in the microwave, add 1 tbsp. lies. honey and stir.
• How to check readiness: tear off a piece of dough, roll into a ball and flatten with your fingers - the edges of the finished mastic should not be torn. Chocolate roses from such a mass look very impressive.

This is how chocolate mass is prepared according to a different recipe. You will need:

• dark chocolate - 100 g;
• cream 30% - 40 ml;
• marshmallow sweets - 90 g;
• powdered sugar - 2 tbsp. false;
• cognac - 2 tbsp. false;
• butter - 1 tbsp. lies.

Recipe step by step:

1. Melt the chocolate completely in a water bath.
2. Without removing from heat, add marshmallows, stirring constantly.
3. When the marshmallow is half dissolved, add cream, butter, cognac and mix until the mass becomes homogeneous.
4. Remove from heat, add powdered sugar.
5. Knead until the mastic becomes like an elastic dough.

From condensed milk

A commonly used type of mastic, because due to its oily, soft structure it is convenient to use it for wrapping cakes of various shapes, sculpting medium-sized figures. The mass with condensed milk is tasty and eaten with pleasure. In addition to 200 g of condensed milk, you will need:

• powdered sugar - 160 g;
• dry milk - 160 g;
• lemon juice - 2 teaspoons;
• cognac - 1 tsp.

Mix powder and powdered milk, gradually pour in the condensed milk. Add cognac, lemon juice, knead the mass well. Such mastic will not be white, it always has a yellowish tint.

From marshmallow

Marshmallow marshmallow mastic is very popular, for its preparation it is better to buy plain marshmallow candies or separate them by color before cooking. You will need:

• 200 g marshmallow marshmallows,
• 500 g of powdered sugar,
• 1 tsp. butter.

Step by step cooking:

1. Put marshmallows and butter in a container and heat in the microwave for a few seconds so that the marshmallows begin to melt.
2. Stir the mixture with a spoon until a homogeneous mass is obtained, add powdered sugar in small portions.
3. Ready dough should feel like plasticine.

From gelatin

This type of mastic is called pastilage: it is indispensable when you need to make strong details to decorate a cake, for example, handles for a basket, but it is practically inedible because it is very hard. When dried, pastilage retains its shape very well, which is why it is sometimes used to make templates for sculpting figurines with fine details. Cooking Ingredients:

• powdered sugar - 240 g;
• starch - 120 g;
• gelatin - 1 tbsp. lies. with a slide;
• cold water- 60 ml;
• citric acid - 1 teaspoon;
• honey, preferably artificial - 2 tsp.

1. Pour gelatin with water for 30 minutes, then melt in a water bath, add citric acid, honey.
2. Separately, mix the starch with the powder and gradually add to the gelatin mixture until a homogeneous smooth consistency is obtained.
3. Line a bowl with cling film, pour the mastic into it, wrap it with cling film and refrigerate until the mass stops spreading.
4. Before use, the pastilage should be kneaded well, if it is very cold and cannot be molded, it should be put in the microwave for 5 seconds.

Floral

The ability to work with flower mastic is a testament to the skill in the confectionery business, because it is used to sculpt delicate, realistic buds. This mixture is the leader in decorating wedding cakes. Cooking Ingredients:

• powdered sugar - 550 g;
• gelatin - 10 g;
• water - 50 ml;
• lemon juice - 20 ml;
• corn syrup- 60 ml;
• cooking oil(shortening) - 20 g;
• carboxymethylcellulose - 10 g;
• egg white- 2 pcs.;
• icing bleach - optional, to give a snow-white color.

Cooking technology:

1. Add water to gelatin and leave to swell.
2. In a mixing bowl, place powdered sugar, cellulose, bleach (if any), lemon juice.
3. Warm the soaked gelatin in a water bath, stirring, add confectionery fat, then corn syrup.
4. Remove from heat, turn food processor on medium speed, add liquid in a thin stream to powdered sugar.
5. Then switch the combine to high speed, add protein, lemon juice.
6. As soon as the mass turns white and becomes homogeneous, immediately stop mixing.
7. Put the mastic on a greased work surface, form a sausage and pack tightly in cling film.

The mass is left to rest at room temperature for about 20 hours before starting to use it in culinary creativity. Such mastic is stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 months, in the freezer - up to 6 months. Before you make a cake, you need to defrost it without using a microwave.

How to make colored or shiny mastic

Before you do colored mastic for, you need to determine exactly what colors will be needed and what dyes will be used: special purchased or natural dyes made from fruits and vegetables. If natural dyes are preferred, they are made a few days in advance and can be refrigerated.

To get a vegetable dye, the berries are crushed, the vegetables are rubbed on a fine grater, the resulting juice is squeezed through gauze. When adding vegetable dyes, you need to be aware that they give a less saturated color compared to store-bought food dyes. If you add more for color saturation natural dye, the mastic may turn out with a bright aftertaste of the added juice and will be more liquid, therefore it will be necessary to add powdered sugar to achieve the desired consistency.

Herbal ingredients give these colors:

• shades of red- juice of cranberries, strawberries, raspberries, red currants, various red syrups or red wine;
• rich pink color- beet;
• yellow- infusion of saffron or lemon peel;
• green color - spinach;
• Orange color– carrot juice or orange peel;
• blue and purple dye- grape juice, blueberries, red cabbage;
• Brown color- cocoa powder, strong coffee or sugar burned in a pan (in proportion with water 5: 1).

Purchased food colors are divided into the following types:

• dry- have a powdery appearance, before adding to the mastic, it must be diluted in water (take paints on the tip of a knife for 1 tablespoon of water);
• liquid- it is better to add them to the mastic instead of water;
• gel- thicker and more concentrated dyes than liquid ones, and more economical.

By mixing dyes, mastic of various colors is obtained. For example, yellow, green, and red dyes mixed together create a black dye, which is added to the paste to give the dough shades from light gray to deep black. The choice depends both on the product and on the occasion: wedding cakes abound in white, pink, golden hues, and children's cakes in all colors of the rainbow.

After sticking figures to decorate cakes, they often leave traces of starch or powdered sugar, which were used to roll out the mass. To make the mastic mass shine, you need to dissolve 1 tbsp. lies. honey in 1 tbsp. lies. vodka, apply the resulting mixture at the last stage of preparing the cake with a soft brush. The vodka will evaporate, leaving no taste or smell, and the jewelry will have a glossy finish.

Video

Forming a variety of decorations for cakes - pastry art which even a novice hostess can learn. After watching our selection of videos, you will notice everything for yourself important nuances cooking various types of mastic, you will see practical techniques on how to make a close-fitting cake, patterns, glue pieces of mastic and beautifully process the seams.

Photo of beautiful cake decoration

On a birthday, a cake is the main decoration of the table; it can already be a gift to a birthday person in itself and often reflects his interests and hobbies. For men, they often make cakes with decor on the theme of fishing, sports, cakes in the form of a book, a case with money. When the hero of the occasion is a woman, she will be pleasantly surprised by a cake with decorations in the form of a bouquet of her favorite flowers, a luxurious bow or weightless butterflies. If the occasion for the celebration is an anniversary, it is appropriate to decorate the cake with numbers according to the number of years of the hero of the day, using food coloring with gold or silver glitter.

There is where to roam fantasy when decorating a cake with mastic for children's day birth. Desserts for the little ones are decorated with figures of angels, they make inscriptions, how old the baby is. Older children will be surprised by the figures of their favorite cartoon characters, cakes in the form of toys or cars, covered with multi-colored mastic. Such decorations are sometimes combined with marshmallow cake decoration. Pastila can be bought or also cooked at home. Cakes with themed decorations are appropriate on the occasion of significant events, for example, when a child goes to school.

Those housewives who have good practice in working with mastic can even bake a wedding cake at home. Tiered wedding cakes are popular right now. To blend in with the theme of the wedding, they can be upholstered in colored mastic in a specific color and include matching decor. The primacy in decorating these cakes is occupied by flower mastic, which is used to sculpt graceful figurines of doves or many flowers that cannot be distinguished from real ones.

sugar mastic is an invention of the 17th century, which was first used as a candy, and only at the end of the 19th century, it became an element of decoration confectionery(see photo). Currently, mastic is often used in conjunction with other types of jewelry.

The texture of the material is very elastic, well molded and accepts desired shape. Its main task is to provide a smooth base on the cake for subsequent decoration. Also, with the help of sugar mastic, you can create a decoration for the cake, or various edible figures.

Sugar mastic is the best material for decorating desserts. It is ideal for covering cakes and edible figurines, as well as other delicious decorations.

Types of mastic

There are many types of mastic, which differ in composition and appearance:

Gelatin mastic, or as it is also called pastilage, is prepared on the basis of gelatin, it hardens well and quickly, and also becomes hard and elastic. This type perfect for making flowers, and especially delicate details.

Mastic with the addition of honey is usually used due to the fact that after hardening it begins to stretch, and not crumble.

Marzipan mastic is one of the most soft species. With it, you can both cover the entire cake and sculpt figures.

Condensed milk mastic is used to cover the entire cake, or to sculpt large, round figures.

Starch putty, often used for fine sculpting, is ideal for making floral decorations.

Marshmallow mastic is used when sculpting small figures and details.

Industrial mastic is considered universal, but you can’t cook it with your own hands.

How to cook with your own hands at home?

Cooking confectionery mastic do-it-yourself at home is not such a difficult task, the main thing is to strictly follow the instructions. This section proposes to consider cooking options various kinds this material for delicious modeling.

Option 1 - sugar mastic.

For cooking you will need the following ingredients:

• 200 g of powdered milk;
• 200 g of powdered sugar;
• 275 g of condensed milk;
• 2.5 tbsp lemon juice;
• 2.5 tsp cognac.

First you need to sift the powdered sugar. Then sprinkle milk powder on the table and mix it with powdered sugar. Add condensed milk to the resulting mixture.

You need to knead the dough very carefully, and only after it is mixed add lemon juice. Knead all ingredients for 15 minutes. The result should be a viscous mixture that is easy to work with.

Ready sugar mastic is wrapped in cling film. Food coloring can be added as needed.

Option 2 - gelatinous mastic.

Ingredients:

• 2.5 g gelatin;
• 15 g of water;
• 100 g of powdered sugar;
• 3 drops of lemon juice.

Pour gelatin with water and insist for 25-30 minutes to swell. Then we take the swollen gelatin, and send it to steam bath, where it needs to be stirred lightly until the crystals disappear. But at the same time, you can’t bring the mass to a boil! After the gelatin is completely dissolved, gradually pour the powdered sugar into it and stir, first with a spoon, and after a while you can use your hands.

Option 3 - honey mastic.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 st. l. honey;
• 5 g gelatin;
• 1.5 st. l. butter;
• 260 g of powdered sugar;
• 7 art. l. water.

Pour gelatin with water and leave for 45 minutes. Next, the resulting mass is sent to the stove on a small fire. When the gelatin dissolves, add butter and honey, mix the whole mass. Then you need to remove the mixture from the stove and give it some time to cool. Add the icing sugar to the cooled mixture in small portions and mix. Knead the paste like dough. Sprinkle a mixing board with powdered sugar. Work with the dough until you get an elastic mass.

Option 4 - marzipan mastic.

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs;
• 180 g of powdered sugar;
• 300 g ground almonds;
• 5 drops of vanilla essence;
• 1.5 tsp lemon juice.

First, you need to beat the eggs, and gradually add powdered sugar to them. The mixture, which turned out to be sent to the steam bath, and boil, stirring occasionally, until the consistency of the cream.

After that, remove the mass from steam bath, and add to it, almonds, vanilla essence, and lemon juice, mix all the ingredients thoroughly. This mastic is plastic only when warm, so it needs to be used quickly.

Option 5 - mastic from condensed milk.

Ingredients:

• 160 g of condensed milk;
• 1 st. powdered sugar;
• 1.5 tsp lemon juice;
• 2 tbsp. dry milk.

First you need to mix milk powder with powdered sugar, in a deep plate. Then add condensed milk to this mixture, and mix all the ingredients with a spoon. Sprinkle the place where the mastic will be kneaded with powdered sugar. We put the mastic on the powdered sugar, and knead like a dough, until it stops being sticky.

Option 6 - mastic marshmallow.

Ingredients:

• powdered sugar (how much mastic will absorb);
• 250 g of chewing marshmallow;
• 2.5 tbsp water.

First, marshmallows are placed in a deep bowl, water is added there. This composition is sent to the microwave for 50 seconds. The mastic prepared according to this option will be elastic and tender. After the marshmallow has melted, add powdered sugar to the mixture, which had to be sifted in advance.

Powdered sugar should be poured until the mixture looks like plasticine. The prepared mastic must be packed with cling film, and sent to freeze for half an hour. After 30 minutes, you can safely work with her.

Storage of sugar mastic

Before sending the sugar mastic for storage, it must be well wrapped with a film and put in a tightly closed container. If desired, you can not send this plastic material to the refrigerator. It is enough to protect it from the ingress of moisture and air, so that it does not lose its presentation. sugar mastic can be stored up to three months.

Material secrets

Making mastic and working with it requires a lot of patience and perseverance, but there are secrets that can be used to facilitate this laborious process.

1. To prevent the mastic from tearing during kneading, powdered sugar of the finest grinding is used.
2. The cake, which will be covered with mastic, must be dry, otherwise the delicious decor element will dissolve when it gets on it.
3. To cover a wet cake with mastic, it is better to first put a layer of cold buttercream on it.
4. In order for the decor to stick on the cake with mastic, the place of their contact is slightly moistened with water. To connect the parts together, use egg white.
5. When the mastic is in the air for a long time, it dries out, so work with it should not be delayed.
6. It is better to prepare large decor elements in advance, and let them dry thoroughly, then they will not go limp on the cake.
7. It is better to attach large-sized figures to a confectionery product immediately before serving, otherwise, if they are attached immediately and sent to a cold place, the figures will absorb all the moisture and be spoiled.
8. Cooked figures can be decorated with food coloring, which is best diluted with alcohol or vodka.
9. If suddenly the mastic has cooled down quickly and is poorly kneaded, it must be heated up using a microwave oven (just a couple of seconds), or in the oven. Then it will again become elastic and elastic.
10. Ready mastic is best stored in the refrigerator for two weeks, or frozen for about two months.
11. At the end of the preparation of a delicious decor, you can take it with cling film and move it onto the cake, film up, of course. Thus, smoothing the mastic on the cake should be done with cling film. While you work with it, it does not freeze, and as a result, there will be no cracks on the coating.
12. In order for the mastic to lie on the cake in an even layer, it is better to cover it with marzipan beforehand.
13. In order to give the decor a glossy shine, it needs to be lightly greased with vodka.

Working with mastic is not difficult at all, and even very interesting. The main thing is to know some secrets, and the features that were given above. Then, as a result, you will not have problems working with any kind of mastic, and your confectionery products will turn out to be real culinary masterpieces.

Cakes decorated with fondant often look like works of art. Once upon a time it seemed that only a professional confectioner could cook them. But the secret of this decoration is revealed: a plastic mastic that is pleasant to work with is made from a simple set of products. And to get an elegantly decorated cake, you only need patience, skill and inspiration. From mastic, you can do whatever your heart desires, from roses to sculptures. It would be desire and fantasy. Having such mastic in your hands, you will prepare a unique cake that will be the most unexpected and joyful gift.

Ingredients for mastic

The main ingredient for mastic is marshmallow. You may not be familiar with this word, but you have probably seen light marshmallows (soufflé) on sale in bright packages. It looks different: it can be white or multi-colored, cut into pieces or braided. It doesn't look like a regular marshmallow. This foreign delicacy is elastic and has a not very bright, but pleasant sweetish taste. Marshmallows are often painted in light pastel colors (yellow, blue, pink). In the manufacture of mastic, the colors are naturally preserved. Therefore, we do not recommend buying a product where each piece is painted in two or more colors, most likely, in the end you will get a lot of indefinite and unpleasant shade. To make mastic with your own hands, it is better to find snow-white marshmallows: then the product will turn out perfectly white. Any food coloring is added to such a mastic, and the desired pure color is obtained at the output.

Photo gallery of marshmallow types

Marshmallow, Belgium Marshmallow, Russia Marshmallow, USA Marshmallow, Russia

We will need:

1. Marshmallow - 100 gr.
2. Powdered sugar - 200 gr.
3. Starch - 100 gr.
4. Butter - 1 tbsp. l.
5. Food colorings.

Butter is necessary so that the mastic retains plasticity and does not crumble during operation. Perhaps a little less powdered sugar will go into the mastic.

Step by step recipes at home

The process of making white / colored mastic

• Mix powdered sugar with starch, sift through a sieve to avoid lumps.
• To turn the marshmallows into mastic, you need to heat them up. Suitable for both microwave and water bath. A glass bowl is used for a microwave oven, and a metal bowl is used for a water bath.
• Place the marshmallows in a bowl, add softened butter and microwave for 15 seconds. Depending on the power of the oven, the process may take more or less time. Marshmallows should increase in size and begin to melt.
• Pour about 100 grams of starch-sugar mixture into the melted mass, mix with a spoon. You should get a thick slurry.
• If you need to add color, do so at this stage. Liquid dye is added in drops, dry dye must first be dissolved.
• Pour in the powder, continuing to knead the mastic. When the mass becomes thick enough, put it out of the cup on a table sprinkled with powder.
• Now start kneading the mastic with your hands, after greasing them with butter. Do not overdo it with powder, try to make the mass elastic and elastic.
• Smooth, dense mastic is already ready for use. If you are going to start decorating later, you can put the fondant in the refrigerator. To do this, wrap it with several layers of cling film or place it in a bag, tightly tying it. Mastic dries quickly and loses elasticity, so avoid prolonged contact with air.

Mastic step by step (photo gallery)

Pour the marshmallows into a bowl and heat Swollen and slightly melted marshmallows are ready to serve. Add powder in small portions, mixing thoroughly At this stage, add color if necessary. Add powder and knead the mass to the desired density and density. Cover the finished mastic with cling film to avoid drying out.

Important: the finished mastic can be stored in the refrigerator for 1.5 months. To use the chilled mastic, take it out an hour before sculpting, let it warm up. There is no need to open the package.

How to make chocolate mastic with your own hands

To prepare a shiny elastic chocolate mastic required:

1. Marshmallow - 180 gr.
2. Powdered sugar -150 gr.
3. Bitter chocolate - 200 gr.
4. Butter - 1 tbsp. l.
5. Cream - 3 tbsp. l.
6. Liquor - 1 tbsp. l.

• Melt the chocolate in a water bath.
• Soften the marshmallows in the microwave or in a water bath.
• Combine marshmallows, chocolate, butter, cream and liqueur. Use a mixer to achieve uniformity.
• Add powdered sugar in portions and knead the chocolate mass until the consistency of a thick dough. Use mastic or place in the refrigerator for storage.

Photo gallery of making chocolate mastic

Melt chocolate in a water bath Warm up marshmallows Mix all ingredients except icing sugar Achieve uniformity Add powder and mix with a mixer Should be dense homogeneous mass Mastic is ready to use

Common Mistakes

• Use of coarse powdered sugar. If the mastic breaks when rolling and sugar crystals are visible in it, it means that too coarse powder was chosen. To avoid such a mistake, do not forget to sift the powder through a fine sieve. You can additionally grind the powder in a coffee grinder for a few seconds. Remember: the correct grinding of powdered sugar is an indispensable condition for making mastic.
• Overheating marshmallows when melting. Keep them on fire or in the microwave only until they swell and begin to melt. Overexposed mastic often crumbles.
• Too much powdered sugar. Try to sprinkle the powder in small portions to control the density of the mass. Otherwise, the mastic will turn out to be too dense, dry and brittle. To restore plasticity to the mass, heat it for a few seconds in the microwave. In an excessively dense mass, you can add a drop of water and continue kneading.

Cakes decorated with mastic (photo gallery)

teapot cake fine decoration wedding cake Roses from mastic Three tiered elegant cake Daisies from mastic children's cake A simple and cute mastic decoration option

• Creating jewelry from mastic is a painstaking and time-consuming task that requires attention to small details. Therefore, separate only a small part of the mastic for the current work, and keep the remaining mass tightly covered to avoid drying and crusting.
• When working with mastic, grease your hands with butter.
• Decorate the cake with fondant shortly before serving. In no case should the product covered with mastic be stored in the refrigerator - it will be covered with condensate and begin to spread.
• The best base for mastic is hardened oil cream. Soaked cakes or sour cream will dissolve the mastic and spoil all the work.
• It is convenient to roll out the mastic between two sheets of plastic film smeared with vegetable oil: the mastic turns out to be even, smooth and becomes an ideal coating for the cake.

Marshmallow mastic video recipe

Homemade cakes decorated with fondant become a "nail" holiday table. In order for you to be able to realize bold creative plans, you just need to be patient and strictly follow the instructions and tips given in the recipe. And although the decorations will not turn out perfect on the first try, over time you will learn to surprise with confectionery wonders.

A variety of techniques and materials are used to decorate and decorate cakes. One of the most common is mastic. They make a variety of it different figurines, compositions, inscriptions. What is mastic? If you are faced with this definition for the first time and saw it on the cake, then it is difficult to imagine how it was done. Mastic is an edible mass with astringent and adhesive properties, used for making decorations and decorating baked goods. From this article you will learn how to make it for a cake with your own hands at home.

Culinary mastic is a pleasant material that helps to make a real masterpiece out of a cake. Its preparation at home with your own hands has several secrets:

• Powdered sugar should be finely ground. If sugar crystals come across, then the mastic will tear when rolling.
• Mastic is very sensitive to humidity. Therefore, so that it does not shine through, it is necessary to protect the cake. As a basis it is necessary to use dry biscuits or butter cakes. The product should not be too saturated with syrup or liquor. Cake with mastic should be stored in airtight boxes or plastic bags.
• If the mastic has cooled down, it is difficult to roll out, then heat it up a little in the microwave to make it plastic.

What utensils do you need

To make mastic for a cake with your own hands at home, you need to prepare the dishes. To do this, you will need a container for mixing the components, which can be enameled, plastic, ceramic, glass. To heat the mass in a microwave or oven, prepare a form of porcelain or glass that is resistant to temperatures. In addition, you will need a rolling pin, a microwave oven, a mixer, a clean work surface.

Step-by-step recipes for making homemade mastic for decorating a cake

How to make mastic at home? The composition can be very different, but powdered sugar remains the same and the main component. There are many methods for preparing this do-it-yourself cake material at home, but the simplest is marshmallow paste. The finished mass is stored in the refrigerator, wrapped tightly with cling film. Before sculpting, it is slightly warmed up in the microwave or oven. Finished figures must be allowed to dry.

Milk mastic

Milk mastic for cake is one of the most famous, popular types. Its color is slightly yellowish. Milk mass at home is easy to manufacture, convenient to use. Suitable for the base of the cake, creating small flowers and other figurines. Required Components:

• 350 g of infant formula;
• 1 can of condensed milk;
• 350 g of powdered sugar.

Step-by-step production of milk mastic for a cake with your own hands at home:

• Add all ingredients to the pot, mix.
• Knead until smooth and elastic.
• We form a ball, sprinkle with powder.
• We wrap the mastic plastic wrap, leave for 30 minutes.

How to make marshmallow fondant? Preparing this type of plastic mass is not difficult. The number of components given in the recipe is enough to cover the product completely and sculpt several figures. Marshmallows are better to choose plain. Required Ingredients:

• marshmallow - 200 g;
• powdered sugar - 500 g.

Step by step master class do-it-yourself masses based on marshmallows for a cake at home:

• Place the marshmallows inside a microwaveable bowl. If there is no such device, then heat it in a water bath. Add a piece of butter. We put on 40 seconds or more so that the volume of the base doubles.
• Sift the powdered sugar in portions, knead the mastic with a spoon. If you want to make a color, add the dye right away.
• When mixing with a spoon becomes difficult, sprinkle the table with powder, knead with your hands. This process takes long time, since there should be no air bubbles in the mass.
• When the mastic has ceased to stick, wrap it with cling film, leave for half an hour. After that, you need to knead it, rolling it out with a rolling pin.
• You can store the mass in the refrigerator for up to three months. Before use, it must be heated in the microwave, knead with the addition of powdered sugar.

chocolate mastic recipe

The consistency of chocolate mastic resembles plasticine. It allows you to make different figures that will have a pleasant brown color and taste. Chocolate for mastic, you must choose milk, white, bitter, depending on the result you want to get. Required Ingredients:

• water - 3 tsp;
• powdered sugar - 200 g;
• chocolate - 100 g;
• marshmallow - 150 g;
• butter;
• potato starch.

Step by step recipe chocolate mass for a do-it-yourself cake at home:

• We shift the marshmallows inside the container, add two teaspoons of water. Mix chocolate with a teaspoon of butter and tsp. water.
• Heat the marshmallow in the microwave to increase its volume. We melt the chocolate in the same place and rub it so that there are no pieces.
• Mix marshmallows with sifted powdered sugar, add chocolate. Knead the mass until smooth. Beat with a mixer with spiral attachments.
• Sprinkle with starch and knead until soft elastic mass.
• We wrap the mastic with a film, let it brew for half an hour.

Powdered sugar and gelatin mastic recipe

One of the most successful ways to make do-it-yourself mastic for a cake at home is this recipe. The mass turns out to be white, soft, easily rolled out in a thin layer, universal (suitable for sculpting flowers, figurines, covering). You can store mastic at room temperature, but before using it must be heated in the microwave. Required Components:

• gelatin - 25 g;
• cold water - 1 glass;
• sugar - 2 cups;
• invert syrup- 170 ml;
• powdered sugar - 1.2 kg;
• starch - 300 g;
• salt - 0.25 tsp

A step-by-step recipe for making mastic for a cake with your own hands at home:

• First, we will deal with invert syrup. It replaces molasses maple syrup, liquid honey, confectionery glucose. To prepare it, put on a quiet fire a saucepan with 700 g of sugar and 300 ml hot water. Bring to a boil with constant stirring. Pour 4 g citric acid, mix, cover with a lid, cook for 30 minutes over low heat. Remove the lid and let the syrup cool for 15 minutes. Add 3 g of soda, after which abundant foaming should begin. Stir the syrup with a spoon several times at intervals of 10-15 minutes to remove the foam. Set aside 170 ml of syrup for mastic, store the rest in the refrigerator.
• For mastic, pour gelatin with half a glass of water. We prepare it as indicated on the package. After readiness, we filter so that there are no grains.
• Mix the remaining water, salt, sugar, invert syrup. We put on a small fire, bring to a boil with constant stirring.
• When the mass boils, reduce the heat, boil for 8 minutes, but do not mix.
• Turn on the mixer, pour the boiling mixture into the gelatin. Beat at maximum speed.
• It is necessary to beat for a long time so that the mass increases three times. It should become uniform, lush, white, shiny and wrap around the corollas.
• After we change the nozzles to spiral ones. Sift the powder, add in several visits. We continue to beat.
• When the snow-white dense mass is ready. We close the container with mastic with cling film, leave for a day at room temperature. After kneading on a table sprinkled with starch.

Marzipan mastic comes out smooth and elastic. It is used to completely cover the surface of pies and cakes. Less commonly used for sculpting flowers, fruits, and other figures. Required Ingredients:

• sugar - 1 cup;
• almonds - 1 cup;
• powdered sugar;
• cocoa powder - 1 tbsp. l.;
• almond essence - 3 drops;
• water - 0.25 cups.

A step-by-step recipe for marzipan mass for a cake with your own hands at home:

• Almonds, without peeling, dip into boiling water, boil for a couple of minutes, transfer to a colander. When all the water has drained, pour the almonds onto the board. Remove the shell, wash the kernels, fry in a dry frying pan for 15 minutes with constant stirring. Grind the nuts in a blender to a puree.
• Sugar is mixed with water, heated until the syrup dissolves and thickens, so that a flexible, hard ball rolls out of it.
• Mix syrup with almonds. Warm up for 4 minutes. Add essence.
• Sprinkle the board with powder, spread the mastic and knead.

This type of mastic is considered very common. Judging by the reviews, it is used to form small patterns, use for a cornet or the smallest nozzle. What is the protein-drawing mass made of? Its feature is the addition of protein and lemon juice. Required components:

• powdered sugar - 200-220 g;
• lemon juice - 1 tsp;
• protein - 1 pc.

Step-by-step production of a protein drawing mass for a cake with your own hands at home:

• Transfer the protein to a container. Whip it up a bit lemon juice.
• Gradually stir in the sifted powder in batches.
• The mass should drain a little from the blade, but not be liquid.

Floral

Flower mastic for a do-it-yourself cake at home - this is a unique type of mass that perfectly retains a given shape, freezes in a short period of time, and is easily molded. Required Components:

• cold water - 30 ml;
• powdered sugar - 250 g;
• liquid glucose - 1 tsp;
• gelatin - 2 tsp

Step-by-step preparation of the flower mass with your own hands at home:

• Pour water into a small bowl, add gelatin, leave for 10 minutes. Then heat until dissolved in a water bath.
• Stir glucose into gelatin, mix.
• Gradually add the sifted powdered sugar.
• We spread the thick mastic on the surface, sprinkled with powder, knead until the stickiness disappears. Wrap in clingfilm and let it rest for half an hour.

How to make colored or shiny mastic

Mastic - very popular for decorating cakes, sculpting figurines, tight-fitting. It is a white plastic mass. In order for the jewelry to be original, bright, the material must be painted. For this, food colors are used, which can be liquid, dry and helium. Staining mastic can occur in several ways:

• Liquid dye or helium is added during the preparation of the mastic. The color comes out even, for which you do not need to additionally knead the material. To get multi-colored mastic, you need to add several colors.
• When the mastic is ready, you can color it like this: dip a wet toothpick in dry dye, poke a ball of plastic mass. Mix thoroughly until an even color is obtained.
• Dilute the dry dye boiled water, alcohol or vodka in the ratio of 1 tablespoon of liquid to the tip of a powder knife. Dip a toothpick in the dye, pierce the mastic in several places, knead.
• To create a marble effect, apply a few drops of dye, roll into a sausage, wrap the edges towards the middle, add more paint. Repeat this pattern until you get the desired streaked striped color.

What if you only have a few colors and don't have the right shade? Then you should know about the rules of combination:

• light green - yellow and purple;
• green - blue and yellow;
• khaki - green, brown;
• lavender - lilac, blue;
• blue - yellow, orange, green;
• purple - blue, red;
• strawberry - red, pink;
• mint - green, blue, white;
• mother-of-pearl - add kandurin;
• champagne - white, yellow, brown;
• dark red - a little black and red;
• orange - yellow, red;
• gold - orange, yellow, red;
• coral - yellow, pink;
• terracotta - brown, orange;
• brown - green, red;
• flesh - yellow, red;
• black - red, blue, brown in proportions 1:1:1.
• gray - red, blue, brown, choose the proportions yourself until you get the desired shade.

If you haven’t stocked up on food coloring, then herbal ingredients will come to the rescue:

• yellow - carrot juice, turmeric powder, saffron, diluted in alcohol, water;
• pink and red - cranberry, beetroot, pomegranate, currant, cherry juice, red wine;
• orange - Orange juice;
• green - juice of spinach, parsley, sorrel, brilliant green;
• purple - juice of grapes, blackberries, blueberries;
• chocolate - cocoa powder;
• black - activated carbon.

Another common question when working with mastic is how to make it shiny? When the cake is decorated with this plastic mass, it is necessary to prepare a solution of vodka and honey in a 1: 1 ratio. Cover the mastic with a vodka-honey mixture using a soft brush. After a few minutes, the vodka will begin to evaporate, then the decoration will get a glossy beautiful shine.

Video tutorials: how to make mastic for a cake at home

Mastic is a product that allows you to sculpt figures, as if from plasticine. However, this smooth and tasty material dries quickly in the open air. There are many recipes for plastic mass based on different products, which you will find in the videos below for beginners. This type of decoration birthday cake with their own hands at home will surprise all guests. This special paste is intended for modeling confectionery products, creating various decorations, and making baked goods more aesthetically pleasing.

Homemade honey mastic

Marshmallow mastic recipe

Sweet mastic from condensed milk