Pastry Bags and Tips

Some frostings and batters are piped from pastry bags. Buy large cloth pastry bags (at least 14 inches long) with plastic linings. Small bags don’t hold much and it’s a nuisance to have to refill them, and plastic bags don’t have enough flexibility for most jobs. Have two or three bags handy, as some recipes require piping from multiple bags.

Filling a large pastry bag can be awkward. Here’s an efficient method. Start by fitting the bag with the tip. Place the bag inside a tall glass, folding the top of the bag back over the lip of the glass to form a cuff. With the bag opened and standing, it will be much easier to fill.