Chocolate Marshmallow Fondant

I have only worked with fondant once before. Thankfully, my cousin Tiffany, AKA the Cake Whisperer!, gave me some pointers and sent me links to a recipe for homemade modeling chocolate and one for chocolate marshmallow fondant. Thanks, Tiff! Of course, I can't follow directions to save my life, so I took aspects of both recipes, and the first marshmallow fondant recipe I made, and created my own chocolate marshmallow fondant.

Ingredients makes three 5" rounds of fondant

• 12 C minature marshmallows - loosely poured, not tightly packed
• 12 C organic powdered sugar
• 6 T water
• 1 C unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 t organic hazelnut extract
• 1 t organic chocolate extract
• cornstarch for kneading
• food coloring gel, optional (we made black!)

Procedure
Place the marshmallows and the water in a large saucepan. Cook, on low heat, until the marshmallows are puffy and expanded.

Stir the marshmallows with a rubber spatula until they are melted and smooth. Stir in 8 C of the powdered sugar, the unsweetened cocoa powder, and extracts into the melted marshmallows.

Add in another 3 C of powdered sugar. Stir until it begins to incorporate and becomes impossible to stir anymore. It will be paste-like.

Scrape the marshmallow-sugar mixture out onto a table covered with parchment and dusted with powdered sugar. The mixture will be sticky and lumpy, with lots of sugar that has not yet been incorporated. Dust your hands with powdered sugar, and begin to knead the fondant mixture like dough, working the sugar into the marshmallow with your hands.

Continue to knead the fondant until it 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.

We needed it black. Darth Vader black, specifically. To add color...flatten your fondant into a round disc. Add your desired amount of coloring or flavoring to the center of the disc, and fold the disc over onto itself so that the color or flavor is enclosed in the center of the fondant ball. We worked in black food coloring gel until we got the shade we wanted.

Once the fondant is a smooth ball and all of the color is incorporated, 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.

You'll see this on a cake this weekend. Can't wait to fête our favorite Darth Vader-loving five-year-old.