This homemade vegan fondant recipe includes agar-agar powder rather than traditional gelatin. It is wonderful to make fondant decorations or to cover vegan cakes. Try this version of fondant icing whenever you have a need to prepare desserts for a crowd or someone who leads a vegan lifestyle.
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Is Fondant Vegan Friendly?
Traditionally, fondant is not appropriate for vegans. However, THIS vegan fondant IS. The reason that vegans cannot usually have fondant is that it contains gelatin, which includes collagen from animal bones. The replacement for gelatin in this recipe is agar-agar powder, which results in something equally as good as the original but appropriate for both vegans and vegetarians.
Agar-agar Powder
Agar-agar powder is a powder that comes from red algae. As a result, it is perfectly appropriate for vegans or vegetarians to consume. Some believe that it may have originated in Japan, although several Asian cuisines use it in the present. Moreover, it has become a favourite tool for pastry chefs to create vegan-friendly desserts, such as mousse cakes.
Agar-agar powder isn't as easy to find as powdered gelatin, but more and more stores are starting to carry it. While your local grocery store may not have it in stock, you should be able to find it at any natural food store or even online (agar agar on Amazon). I have managed to find it at Asian food stores. If all you can get are agar flakes, you can use a ½ tablespoon rather than a ¾ teaspoon of agar-agar powder.
Powdered Sugar
Another reason that vegans can't usually eat fondant is because of the powdered sugar - also called confectioners sugar or icing sugar. After doing a little bit of research, I found out that the sugar brands available to me at the major grocery stores use bone char (charcoal from animal bones) in the refining process. For this reason, I buy organic icing sugar for vegan baking from Wholesome Sweeteners, which is also certified vegan.
Glycerin
After I received comments/emails regarding the glycerin in this recipe, I also learned that there are different types of glycerin, some of which come from animal fat. For this vegan fondant recipe be sure to use glycerin that is NOT animal-based and therefore suitable to use for vegans. Look for food grade vegetable glycerin.
How to Make Vegan Fondant
While you may think that making vegan fondant is complicated, it really isn't. To start, you should sift your powdered sugar through a fine-mesh metal strainer into a bowl. This helps remove any clumps so that the icing sugar incorporates with the other ingredients easily.
Dissolving the Agar-agar Powder
Next, in a saucepan, stir the agar-agar powder with the cold water until it is dissolved, and allow to sit for about 10 minutes. During this time, the mixture will thicken and become a gelatinous consistency.
The next step is to heat the mixture over low heat to dissolve it back to a fluid consistency. You should heat the mixture slowly so that you don't evaporate all of the water. It should take a total of 10 minutes or so for the agar-agar to completely dissolve, but don't worry if there are still a few undissolved flakes around the edges.
Adding Glucose, Shortening, Glycerin, and Flavourings
At this point, you stir in your glucose and shortening until dissolved followed by the glycerin and your choice of flavouring. Most traditionally, you might want to add vanilla extract (use clear vanilla if you don't want it to tint the fondant). These can help reduce the sweetness from the icing sugar.
Adding the Powdered Sugar
To complete the fondant, you place half of the powdered sugar in a separate bowl and make a well in its center. You don't want to start with the full quantity of confectioners sugar as you may find that you won't need all of it. Next, you pour the agar mixture into the well and stir the mixture to combine, adding more powdered sugar as needed.
You will know when you don't need to add any more powdered sugar because the mixture will become quite stiff and difficult to stir. I find that 4 ½ cups is the perfect amount usually, but quantities may vary depending on humidity levels, evaporation or measuring. At this point, you can remove the fondant to a clean surface and knead it until it reaches a smooth consistency before shaping it into a ball.
Storing Your Vegan Fondant
You can use the fondant straight away or store it for later use. If storing, wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in a sealable bag to protect it from air that will dry out the fondant. Properly wrapped you can keep the fondant at room temperature for at least 1 month.
If you want to refrigerated it, be sure it also is wrapped completely airtight. Once you want to use it, the refrigerated fondant will have to come to room temperature and be kneaded well again to return to its soft and pliable consistency.
The Colour of Vegan Fondant
You may have noticed that the fondant is not pure white. That is alright for me as I like to colour it whenever I make fondant animals for cupcake toppers or cover my cakes.
The reason for the colour is organic icing sugar. As a result, if you can get away with traditional powdered sugar, you can use that and end up with pure white fondant. However, if you choose to use organic and need white fondant, you can add some white food colouring at the point that you add the flavourings or knead it in at the end.
Original Photos from 2011
More Vegan Dessert Recipes
- Easy Chocolate Mousse
- Coconut Flour Cookies (they work great with flax egg substitute)
- Vegan Coconut Caramel Sauce
Vegan Fondant Recipe
Ingredients
- ¾ teaspoon agar agar powder
- â…› cup cold water
- ¼ cup glucose I use light corn syrup
- 1 tablespoon vegetable shortening
- ½ tablespoon glycerin vegetable-based
- 1 lb (4 cups) vegan powdered sugar + a little extra
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or other flavoring extracts (use clear extracts if you need white fondant)
Instructions
- Start by sifting the powdered sugar into a bowl through a large metal strainer. Stirring the confectioners sugar with a spoon is a lot less messy than shaking the strainer or tapping it against your hand. This breaks up any lumps and the icing sugar is nice and airy. This will make kneading later on easier and you will avoid having lumps in the fondant.
- Mix the agar powder with water in a small saucepan and let it soak for a while. It will become of a thicker, gelatinous consistency. After about 10 minutes place the saucepan on the stove top on low heat. The goal is to dissolve the agar mixture. This has to be done slowly. (Otherwise the water will simply evaporate and agar speckles are left in the bottom of the pan.) Stir constantly and add more water by the tablespoon as needed so the mixture doesn't dry out.
- When you see that all the agar powder is dissolved (it will take probably around 10 minutes) take the pan off the heat. Some grains that were stuck to the side of my pan didn't dissolve, but I didn't worry about those. Now, add the glucose/corn syrup and shortening. Stir the mixture until all of the shortening dissolves. Stir in glycerin and flavoring.
- Put half of the sifted powdered sugar into another bowl. Make a well and pour in the agar mixture. Stir together with a spatula as much as possible, adding more icing sugar when needed. When you can't stir anymore start kneading in the powdered sugar as needed by hand. It takes me usually almost 4.5 cups icing sugar to get the right fondant consistency. Form the fondant into a ball.
- If you are not using it right away wrap in plastic wrap and place in a ziploc bag. Refrigeration is not required and not recommended for this fondant.
- The finished fondant should be sufficient to cover a 8"x4" or a 10"x3" round cake.
Random Questions
Traditional fondant usually contains gelatin, making it unsuitable for vegans. However, you can make vegan fondant using alternatives like agar-agar powder, as described in this recipe.
Traditional fondant often contains gelatin, an animal-derived ingredient. This recipe uses agar-agar powder as a vegan-friendly alternative.
Gelatin is typically used in fondant to provide elasticity and a smooth, pliable texture. In vegan fondant recipes, agar-agar powder serves a similar purpose, creating a suitable consistency without animal products.
Agar-agar powder is an excellent vegan substitute for gelatin when making fondant, providing a similar texture and consistency.
A vegan alternative for fondant is fondant made with agar-agar powder, which is plant-based and suitable for vegans.
julie
I was wondering how long the fondant will last. How far in advance can I make it?
Regina
From other commenters I heard they store it for weeks at room temperature and for months even in the fridge. I myself have stored unused fondant in the fridge for weeks and it was good. I made figurines a couple weeks ahead of time and stored them in air-tight containers at room temperature. They also were fine.
So I would say 4 weeks at room temp and up to 3 months in the fridge.
Archana
can this fondant be stored in fridge
Regina
Yes, that's what I did
Devisha
Hi Regina!
Thanks for the awesome recipe! I had saved this recipe almost 3 to 4 months back and wanted to try it at the earliest convience. I tried it a few days . To be honest, before making it, I was a little apprehensive wether would it strechable enough to roll or not but to my pleasant surprise it was fabulous. I also wanted to share all my experiences regarding this fondant here. It was very plaiable but it took a little to sweet for me. I tried making a book cake, at first, the fondant was firm but after sometime, the edges started bending a little. Please, don't feel that I am criticizing you or your work. I am just sharing my experiences for all of our learning. I learned that I would definitely use this fondant over and over but as you suggested, I would use it for making 3D figures.I WOULD ALSO COVER A NORMAL CAKE WITHOUT EDGES. I AM SURE IT WOULD HOLD FINE.( sharing this because, many of your fans like me, had this question for you!) Loved working with this fondant, made a lot and stored in fridge, it's doing just fine. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Love,
Cakespice
Regina
Thank you so much for sharing your insights and experiences Devisha! It is much appreciated and I am sure will be very helpful to other readers as well.
Shabana
Hi Devisha,
Did you use the same ingredients as mentioned by Regina as it was not pliable when I made it. I dont know where have I gone wrong.
Hi Regina,
Thank you for the recipe a true vegan one. Is it ok to use liquid glucose instead of corn syrup.
Rgds,
Shabana
Regina
Hey Shabana,
yes glucose can be substituted. Here corn syrup is easier to find but probably not everywhere.
Seja
Hi. Im not vegan but i still cant eat geletin because its considered haraam. but anyways i just had to ask where you found the agar powder? ive never heard of it and i dont know where to get it
Regina
Here in Canada I buy it at the Specialty Asian food store or in the Ethnic food aisle of the supermarket. Another option always is ordering it from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005I6IDVE/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005I6IDVE&linkCode=as2&tag=special03b-20
vandana
Can u suggest a gum paste recipe with butter confectionery sugar gum arabic water cream only.
Regina
I am sorry Vandana, I don't know a recipe with only those ingredients.
Susan
Hi Regina,
When would I need to add the colouring? Thanks.
Susan
Regina
Hey Susan, if you want to color the entire batch of fondant in one color, you can add the color at the same time as you are adding the flavoring. If you want many different colors, knead it into the finished fondant as needed.
Hema
Hi! Really eager to try out ur recipe.jus one clarification- have heard people adding cmc to make figurines,is it not necessary here? Pls advise.thanku:)
Regina
Hi Hema,
Yes for figurines I also add CMC, tylose or other powdered gum to made the fondant more pliabale.
anu
Hi,
Thanks for the recipe. It came out good. I made only half the quantity and fondant came out very soft with 2 cups of sugar. If I have to make any figurines, I kneaded in some more sugar.
Regina
It seems like the amount of powdered sugar varies for everyone. Someone else told me they couldn't even use all the sugar otherwise it would have been a dry rock. Maybe it depends on different kinds of agar agar.
When I make figurines I also knead gum-tex or tylose powder into the fondant to make it more like gumpaste which is more stretchy and pliable.
traceesbounce
hi there thanx for the great recipe!!!!! I had a question about the agar agar powder. I purchased a box and it says it has sugar in it as well. does that mean that I'll need to add more of the powder?? Is the agar agar diluted since it has sugar in it?? I've never attempted vegan baking so any help wiuld be appreciated. Thanks again!!!
traceesbounce
also when I put in the shortening is it still suppse to be on the heat ?? it wasnt dissolving when I took the pan off the low heat..
Regina
My pan was always still hot enough to dissolve the shortening when off heat, but if that doesn't happen for you definitely put it back on for a short moment until it dissolves.
Regina
Hi, I have never had agar agar with sugar in it, but it might be that you need a little more of the powder then.
Swatti
Can we substitute shortening with butter if not vegan
Regina
Swatti, yes, you should be able to use butter as substitute. But if you are not vegan, why don't you try making gelatin-based or marshmallow fondant?
Swatti
Thank for the prompt reply Regina.Thanks for the suggestions but I can't use gelatin coz I am a vegetarian and gelatin contains animal products and as for the marshmallow fondant I don't know the recipe.One more thing we have to use the powdered glucose here nah.And btw u r doing a great job by helping us out.
Regina
No problem Swatti 🙂 I am happy to be able to help. I guess as vegetarian marshmallow fondant would be out of the question too, since marshmallows usually contain gelatin as well. Which I could help with the powdered glucose but I have never used or heard of it.
All the best for your fondant/cake project!
swatti
Can you please tell me if we can make corn syrup at home and if yes the recipe please
Regina
I don't know of a way to make corn syrup at home, but apparently some people use a simple syrup as substitute. You can see this video how to make simple syrup but I dont have any experience substituting it in homemade fondant.
Regina
Oops, here is the video link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2eatVjYDyw
Anna M. Arthur
Hi I am a vegan and am thinking of trying this
and wanted to know how do I make it so that it
Has a flavor like strawberry or something like it?
Thanks for a great recipe.
Regina
Hi Anna,
Maybe you can use vegan strawberry jello powder like this: Jeannie Gelatin-free Dessert. You could add some (maybe a tablespoon) to the warm agar mixture. Stir until there are no undissolved sugar granules left before adding it to the icing sugar.
Another option would be vegan strawberry flavoring extracts. Just add them at the time as directed in the recipe.
Hope this helps 🙂
chandani jain
Hi ,thank you for the fondant recipe . can you tell me instead of shortening what can i use ??
Regina
Hi, maybe you can use some vegetable oil. Try 1/2 tbsp at first and then add more if necessary.
chandani jain
thank you so much :). can i use this fondant for covering the cake
Regina
Yes, you should be able to cover a cake with this fondant. I haven't done so myself, but know of others who used this fondant recipe for covering cakes. My advice would be to roll out the fondant not too thin and start trying with a cake that isn't too large in diameter.
chandani
ok thank u so much 🙂
Mipa
Hi, thank you for this awesome recipe! It worked great~~~ 🙂 I shared it on my blog post here: http://aliensdayout.com/2012/11/learning-to-make-vegan-fondant.html
Regina
So glad to hear you liked the recipe, Mipa, and that it worked for you. Thank you also for sharing 🙂
Yasmeen khan
Thanks for giving us valued information, I did not realized that icing sugar also contains animal bones powder or what ever. where did you buy this kind of Icing sugar?
Regina
I am glad this recipe is helpful to you, Yasmeen.
Not all brands of sugar use bone-char in the refining process. Maybe you can do a quick Google search on your brand. This way I found out, that unfortunately regular sugar brands in my area use animal by-products.
So I found this certified vegan (and organic and fair-trade) powdered sugar and my local health food store. Hope this helps.
Jojo
So this recipe is not able to cover a cake??
I really need a vegan recipe to cover a cake...im all vegan!!!
Regina
As I have replied to others above, I have personally used it only for figure making. I don't think it is impossible to cover a cake with it, just a little more difficult than other fondant types. I would not recommend it for huge cakes.
I have only ever used the pictured type of agar. But I don't think it matters.
deepali jain
hi thanks a lot for d recipe,
I have few doubts before preparing the fondant.In how much water do we need to dissolve agar agar powder. Is there any substitute for shortening and wen do we need to put the colour.
Regina
Hi Deepali, dissolve the agar agar in all of the 1/8 cup of water. Once you start slowly heating it, some water will evaporate. At this point start adding more water a tablespoon at a time, because the agar cannot dissolve without water. How much you'll use in the end will be different for everyone, depending on stove, pot etc... But as a ball park figure, maybe up to 1/2c of water.
The only substitute for shortening I could think of would be vegan margarine, but I have never tried that myself.
If you want to color the whole batch in one color or make it whiter I recommend adding the coloring together with glycerin and flavorings. But if you need small amounts of several different colors, just knead them into the finished fondant.
Hope all this helps.
DL
What do you think the shelf life is of these once they've been created? And, should you not refrigerate them after they're made either?
Basically I'm trying to figure out when I should make them if the party they're for isn't until a couple weeks away.
Thanks for the recipe!
Regina
Hi DL, I also made my figurines at least a week in advance as they were for a very busy wedding weekend. I stored them in an air-tight container at room temperature and they were just fine. I think even a couple weeks will be fine. But I didn't leave them out as I didn't want them too dry. Personally, I don't care much for eating fondant but I know others do and didn't want them to break a tooth biting into these 😉 I know other people refrigerate or even freeze their home-made fondant. But it usually is used up within a couple months with me so I never do. Let me know how things work out for you. Would love to see!
Tara
How was this recipe for making the animals? Did they turn out okay?
Regina
Hi Tara,
Yeah it was no problem modeling the animals. You can have a look here http://leelalicious.com/farm-animals-wedding-cupcake-tower/
Jody
So this is no good for covering a cake:(??? I'm all vegan and need a vegan recipe for fondant! Also does the brand of agar matter?
leah
so i cant cover a cake with it?
its just for sculpting?
Regina
Hi Leah,
I myself only had to sculpt with it. From the feel I got for the texture I would say it's not impossible, but would be a little more difficult to use for covering a cake. I would probably not recommend it for a very large cake.
nirmal
Hi... I just saw the following information:
Is glycerine safe for vegetarians?
Glycerine can be animal, vegetable or synthetic. It is commonly animal based, or a blend of animal and vegetable oils. Even kosher glycerine can be animal based. Asking particular companies about their food ingredients is often the only way to find out if the source is animal or vegetable.
http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/faqingredients.htm#glycerine
Hope the info is useful
Regina
Thank you, Nirmal, for pointing this out.
Indeed, as vegan/vegetarian one should look for glycerine that is not animal based.
The kind I am using in the images is from Wilton. I haven't contacted them personally, but found other, vegan cake decorators who did get in touch with Wilton and they confirmed that their glycerine is vegetable based. If you are vegan and would like that extra peace of mind, definitely contact the glycerine manufacturer if it doesn't say specifically on their product.
Hema
Hi...... Thanks for the vegan recipe as I too am a pure vegetarian . But I have one query. The glucose u mentioned .....is it powdered glucose or syrup?
Regina
Hi Hema,
I am glad to hear the recipe is useful for you. For the glucose I mention I either use glucose syrup or light corn syrup.
Jill
Thank you for the great post. I am in charge of my niece's birthday cake this year. I'm also a vegetarian and want to be able to enjoy this cake too. Two questions, how did your vegetarian fondant taste? And, how easy was it to cover your cake?
Regina
Hi Jill, thank you for your comment.
As for the taste, since I used vanilla and lemon flavorings these were the prevalent tastes. And then of course there is the sweetness from the icing sugar. None of the other ingredients, like agar agar or glycerin, do really have a taste.
I only needed the fondant to form animal figurines. But from how I remember the consistency, I would say it might be a little harder to cover a cake then with regular fondant. I wouldn't roll it out too thinly as it might tear more easily when placing it onto the cake.
Good luck with your project.