Revolutionize your icing bag clean-up with icing bag "bullets." I only recently started using these... after more than a decade of decorating, and I am
In Love!
What You Need
Icing (any kind)
Piping bag (disposable or reusable)
Plastic wrap
Scissors
Coupler
Lay a sheet of plastic wrap about the size of a legal-size piece of paper on your countertop. Place a spatula or two of icing on the sheet.
I try to make it more "log" shaped because, in the end, that's what you want, so it's easier to start with the right shape.
Wrap the plastic around the icing. Pull the top (of the more narrow side) down, and wrap the bottom up.
Grab the ends of the plastic wrap and "swing it" around in little circles in front of you to make the wrap tighten. (I couldn't take a picture during because I don't have a third hand, but this is what the icing bag bullet will look like after you tighten up the ends.)
Then I tie each end. I tie one end close to the icing. This will be the "back" end that remains in the bag.
The other end, I tie closer to the end of the plastic wrap. This will be fed through the coupler.
I will often load up my icing bullets ahead of time, and put these in the refrigerator just like this in a large baggie until I need to use them.
To put the icing bullet in the bag, insert the coupler into the bag. Then turn the bag inside out to as close as the coupler as possible.
Thread the long end of the plastic wrap through the coupler. The plastic wrapped icing bullet sticks to the inside of the disposable bags, that's why I turn the bag inside out as much as possible.
Turn the bag so that the icing bullet is inside the bag. (I often end up holding it up by the plastic wrap through the coupler, and turning the bag back with the other hand.)
When you're ready to use the bag, cut the plastic wrap as close to the coupler as possible. Put the icing tip on, screw on the coupler ring, and you're ready to decorate!
To Remove the Icing Bag Bullet, and "clean up:"
To remove the icing bullet from the bag, grab on to that back knot, and pull.
You can toss the icing bullet out, or if there's lots of icing left, like in this one, I'll squeeze it into a new bullet to save it for later.
Now, check this out! See that speck of icing?? That little bit down there in the coupler?? That's ALL you have to clean! That's it! See that bag? See how clean it is?? Awesome!
In all fairness, yes, occasionally the icing bullets blow out and do messy the bag, but honestly, this only happens to me when I'm teaching a kids' workshop, and they don't use the decorating bags properly. But even so, that mess is even better-contained than a regular blow-out or icing coming out the back of the bag.
I hope you love icing bag bullets as much as I do. Because I really, really do!
Click the Links Below to See:
Genius! Without even trying it, YES!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great way to load two or three colors into a single bag at once, too. Red, White, and Blue for 4th of July cupcakes, or Purple and Yellow for Vikings games, or ....
ReplyDeleteThis is incredible. I saw a different way to do this but this one is much better
DeleteLove this! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing Thank you so much for posting!!!
ReplyDeletesimple and effective ... simply awesome
ReplyDeletelink to original posting like Sweet Sugarbelle did 5 months before your post: http://www.sweetsugarbelle.com/2011/03/coloring-and-preparing-royal-icing/
ReplyDeleteThis trick has been on the internet since 2009, it looks disingenuous of you to post it as your own idea without linking to the original!
Karen posted it first! http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=QxE-pnqmsE0
I actually read about in 2006.
Deletehttp://cakecentral.com/t/38404/great-tip-from-my-instructor
Who cares... it is still good info.to share.
Deleteok it doesnt matter she just posted foe the people who might like to use her website regularly like calm down already
DeleteWho cares? She is not "claiming it", simply sharing a tip.
DeleteNow now children ... time for a run around the back yard; come back when you're nice and calm.
ReplyDeleteI don't recall Beki actually saying that this was her original idea; few ideas are really original. It's the discovery and the sharing that feeds us.
Thank you very much for sharing, Beki; this is new to me and I'm dying to give it a go.
Cher
This is awesome! I can't wait to try this as I hate cleaning icing bags.
ReplyDeleteI am making campfire cupcakes tonight and am going to give this a try. I've never done multiple colors so this will be an adventure. thank you so much for this idea!!! We are using your ermine frosting recipe and my daughter is having a hard time "being patient" and waiting for the sugar roux to cool enough.
ReplyDelete