I find that many newbie cake decorators become easily confused with all the different names given to the soft roll out icing that we use these days to cover most of our cakes. However, basically yes, sugarpaste is the term most widely used in the UK for this soft icing and the term fondant when used in the US, is the US equivalent.
Fondant in the UK is something different!
BEWARE, in the UK the term fondant actually refers to icing that is used for pouring and dipping – the sticky stuff on bakers buns and the covering on Fondant Fancies!! This icing is made by melting the sugar and heating it to no more than 40*C. Some UK supermarkets sell a packaged mix to make this called fondant icing. This has lead to some confusion as people are buying this product thinking it is sugarpaste!
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Sugarpaste – A little history
From my travels around the sugarcraft world, I have learnt that sugarpaste, although originally developed in Europe, became popular as a cake covering first in Australia (Australian Pasta). I met ladies in Sydney that remember using it in the 1940’s and 1950’s! From Australia, it then travelled to South Africa and then in the early 1980’s it become popular in the UK. It has only been widely used in the US fairly recently, certainly when I wrote my first book in 1999 buttercream was still the norm!
Which name to use?
Until the advent of the internet and the use of personal computers, the name you gave your soft rolled out icing was determined by where you lived, see chart below. However, over the last 10 years or so sugarcraft has become global. Now with many budding cake decorators teaching themselves from YouTube videos and international books, plus the influence of US TV cake shows such as Ace of Cakes and Cake Boss, the names used are becoming more interchangeable. For example, I find that many of my young UK students are now coming into class calling their paste fondant!
Generic or brand name – I have always used the generic term sugarpaste, it was what I was taught when I first started in 1991, however many people refer to their sugarpaste by its brand name, in much the same way as ‘Hoover’ has become the name used for a vacuum cleaner whether or not it is actually manufactured by Hoover.
Below is a chart with the names I have come across. I’m sure it is not complete so please do help me fill in any blanks.
| Country | Generic Names | Brand Names |
| UK | Sugarpaste Icing Frosting Roll-out icing Ready-to-roll icing Covering paste | Regal Ice |
| US | Fondant Rolled fondant | Satin Ice |
| South Africa | Plastic icing | Pettinice |
| Australia | RTR Ready to Roll |
Hope you find the above useful and interesting. If you’d like to have a go at making your own sugarpaste then please click on this blog link for a recipe.
Do let me know if I have left any names off the list, I’d love to make it as complete as possible!
Sweet wishes
Lindy Smith
“Bringing world class sugarcraft into your kitchen”
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Glynis says
Lucky for me that the first book I bought on the subject of cake decorating was one of yours Lindy explaning the basics and terminology 🙂 It was Celebrate with a Cake and I found it in a bookshop when we were visiting my son in Plymouth. He and his future wife had just bullied me into making their wedding cake! I was terrified at the thought but once I’d read up on the basics in your book I coped pretty well. Its been a very slippery slope into the world of cake decorating since then, but I’m loving it 🙂
Victoria says
My goodness you are my savour!!
Too many times I have become confused by the different names for products!
I’ve searched the net trying to find someone who could explain what they all
are and if they are the same! Thankyou for this, it has set me straight and
to my delight iIve had the product in question at home the entire time!!
One thing i do ask though, I’ve heard about adding something to the pastes
to help them to become firmer when set, it this true or have i just got a
muffled message passed on ….
Thanks again x
Lindys Team says
Dear Victoria
You can add gum tragacanth to sugarpaste to make it dry firmer. This needs to be added to the sugarpaste and then left overnight. If you are short of time, you can use CMC instead which works straight away.
Here is a link to them in our online shop.
http://www.lindyscakes.co.uk/shop/search.php?mode=search&page=1
Happy Baking!
Zoe
Victoria says
Thankyou very much. I’ll definitely be getting myself a little tub of that! 🙂
x
Jane says
I love you. Thank you so much. As a newby, I am forever in your debt for clearing up this source of stress!! I can’t believe how many names there are for icing…… I had convinced myself that I was using totally the wrong thing! Great webiste, I come here all the time for your wonderful hints and tips xxx
Jade says
Hello (again .. sorry!)
I just have a quick question regarding using moulds. I am using a 50/50 mix of sugarpaste and flower paste to try and create brooches using my silicone brooch mould. However I am finding that I can’t get the paste out of the mould at all without much stretching, and the brooches are either coming out completely misshapen/torn or not coming out of the mould at all.
Should I be letting the paste set hard in the mould before attempting to remove it? The instructions said I could “tap out” the paste straight away but this doesn’t work. Any advice would be really appreciated. Thank you.
Lindys Team says
Hi Jade (again!)
With detailed moulds you may need to place the mould in the freezer for 15-30 minutes before releasing the design.
Hope this helps!
Zoe
Nicola Corrigan says
Hi Lindy,
I have noticed a few books mention sugar dough. I assume this is not the same thing as sugarpaste, do you know what it is exactly? Is it an American term and is there something we would use as an alternative in the UK?
Thanks,
Nicola
Nikoletta says
Very helpful indeed. I was very much confused with the different names used all around the world/internet. Now I know what paste to order. Thanks:)
Jane says
Hello Laura,
Sugar dough is halfway between sugarpaste and modelling paste.
Jane
Jenny says
In Costa Rica, it is called “pasta australiana.” (Australian paste)
Being from the US, this confused me for quite a while!
Dawn says
Hi i am totally confused what is flower paste / sugar paste and gumpaste in the uk are they all different what is best to make little people and what is best to make butterflies please regards a helpless novice
Lindys Team says
Hi Dawn
They are all different. Gumpaste or modelling paste is best to make people and butterflies.
Kind regards
Lindy’s Team
Indu says
Hi, can you please tell me all the possible uses of following icing types,
Sugar paste/ fondant =
Gum paste/flowers paste/petal paste=
Royal icing=
Parchment icing=
modelling dough=
Can you please also give me a recipe for modelling dough as well?
I was motivated by your advices in this website. Thanks for it 🙂
Lindys Team says
Hi Indu
Sugarpaste/fondant is an icing you roll out, used to cover cakes and boards.
Gum paste/flower paste/petal paste is used to make delicate sugar flowers.
Royal icing is used for piping fine details and for stencil work.
I have not heard of parchment icing. Parchment is a type of non-stick baking paper.
Modelling paste is used to add decoration to cakes. It keeps its shape well and dries harder that sugarpaste.
Modelling paste:
225g (8oz) sugarpaste
5ml (1 tsp) gum tragacanth or CMC
Knead the gum tragacanth into the sugarpaste, wrap in a plastic bag and leave to work overnight. If time is short use CMC – this is a synthetic alternative which works almost straight away.