How To Make Fondant Tires (for Bus Cake)

July 20, 2014

How To Make Fondant Tires (for Bus Cake)

Hello again! Time to share some fun fondant tire tips from our San Francisco Muni bus cake! This bus cake was a lot of fun and as I anticipated making those tires, this was another opportunity to make a tool (because like you know I am lazy and prefer to make a tool that will just make things for me... well sort of :-D!). So since I am obsessed with making cake things look as 'real' as I can get them I knew if I wanted to get really cool looking tires I would have to make a mold. According to my specs for this cake I knew that the tires should be approximately 2.5"-3" and I wanted a 'universal' looking tire so that I could potentially use it for other projects. I found a nice looking and perfect sized tire on a toy and cut it out.

In the case you want to make your own mold here is my tip: look for a hallow tire and fill them up with clay or fondant to add weight and give it a nice flush backing in order to take the poured silicone.

The mold I created is available on our Etsy at: https://www.etsy.com/listing/197088588/fondant-tire-mold-for-bus-car-or-tractor?ref=shop_home_active_2

So here is a quick tutorial on how to make these tires and some behind the scenes pix of this cake in process... now let's get started!!

Oooh and if you want to check out our youtube video about this cake check it out here!

Materials Needed

Black Fondant

*If you use Satin Ice fondant I recommend mixing it 1/2 fondant and 1/2 gumpaste

Tire Mold

Gum Tragacanth or Tylose Powder (*if you are using Satin Ice no need for these)

Silver Highlighter & drops of vodka (optional)

Powdered Sugar if necessary to prevent sticking (or cornstarch if you are using Satin Ice)

Step 1. Grab a ball of black fondant. For my mold 2.4 oz is just right. For this project any type of fondant should do the trick but if you are interested in my go to marshmallow fondant recipe here it is.

Step 2. Mix in just a little bit of Gum Tragacanth or Tylose Powder. For these I actually used just under 1/4 teaspoon.

Step 3. Lightly dust the mold with powdered sugar (or cornstarch for use with Satin Ice). Push fondant into the mold with your hand.

Step 4. Pop out your fondant tire by bending the mold over and out.

Step 5. Let dry for a minimum of a few hours. When the tires are at least slightly firm paint on the tire rims with silver highlighter mixed with a drop or so of vodka. Let dry completely and place on your cake project. You can also paint the black part of the tire with some shortening to add some tire 'shine' to it!:)