Koekerye (1570)
33 Gilding Make a little honey water, brush the almonds with it, then put the gold or silver on them, and push it down with cottonwool where it does not lie straight. You can also gild gingerbread and other things this way. Prepare a broad stick to lift up the gold with. Do not touch it with the bare hand or it will spoil. Printed in Luebeck by Johan Balhorn, 1570
This is not a recipe. It is a how to gild items that you may wish to present with edible gold. This is something I learned how to do through trial and error. It was an expensive lesson and I hope to spare someone else the expense based on my experiences.
What is edible gold leaf?
Gold leaf is actual gold that is a high enough quality that it can be safely consumed. Make sure that when you are purchasing gold leaf that it is marked as "edible", otherwise, you are risking the consumption of things that can make you ill. Gold leaf will not enter your digestive system, but will pass through your body without being absorbed. It is tasteless, and for the most part, it goes unnoticed while eating.
Is gold leaf expensive?
Edible gold leaf is expensive. Edible gold leaf is made from 24 karat.
What is the best use for gold leaf?
The best usage for gold leaf is as an accent to your presentation, rather than using it to completely cover an item. Regardless of how you use it, the use of it will lend a very luxurious look to your presentations.
What does it look like?
Gold leaf can be purchased as either loose leaf sheets, or transfer sheets. It is usually found in small booklets that are approximately 2" x 4". My preference are loose leaf sheets.
What tools will I need?
Gloves - to prevent the gold leaf from sticking to the oils on your skin and messing up your work
At least two very fine bristled brushes- one to transfer the gold from the sheet to your presentation and one to dampen the surface of your presentation so the gold has something to stick to (I use a paintbrush)
An area that is free of drafts - the sheets that you purchase are extremely thin and very sensitive to airflow.
How do you apply gold leaf?
For loose gold leaf:
To use gold leaf, the surface that you will be attaching it to must be moist. You can moisten the area with a brush that has been dipped in water and then pressed onto a bit of paper towel to remove excess moisture before painting the surface of the object you will be gilding. You can also use egg whites, or a solution of gum Arabic.
Carefully fold back the paper of the booklet before lifting the leaf from between the paper with a clean, dry, brush and then move it onto the area you want to apply it. The gold will want to adhere to *everything* so you will need to be very careful when handling it that you use only a small amount at a time.
The sheets of gold are ultra thin and will fold over on themselves as soon as they are lifted from the paper. I prefer a more rustic look when gilding. The Spanish Wedges pictured above are an example of that. The gold leaf does not adhere to the entire surface of the item.
For transfer gold leaf:
Using transfer gold leaf is not always advisable. If your project is smaller, loose leaf gold leaf is the better option. For large areas (such as an entire cake), transfer may be best.
As above, the area that will be covered should be moist. Unlike above, you will want to lift the transfer sheet and place it face down on the surface. You will want to smooth the leaf down using very light pressure to ensure that the sheet is stuck to the surface. A large make up brush would be best.
Once you have gone over the whole of the backing sheet, gently pull the backing away from the object starting from one corner. It is not unusual to find that small pieces of gold leaf may remain attached to the backing sheet. Repeat the above steps to adhere it to the object you are gilding.
Note: Gold Leaf will never have a 100% smooth finish and that is it's beauty, it will always be imperfectly perfect, so don't stress if it you see imperfections--whatever you have gilded will be absolutely stunning!
Source
Culina-Vetus.De, 2022, https://www.culina-vetus.de/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Koekerye-1570.pdf. Accessed 21 Sept 2022.