Marzipan Fruit

After learning that nobody was producing these locally in 2023, we got in touch with our good friend Kathlene Moller who taught us how to make them from scratch. In that first year we made a few dozen, which sold out immediately.

There was so much demand that in 2024 we decided to have a crack at mass producing them. We took pre-orders for over 1000 individual fruits, and then got to work! It turned out to be a pretty arduous process, including a few late nights painting fruits until way past midnight!

We've decided that moving forward, that is not something we're interested in repeating. The process itself is actually super simple, but when you commit to making thousands the novelty wears off pretty quickly!

That being said, we've still had lots of folks interested in learning how to do it at home themselves. It's actually a super easy process, and a fun activity to get the family around the table working together.

Our method is a little different to recipes you'll find online, but it's the way we were taught and we think it's the way to go! Basically we form the fruit and allow them to dry out for about a week, turning every day so they don't form flat spots. Once dry, we apply natural colours to get the effects we're looking for. Lastly we roll some through granulated sugar for a nice natural look.

Ingredients:

Marzipan by Weigh n Pay (grab an appropriate amount for the number of fruits you are producing - 400g will produce ~20 fruit)

Icing Sugar (for dusting & keeping things from getting sticky)

Whole Cloves - one per pear/apple

1 tsp Beetroot Powder

1 tsp Turmeric

1 tsp Spirulina

1 tsp Acai Berry POwder

1tsp Charcoal mixed with 1/2 tsp blue spirulina (only if you're making blueberries!)

Water and/or Vodka for painting.

Shaping Fruits:

Start by kneading your fondant over a work surface dusted with icing sugar, until the marzipan is very workable and homogenous. Divide the total amount into the number of unique fruits you want to make (we did 6) and set aside, covered.

Work one shape at a time. You can use as much or as little marzipan as you like for each fruit but we aim for around 20g. Check out the reference photos below so you know what you're working towards!

Marzipan Lemons - roll into a ball, and then pinch each end and roll between fingers to create a lemon shape

Marzipan Apples - roll into a bowl, and use your pinky finger to form a tiny indent on top. Break clove in two, place the little stick in the top and bulbous part on the opposite side. Marzipan Oranges - roll into a ball - that's it!

Marzipan Strawberries - roll into a ball, and then form into a teardrop shape.

Marzipan Pears - similar to strawberries, but pinch them more so the bottom is a lot bigger than the top! Break clove in two, place the little stick in the top and bulbous part on the opposite side.

Marzipan Blueberries - use about half the amount for each of these, they should be a bit smaller! Roll into a ball, and pinch the top into 4 equal 'sticky uppy bits'. You can use a small flat tool to help with this if you're struggling.

Marzipan Banana - shape into a log, bend it slightly and then give it four square edges, pinch one end a bit to make the stem. (see photo)

Place all shaped fruits onto a cakeboard or baking tray covered with light dusting of icing sugar. Place somewhere cool and dry for one week to dry, turning each day to avoid wet/flat spots.

Painting:

This is the fun bit! Working on one fruit at a time, start by mixing your paints - take the desired colour powder and mix it with some water or vodka in a small bowl. Use a paintbrush to paint the colour on, don't worry about making it too perfect. Fruit is imperfect!

Marzipan Lemons - Use primarily turmeric. Allow to dry for a few mins and then roll through sugar for texture.

Marzipan Oranges - Use turmeric with a tiny bit of beetroot powder to bring out the orange. Allow to dry for a few mins and then roll through sugar for texture.

Marzipan Apples - Use spirulina for green, Acai for Red

Marzipan Strawberries - Use beetroot, and a bit of spirulina for the leaves/stem on top. Allow to dry for a few mins and then roll through sugar for texture.

Marzipan Blueberries - Use a blend of blue spirulina and activated charcoal

Marzipan Banana - Use turmeric for most of it, and a bit of charcoal at the top and bottom.