You've Been Cutting Your DIY Piping Bags All Wrong

I love baking. But I've never been one to make elaborately decorated cakes or cookies just for fun. I care more about taste and technique, which means that I tend to cheap out when it comes to decorating supplies. Piping bags? Nah, I'll cut the corner off a zip top bag.

But zip top bags have their disadvantages. It's harder to get a clean, round, consistent shape — especially if you aren't using a piping tip. The bags also squish together at the seams, which creates an oblong shape instead of a nice round circle. It's a big problem for piped cookies, like my personal favorite baking project: French macarons.

Luckily, Sarah of @halfbatchbaking has a solution. The baker and food scientist explained that you should cut the tip of the zip top bag on a curve — not straight across. In a video posted on Instagram, the influencer demonstrated trimming the tip of a plastic bag to form a semicircle. Think of the shape you'd get if you put a coin in the bag and cut around the edge: A convex quarter circle.

"Storage bags have thicker seams as they aren't meant for piping," Sarah of @halfbatchbaking explained in the caption. "Make sure to cut the rough edge round otherwise you might end up with an oblong shape." Have some spare change? Invest in tipless piping bags like the anti-burst piping bags from Riccle. The bags are designed to be used without a piping tip, but unlike zip top storage bags, they have unobtrusive seams that won't leave a mark.

While you can start with an empty bag, personally, I always fill my makeshift bags before making the cut. A tall glass will help hold the bag upright, and a rubber band will keep it in place. Fold the bag over the lip of the glass, then secure it with the band and dole out the icing (Store-bought icing tastes homemade if you whip it first). Once you're done, tie off the bag and cut the hole at the tip. Make sure to cut a smaller hole than you think you'll need: It's easy to overdo it. You can always make it bigger if you need to. 

Some bakers recommend folding the plastic bag in half diagonally before taping the sides together with heavy-duty duct tape, too. That'll give you a narrow, easy-to-hold shape, just like an actual piping bag. That way, you'll have more control over your piping. Will you be able to decorate Lambeth-style cakes worthy of TikTok fame? To be determined. But for regular-degular baking, it'll work like a dream.