The Parchment Paper Hack That Can Replace Piping Bags

If you decorate cakes, then you know how crucial a piping bag is for making those smooth swirls look beautiful on your cake. But if the day comes when you run out of piping bags and need a substitute that's just as good as your go-to, all you have to do is hack it.

There's a brilliant hack for anyone who wants to decorate a cake but doesn't have a piping bag, and all you need is a kitchen staple: parchment paper. Although a plain square of parchment paper wouldn't be able to do the job, folding the paper into a cone shape can make just as good of a piping bag as an actual one. Transforming parchment paper into a piping bag isn't incredibly difficult or time-consuming, so it won't completely derail your baking schedule or decorating process. Once you make your first parchment paper icing cone, you'll want to use this nifty truck again and again.

Making a piping bag out of parchment paper doesn't take long, and it's essential to complete all the steps correctly to hold your buttercream frosting as effectively as possible.

Start by folding a square piece of parchment paper in half on a diagonal and creasing it. Then, use a knife or scissors to cut the parchment paper along the crease. Grab each corner of one of the triangular halves and roll one hand inward until the paper is folded over your hand in a cone shape. You may need to experiment a bit to correct the cone shape, but once you've followed all the other steps, simply wrap that now-tiny loose end of the parchment paper around the cone and slip it into the cone. With your homemade parchment paper cone, fill it slightly over halfway full, fold the extra parchment paper to close it up, and you'll be ready to ice any baked good to perfection.

If putting your paper-folding skills to the test isn't for you, but you still need something to replace your usual piping bag, there's a simple hack for that, too: make a makeshift version out of a sandwich bag.

You'll need a zipper-lock sandwich bag, a pair of scissors, your frosting of choice, and a piping tip. If you have a piping tip, cut a hole large enough to secure the tip but not so large that it slips. Once you have the tip in place, scoop in some frosting, ensuring it's positioned around the opening of the piping tip. Thanks to the piping tip, you'll have a clear direction for the icing. If you don't have a piping tip, simply spoon your icing into the zipper-lock bag, push the icing to one corner of the bag with your fingers, and then cut the tip based on how thick you need the frosting to be on your cake. If you need to test the icing thickness, make sure that your first cut is small, and if it's not big enough, cut a larger opening for the icing to move through. Making a parchment paper cone is an excellent substitute for a traditional piping bag, but it's not the only simple hack that'll help you pipe icing onto your cake without a piping bag.