Cupcakes have become the hot trend in addition to or instead of cake at various celebrations and parties, and being able to decorate cupcakes yourself is fun and easy once you get the hang of it. You can achieve professional results at home with a few easy to use tools. Frosting decorations on cookies, cakes, cupcakes, and pastries make them look so professional and add to the festivities for parties, weddings, showers, and bake sales.
WHY I LIKE THIS CUPCAKE DECORATING SET
Many Russian frosting tips give great results but require that your frosting is very stiff, which means a very sugary frosting that is often too sweet to enjoy eating. Russian Frosting tips also generally cannot work with a favorite homemade frosting recipe or even recipes that do not use gel food coloring. I love the results of Russian frosting tips, but they do have a learning curve and restricted frosting consistencies.
This cupcake decorating kit can be used with frosting from a can or your personal frosting recipe as long as you chill the frosting in the refrigerator in advance for about 20 minutes. This makes it easy even for a kid to frost cupcakes. Frosting cupcakes, cookies, pastries or cakes is a fun party activity.
AN OVERVIEW OF THIS KIT
PLUNGER STYLE FROSTING CONTAINER
A feature I like about this set is there is an easy to use handle that presses out the frosting instead of squeezing a pastry bag. It is simpler to manipulate, and I have more control over the frosting flow which leads to fewer accidental gaps and blobs of frosting. My frosting does not get too soft to work with due to the heat of my hands as can happen when holding a pastry bag. It is easy to clean out, and the tips screw on and off very easy when it is time to switch out designs. I also like that I can switch out tips without a coupler or make a new frosting bag.
The plunger pushes out even the last bit of frosting, so there is no waste, and it is very easy to clean up.
NewXshop Cake and Cupcake Decorating 8 Piece Set
DECORATIVE TIPS
This kit comes with eight tips that screw onto the bottom. The tips include a thin and thick tip for writing, stems, basketweave, and scrollwork. There are two tips suitable for making leaves or petals, a rosette tip, and flower tips. There is a wavy pattern tip for general ruffle patterns on a cupcake. I like having two writing tips so that I can personalize a cupcake or cake without having to buy a cake at the bakery.
NewXshop Cake and Cupcake Decorating 8 Piece Set
USE:
I removed the cap and plunger, and filled the clear base with frosting, loading it in with a spoon. After it was about halfway full, I screwed on the cap and using the dual handle; I pressed down the plunger until the frosting was at the bottom. Then I selected a tip and began to frost. You may find it easier to start practicing with the tip that is one small circle; this is the writing tip that just creates a line. To create a flower, hold the frosting plunger vertical to your surface, with the frosting tip almost touching the surface to be frosted. Press down on the handle with even pressure and slowly pull your hand away.
TIP: If you can learn to use the ruffle tip all around the sides of cake, (the tip that looks like a tilde character: ~ ) you can create a tiered ruffle cake. Starting at the bottom of the cake, hold the plunger at a 45-degree angle near the cake and pipe a ribbon, partially touching the top of the ribbon edge to the cake, so it adheres to the cake. Keep rotating your cake while you pipe the ruffle all the way around the cake, and then do ruffle layers about 75% overlapping above the last ruffle until you reach the top. If you add some food coloring stripes but don’t blend it very well into the frosting in the tube, it can add some great pops of color once piped onto your cake or cupcake.
NewXshop Cake and Cupcake Decorating 8 Piece Set
I like that the plunger and base can be stored in the refrigerator with any remaining frosting to pull out for easy use to quickly decorate a dessert.
CONCLUSION: A sturdy, well made decorating set that is a high-quality Polypropylene material. The plunger is sturdy as are the handles. Safe for washing in the dishwasher, it is easy to use and durable.
