How to Make Delicious Chocolate Fondant

Fondant is the medium of choice for many cake decorators because of its limitless design possibilities. But fondant is notorious for having a less-than-appealing flavor. This chocolate fondant recipe lets cake decorators explore all kinds of design ideas with the added feature of fantastic flavor. Not only does it taste great, but it’s also easy and inexpensive to make.

Chocolate Fondant Recipe Wedding Cake | Erin Gardner

Cake by Erin Gardner, image via Kate Preftakes Photography

About this chocolate fondant recipe

I used a bittersweet chocolate here, but this marshmallow chocolate fondant recipe will also work with dark, milk or white chocolate. Softer chocolates, like milk or white, may require a tad more powdered sugar to bring the fondant together. Leave out the cocoa powder if you’re making white chocolate fondant. Chocolate fondant can be tinted with gel food coloring, just the same as you’d tint traditional fondant.

Use chocolate fondant just as you would use traditional fondant to cover cakes, sculpt figures or make molded shapes.

Chocolate fondant recipe

Adapted from Jessica Harris’s Marshmallow Fondant Recipe

Ingredients

  • 16 ounces mini marshmallows
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1/4 cup chocolate, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
  • 1/2 cup vegetable shortening 
  • 2 pounds powdered sugar

Step 1: Melt the marshmallows

Coat a heatproof spatula and the inside of a medium-sized bowl with pan spray. Combine the marshmallows and water in the greased bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute, then stir well. Continue to microwave at 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until all the marshmallows are melted.

Spraying the Bowl and Spatula | Erin Gardner Combining marshmallows and water | Erin Gardner Melted Marshmallows | Erin Gardner

All images via ErinBakes.com

Coat a heatproof spatula and the inside of a medium-sized bowl with pan spray. Combine the marshmallows and water in the greased bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute, then stir well. Continue to microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until all the marshmallows are melted.

Step 2: Microwave the chocolate mixture

Combining chocolate, cocoa powder, salt, and corn syrup | Erin Gardner

In a small heatproof bowl, combine the chocolate, cocoa powder, salt and corn syrup. Microwave on high for 30 seconds, then stir. Return the bowl to the microwave and heat at 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.

Step 3: Add the shortening

Combining the chocolate mixture and shortening | Erin Gardner

Add the shortening to the chocolate mixture and stir to combine. Don’t worry about making the mixture smooth. This is just to soften the shortening and bring everything to the same temperature.

Step 4: Combine the chocolate mixture, marshmallows and sugar

Adding chocolate to the melted marshmallows | Erin Gardner Adding confectioners sugar | Erin Gardner

Add the chocolate mixture to the melted marshmallows. Stir until the mixture is mostly uniform in color. Add half of the powdered sugar and stir until combined. Don’t worry if any lumps remain — they’ll be broken up in the kneading process.

 Step 5: Knead the mixture

Combining melted marshmallows and sugar | Erin Gardner Kneading the fondant | Erin Gardner

Pour the remaining powdered sugar onto your work surface. Grease your hands with pan spray or shortening and use them to scrape the marshmallow mixture onto the mound of powdered sugar. Knead the mixture, absorbing as much sugar as the mixture will hold, until a smooth dough forms.

Finished Chocolate Fondant | Erin Gardner

Wrap the finished fondant tightly with two layers of plastic wrap and then place in a zip-top bag to rest overnight. Use the fondant within six weeks or before the expiration date on the bag of marshmallows.

Share tips, start a discussion or ask one of our experts or other students a question.

Make a comment:
characters remaining

5 Responses to “How to Make Delicious Chocolate Fondant”

  1. ROBIN CHADDOCK

    Was a bit hesitant with the mess you get when adding the veg. shortening to the chocolate mix, but it came out good once mixed with the marshmallows & icing sugar. I think next time I'll use less shortening and more white chocolate, as it didn't really have the cocoa butter flavour.

  2. Brooke

    Can you use this on an ice cream cake? And freeze this?

  3. Linda

    How can I make the chocolant fondant darker? I need at least two "shades" of brown for my project.

  4. Jennifer

    What brand of chocolate might you recommend?

  5. Kara Leistyna

    VERY easy to make, came out just as the picture shows. I was careful not to use too much sugar to avoid cracking. Now on to the decorating! Thank you!