{Tips & Hints} How To Make Edible Toadstools

Here's something fun to add to your tablescape if you're throwing a fairy party... edible toadstools!! (Please forgive all the pictures below. They are there simply to help, but I am in no way a food photographer so some might not look as appetizing as they should!)

First you are going to need the following items:

- Red Velvet or Chocolate cake mix (and the items to make it)
- 1 16oz. can of Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
- Thick and Chewy Soft Top Chocolate Cookies (various sizes)
- Circle Cookie Cutters (various sizes)
- White Candy Melts
- White cupcake decorating confetti or white chocolate chips
- Thick Pretzels Sticks
- Red Fondant (can be purchased pre-made at Michaels)
- Red Decorating Icing
- White Decorating Icing

Start by making Bakerella's basic cake ball recipe. Once you have the cake pop mixture combine. Break off a 2" piece of pretzel stick...

And coat with cake pop mixture and stand upright on a cookie sheet. 

Continue until you have created as many toadstool stems as you will need. Chill. Once these have chilled for a few hours. Take them out of the refrigerator. Melt some candy melts in a bowl in the microwave. (For me, I melt about 3/4 of a cup for about 60 seconds.) Roll the cake pop stems in the melted candy to coat them and then stand them up right on the cookie sheet and chill.

Once these have hardened, remove them from the cookie sheet. Create a small dollop of melted candy in the form of a circle on the cookie sheet for each stem and place each stem in one of the dollops. Chill. (This will help to form a stable base.)

While these are chilling, roll out your fondant. If it begins to stick to your surface just use a little confectioner's sugar. Note: I had never used fondant before I attempted to make these for the first time. So please don't be intimidated. It's ridiculously easy to use! 

Pull out your pre-made cookies. (For these just use your favorite recipe. Just make sure that they are thick kind. Making the cookies various sizes will give your toadstools some visual interest.) 

Next find the right size circle cookie cutter for you cookies. The cutter should be significantly larger than the cookie.

This will make it so that your fondant will easily drape over the edges of your cookie. Cut your fondant.

Then ice the top of your cookie with the decorating icing to help the fondant adhere to the cookie.

Center the fondant on the cookie and shape it down around the edges of the cookie. If you are using white chocolate chips for spots (like I had to after a confetti debacle the night before the party and they were all I could find in the cake decorating section of my local grocery at 10pm at night!) Take your chips and press them upside down into your fondant.

Then remove them...

And add a bit of white decorating icing in the indentations...

Sink the chips (point down) into the icing.

Remove your stems from the refrigerator. Melt a little more candy and slather the top of each stem with the melted candy. While the candy is still soft gently top each stem with a spotted fondant cookie top.

And VOILA! Edible toadstools!!

Enjoy!!