Welcome to the Cake Decorators Q&A

I live in the tropics and I am making my daughters wedding cake in early May 2016
Our humidity tends to drop off around end of March – mid April. She is wanting a 5 tier cake and I thought I would get ahead an make an abundance of flowers because I we are going to have a couple of spaces to fill.
How do I store them?
How long will they store for?

Hi Tropiclife101

Having lived in the tropics years ago I know some of the problems you are speaking of. There are some good forums on the net which you may find useful. I’ll link further down. I think a safe place to start is to find a good recipe first, one that doesn’t contain glycerine which is hygroscopic and attracts moisture. Chef Nicholas Lodge has a great recipe which he now shares online, you can see it here:
http://www.nicholaslodge.com/images/easyblog_images/46/Tylose-Gumpaste-Recipe_20140711-013221_1.pdf
To see some discussions:
http://www.cakecentral.com/forum/t/746254/how-to-store-gumpaste-flowers-in-humid-weather
Read the comments on the thread below:
http://cakesdecor.com/topics/717-oh-humidity-why-do-you-hate-me-so

I find rolling out and kneading on corn flour/cornstarch helps to absorb some of the moisture when making the flowers or models. Icing sugar just attracts moisture and doesn’t help. I guess you could even lay your made articles on a bed of corn starch to dry them off more quickly. This is a method I learned while making fruit pastilles, only instead of corn starch, sugar is used as the bed! It’s possible adding cornstarch to the icing sugar at the time of making the gumpaste could also help. I’m afraid I can’t help you with the ratios which would be required. A little experiment perhaps??
Some while ago I read a discussion about making flowers and models in pastillage. This medium dries very quickly and the item is much stronger. I’ve searched and search for that discussion and unfortunately can’t find it. If I do I will post in this thread.
As for storing, it’s best to store in a cardboard box and not in a plastic box as suggested in some of the discussions. Cardboard is a breathable material and will allow ventillation while plastic will cause humid environment inside the box and cause condensation. A place of constant temperature will ensure your items to stay in good condition., Just keep an eye on them because there is no saying how long they will keep good. Hope some of this helps, I’m no expert with humidity, however every now and then even we in the UK get a taste of what you guys have to endure. Hopefully other members will share their tips.

Thank you for your helpful comments.
Is a commercial product not a good idea?
I guess I have a year away, so should test out a commercial vs home recipe. I will check out the links you have provided. 🙂 from FNQ Australia.

Have a go at making a recipe because you’ll have better control of the ingredients. Some commercially made gumpastes may just as well be sugarpaste for all the good they are. I use Squire’s Kitchen flower paste on its own if the weather starts acting up. Squire’s is by far the best that I have used not just for it’s drying qualitities but also for its fineness. The only way to see what suits you is to try as many as you can, living where you do I’m sure there must be pastes made specifically to cope with the climate You do have a fair amount of time, a few practice runs will definitely hel you sort out what is best to use. I don’t envy you in FNQ, it was bad enough for me coping, living and melting in Townsville!
Good luck with your gumpaste, if you manage to create a strong recipe please share and help other members with similar issues. x

ps Carmas Massa is specifically made for hot humid locations, they do have representation in Australia. Have a look in the Australian cake decorators network for a contact or suppliers. If I find a contact or supplier I’ll post in this thread.