How to Make Sugar Paste Penguins
Start a day early., Gather your supplies., Beat the egg whites., Beat in the sugar., Mix in the tylose., Knead the dough., Let the dough rest., Make the edible glue., Warm and divide the dough., Color the black dough., Color the orange dough., Make...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Start a day early.
To make sugar paste penguins from scratch, you must first make the sugar paste and edible glue.
These both need time to set and mature, so it’s important to start one to two days before you want to assemble the penguins.
Once you make the sugar paste dough, it needs to sit for 24 hours before you can use it.
After making the edible glue, it requires 12 hours to set before you can use it to assemble the penguin parts. -
Step 2: Gather your supplies.
To make and assemble the penguins, you'll need your white, black, and orange sugar paste, along with a few tools.
Other supplies you'll need include:
Stand mixer or large mixing bowl Paddle attachment or electric beaters Two sealable plastic bags Small mixing bowl Whisk Fondant rolling pin Sharp knife Small decorating brush Small oval cookie cutter, about three-quarter inches (19 mm) long Small round cookie cutter, about one-quarter inch (6 mm) in diameter Black edible marker , Place the egg whites into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer.
Beat the eggs in the stand mixer or with electric beaters on medium speed for about 10 seconds, or long enough to break up the egg whites.If you're using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment to make the sugar paste.
When you're making sugar paste, the dough will have to sit for 24 hours, so start this one to two days before you want to make your sugar paste penguins. , Turn the mixer to low speed and gradually add 6 cups (750 g) of the powdered sugar, beating it in one cup (125 g) at a time.
When you’ve added the 6 cups of sugar, continue beating until it takes on the consistency of icing.
Increase the speed of the mixer to medium and beat the mixture for two minutes, until the mixture starts to form soft peaks.
The soft peak stage means the mixture will form peaks, but they’ll melt back into the mixture within a couple seconds., Turn the mixer to low speed and slowly sprinkle in the tylose powder.
Continue mixing for about 30 seconds, then turn the mixer to high for 30 seconds.
As the tylose is incorporated, it will thicken everything to a dough.
Tylose powder is a food additive that’s also called carboxymethycellulose.
It’s used to make thick pastes that harden when they dry, which is why it’s great for making sugar paste., Dust a flat surface with powdered sugar and turn the dough out onto it.
Knead the dough, gradually adding the remaining ⅔ cup (83 g) of powdered sugar, until you have a soft dough.When the dough is ready, it will be soft and pliable, but not sticky to the touch. , Place the dough into a sealable freezer bag.
Press out as much air as you can to prevent the dough from drying out.
Seal the bag, and then place that bag into a second sealable bag.
Move the dough to the fridge and let it rest for 24 hours., In a small bowl, combine the tylose powder and warm water.
Whisk the two together to remove as many lumps as possible.Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or put a lid on.
Transfer the mixture to the fridge and let it set overnight, about 12 hours.
As the mixture sets, it will become thick and syrupy.
This mixture will form an edible glue that you can use to attach different parts of the penguin to the body. , When the dough has had 24 hours to relax, remove it from the fridge and let it warm up to room temperature.To make the penguins, you'll need black dough for the bodies, white dough for the stomachs and face, and orange dough for the beaks and feet.
To divide the dough:
Cut the dough in half and set one half aside for the bodies.
With the remaining dough, use your eye to divide the dough into thirds.
Use a knife to notch the one-third divisions into the dough.
Cut off one-third of the dough, and leave the remaining two-thirds intact.
This larger section will remain white, so you don’t have to add any food coloring to it. , Drizzle a flat work surface with some of the vegetable oil.
Take the large half of dough and turn it out onto the oiled surface.
Add about 10 drops of black food coloring, and gently knead the color into the dough.
Knead in more food coloring in 10-drop increments until you achieve the desired intensity of black for the bodies. , Clean off your work surface so there's no leftover sugar, oil, or coloring.
Drizzle fresh oil on the surface.
Turn out the small one-third section of dough, and knead five drops of orange food coloring into the dough.
Knead in more color until you achieve the desired intensity for the beaks and feet. , Remove enough sugar paste from the black dough to form a sphere with a one-inch (2.5-cm) diameter.
Roll the dough into a ball, and then roll it into an oval to create the body of the penguin.
Press the top and bottom of the oval to flatten them out.Flattening the top and bottom of the oval will give you a platform for the head and allow the penguin to stand.
To make a larger penguin, increase the amount of dough you use to create the body, and use proportionally more dough to create the other body parts as well. , Roll out the white sugar paste into a circle that’s one-sixteenth inch (1.6 mm) thick.
Use the cookie cutter to cut out an oval.Dip the decorating brush into the edible glue and coat one side of the oval with a thin layer of glue.
Press the white oval onto the center of the black body and apply delicate pressure to secure the belly.
If you don’t have small cookie cutters, use a knife to cut out the oval. , Remove some sugar paste from the black dough and roll it into a sphere with a half-inch (1.3-cm) diameter.
To make the face, use the round cookie cutter and punch out a white circle from the white sugar paste.
Use the brush to apply some edible glue to the face, and gently press the face onto the head.
To make the eyes, apply two dots of edible marker to the penguin’s head.If you don’t have an edible marker, you can use two black sprinkles, sesame seeds, or tiny balls of black sugar paste instead. , Break off a pea-sized piece of orange dough.
With your fingers, roll it into a teardrop shape.
Gently flatten the teardrop between your fingers.
At the wider end, flatten the curve a little so it will conform to the shape of the penguin’s head.
Dip the brush in the glue and apply a thin layer to the beak before pressing the beak gently onto the head.
Center the beak below and between the two eyes.
With your knife, cut a slit on either side of the beak to make it look like and upper and lower half., Apply a layer of glue to the bottom of the penguin’s head.
Gently press the head into the body, being careful not to squish the beak or alter the shape of the head or body., For the first wing, break off a piece of dough that’s about the size of two peas.
Roll the dough between your fingers to form it into a teardrop shape.
Flatten the teardrop between your fingers.
The rounded half will be the top of the wing.Apply some glue to the rounded half of the teardrop.
Attach this end to the left side of the penguin’s body where the head and body meet.
Repeat for the right wing. , Break off a piece of orange sugar paste that’s about the size of two peas.
Roll the ball into a teardrop shape, then flatten it with your finger.Apply some glue to the pointed end of the teardrop, and attach it to the body.
Attach the foot to the front of the body, slightly left of center.
Repeat with the right foot. -
Step 3: Beat the egg whites.
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Step 4: Beat in the sugar.
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Step 5: Mix in the tylose.
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Step 6: Knead the dough.
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Step 7: Let the dough rest.
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Step 8: Make the edible glue.
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Step 9: Warm and divide the dough.
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Step 10: Color the black dough.
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Step 11: Color the orange dough.
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Step 12: Make the body.
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Step 13: Add the belly.
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Step 14: Shape the head and face.
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Step 15: Make and attach the beak.
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Step 16: Attach the head.
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Step 17: Shape and attach the wings.
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Step 18: Mold the feet and attach them to the body.
Detailed Guide
To make sugar paste penguins from scratch, you must first make the sugar paste and edible glue.
These both need time to set and mature, so it’s important to start one to two days before you want to assemble the penguins.
Once you make the sugar paste dough, it needs to sit for 24 hours before you can use it.
After making the edible glue, it requires 12 hours to set before you can use it to assemble the penguin parts.
To make and assemble the penguins, you'll need your white, black, and orange sugar paste, along with a few tools.
Other supplies you'll need include:
Stand mixer or large mixing bowl Paddle attachment or electric beaters Two sealable plastic bags Small mixing bowl Whisk Fondant rolling pin Sharp knife Small decorating brush Small oval cookie cutter, about three-quarter inches (19 mm) long Small round cookie cutter, about one-quarter inch (6 mm) in diameter Black edible marker , Place the egg whites into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer.
Beat the eggs in the stand mixer or with electric beaters on medium speed for about 10 seconds, or long enough to break up the egg whites.If you're using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment to make the sugar paste.
When you're making sugar paste, the dough will have to sit for 24 hours, so start this one to two days before you want to make your sugar paste penguins. , Turn the mixer to low speed and gradually add 6 cups (750 g) of the powdered sugar, beating it in one cup (125 g) at a time.
When you’ve added the 6 cups of sugar, continue beating until it takes on the consistency of icing.
Increase the speed of the mixer to medium and beat the mixture for two minutes, until the mixture starts to form soft peaks.
The soft peak stage means the mixture will form peaks, but they’ll melt back into the mixture within a couple seconds., Turn the mixer to low speed and slowly sprinkle in the tylose powder.
Continue mixing for about 30 seconds, then turn the mixer to high for 30 seconds.
As the tylose is incorporated, it will thicken everything to a dough.
Tylose powder is a food additive that’s also called carboxymethycellulose.
It’s used to make thick pastes that harden when they dry, which is why it’s great for making sugar paste., Dust a flat surface with powdered sugar and turn the dough out onto it.
Knead the dough, gradually adding the remaining ⅔ cup (83 g) of powdered sugar, until you have a soft dough.When the dough is ready, it will be soft and pliable, but not sticky to the touch. , Place the dough into a sealable freezer bag.
Press out as much air as you can to prevent the dough from drying out.
Seal the bag, and then place that bag into a second sealable bag.
Move the dough to the fridge and let it rest for 24 hours., In a small bowl, combine the tylose powder and warm water.
Whisk the two together to remove as many lumps as possible.Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or put a lid on.
Transfer the mixture to the fridge and let it set overnight, about 12 hours.
As the mixture sets, it will become thick and syrupy.
This mixture will form an edible glue that you can use to attach different parts of the penguin to the body. , When the dough has had 24 hours to relax, remove it from the fridge and let it warm up to room temperature.To make the penguins, you'll need black dough for the bodies, white dough for the stomachs and face, and orange dough for the beaks and feet.
To divide the dough:
Cut the dough in half and set one half aside for the bodies.
With the remaining dough, use your eye to divide the dough into thirds.
Use a knife to notch the one-third divisions into the dough.
Cut off one-third of the dough, and leave the remaining two-thirds intact.
This larger section will remain white, so you don’t have to add any food coloring to it. , Drizzle a flat work surface with some of the vegetable oil.
Take the large half of dough and turn it out onto the oiled surface.
Add about 10 drops of black food coloring, and gently knead the color into the dough.
Knead in more food coloring in 10-drop increments until you achieve the desired intensity of black for the bodies. , Clean off your work surface so there's no leftover sugar, oil, or coloring.
Drizzle fresh oil on the surface.
Turn out the small one-third section of dough, and knead five drops of orange food coloring into the dough.
Knead in more color until you achieve the desired intensity for the beaks and feet. , Remove enough sugar paste from the black dough to form a sphere with a one-inch (2.5-cm) diameter.
Roll the dough into a ball, and then roll it into an oval to create the body of the penguin.
Press the top and bottom of the oval to flatten them out.Flattening the top and bottom of the oval will give you a platform for the head and allow the penguin to stand.
To make a larger penguin, increase the amount of dough you use to create the body, and use proportionally more dough to create the other body parts as well. , Roll out the white sugar paste into a circle that’s one-sixteenth inch (1.6 mm) thick.
Use the cookie cutter to cut out an oval.Dip the decorating brush into the edible glue and coat one side of the oval with a thin layer of glue.
Press the white oval onto the center of the black body and apply delicate pressure to secure the belly.
If you don’t have small cookie cutters, use a knife to cut out the oval. , Remove some sugar paste from the black dough and roll it into a sphere with a half-inch (1.3-cm) diameter.
To make the face, use the round cookie cutter and punch out a white circle from the white sugar paste.
Use the brush to apply some edible glue to the face, and gently press the face onto the head.
To make the eyes, apply two dots of edible marker to the penguin’s head.If you don’t have an edible marker, you can use two black sprinkles, sesame seeds, or tiny balls of black sugar paste instead. , Break off a pea-sized piece of orange dough.
With your fingers, roll it into a teardrop shape.
Gently flatten the teardrop between your fingers.
At the wider end, flatten the curve a little so it will conform to the shape of the penguin’s head.
Dip the brush in the glue and apply a thin layer to the beak before pressing the beak gently onto the head.
Center the beak below and between the two eyes.
With your knife, cut a slit on either side of the beak to make it look like and upper and lower half., Apply a layer of glue to the bottom of the penguin’s head.
Gently press the head into the body, being careful not to squish the beak or alter the shape of the head or body., For the first wing, break off a piece of dough that’s about the size of two peas.
Roll the dough between your fingers to form it into a teardrop shape.
Flatten the teardrop between your fingers.
The rounded half will be the top of the wing.Apply some glue to the rounded half of the teardrop.
Attach this end to the left side of the penguin’s body where the head and body meet.
Repeat for the right wing. , Break off a piece of orange sugar paste that’s about the size of two peas.
Roll the ball into a teardrop shape, then flatten it with your finger.Apply some glue to the pointed end of the teardrop, and attach it to the body.
Attach the foot to the front of the body, slightly left of center.
Repeat with the right foot.
About the Author
Judith Anderson
A passionate writer with expertise in hobbies topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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