Enchanted Sweets & Treats Are Only Moments Away With Wilton’s “Harry Potter Icing Decorations”
Written: Jun 12 '04
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Pros: Easy way to decorate baked goods quickly, inexpensive.
Cons: Lightening bolt and broom are fragile and break easily.
The Bottom Line: Looking for a way to perk up your cupcakes or liven up a plain cake? Grab a few packs of Wilton’s preformed Harry Potter Icing Decorations!
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| Freak369's Full Review: Wilton Harry Potter Icing Decorations |
With the release of the latest Harry Potter movie, my two youngest boys have really gotten back into the series of books full swing so when they planned a “Potter Party” with some other homeschool kids in the area I knew I better start looking for some sweets and treats for the occasion. I had a few packs of these tucked away in the cabinet behind the food dye and industrial sized bottle of vanilla flavoring but I wasn’t sure if they were still “good” – they are made of sugar and water with a few preservatives so there’s really nothing that can spoil but from my own experience I know they can absorb scents and smells if left standing on a shelf for too long. I cracked open the packages and gave them to the boys to taste test – big mistake – they are kids … anything with sugar is going to be a hit with them. Chris sampled a few pieces of the broken Nimbus 2000 broom and said they tasted great … I passed on the taste test being three weeks into a strict ketosis phase and took their word for it. After all, they were the ones that would be eating it, not me.
Wilton Harry Potter Decorations 710-5000
The set includes nine pieces, two each of the glasses, lightening bolt, Nimbus 2000 broom and Sorting Hat and one Golden Snitch. Wilton did play around with the packaging a few times to include two Golden Snitches however I’ve yet to actually see one with two. For the most part the pieces are nicely detailed and really hold true to the whole Harry Potter feel however the real drawback of these pieces is that some of them are extremely fragile. The lightening bolt and broom are the largest and the most susceptible to breakage before you even get the set home. If you are planning on picking these up, providing that you can find them, make sure you check out the pieces by tilting the package side to side and up and down to see if these pieces are still intact. These are your standard sugar form decorations so they have a pimpled effect to them, something that you don’t really notice until you are close to them. They are pretty thick so you don’t have to worry about them breaking when you press them in to the icing or frosting but for the broom and lightening bolt, make sure you use even pressure along the whole piece or it will snap like a twig.
Wilton says that these are mint flavored but from what I remember of them – they didn’t really have any taste at all outside of the “old sugar” taste. When I asked the boys and Chris about the Mint flavor they shrugged their shoulders and said they’d need another taste to be sure – I fell for that one hook line and sinker. The second taste test was the same as the first – no mint flavor. This could be because they were sitting on the shelf for about a year so if you buy new ones – there’s a pretty good chance that yours will have the mint flavoring that Wilton makes claim of on the package. If you’ve never tasted these types of iced sugar decorations I’d like to say you are in for a real treat but that wouldn’t be the truth, imagine taking sugar and adding water to it then pressing it into a mold and letting it dry – sort of like a really really compacted sugar cube. Then pop that in your mouth and chew on it – that’s basically what these are like. They aren’t all that appetizing but kids seem to love them.
Decorating
These work best when affixed to cupcakes or frosted items and you should try to attach them as soon as possible after you spread on the icing – this will give you the strongest holding power and ensure that they stay stuck to the item. If you are going to add any other decorations to it, make sure that these go on first – especially if you are adding sprinkles or colored sugars. I have never had a problem with these breaking down or the colors running even when I attached them to cupcakes a few days before a party. They are so dense and hard that it would take a lot of moisture to break them down so unless you are running through the rain with them or serving them near a tidal wave prone area – you are pretty much guaranteed to get nice crunchy pieces when your treats are served.
Price
You can usually find these for about two dollars however grocery stores do charge more for them – usually $2.99. I have had the best luck finding these at Michael’s in their cake decorating section and did spot them a few times at Wal-Mart however this isn’t an item that they normally carry. I almost fell over when I saw them at Big Lots and was ready to clear the shelf until I started looking at them closely and saw that every single pack had broken brooms and lightening bolts. If they were less than a dollar it would have been a good deal to get the Golden Snitch pieces but they wanted $1.50 – something I just wasn’t going to pay when two of the main pieces were busted up. If you are stuck finding that locally you can order them at the Wilton Online Store however for the past few months they have been out of stock and can’t give me a definite date when they will be back in stock again.
The Bottom Line
These are a great way to decorate baked goods quickly, perfect for those who don’t even bake – just buy the ones at the grocery store and slap these one and no one will be the wiser unless that is if you forget to take off the sales ticket. These make great last minute decorations and do hold up well in the cupboard so don’t be afraid to stock up on them if you come across them on sale – but be warned – that minty flavor doesn’t seem to stick around for long so if this is one of your main reasons for buying them, know that before you stock up. These, like most Wilton edible products, are certified kosher. To check out some of the other cool Happy Potter products that Wilton carries, visit their official website and online store at www.wilton.com
As always, thanks for the visit …
~^V^~ Freak ~^V^~
© 2004 Freak369
Related reviews …
Wilton Harry Potter Mini Cookie Cutter Set
Wilton Halloween Sprinkle Mix
Wilton Black Colored Sugars
Wilton Color Mist
Wilton Ready-to-Decorate Icing
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): $2.00
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