Dr. Oetker Easy Icing - Chocolate product reviews

I love baking with my girls but the one thing I dread is the cleaning up, especially as I'm usually the only one doing it! My girls favourite thing is to decorate cupcakes so I decided to make a batch and use the Ready to Use Easy Icing on top. The instructions say to knead the sachet for 2 minutes and I kneaded away for 3 and still felt hard bits at the bottom so opted for the cheats method and put in boiling water (even though it recommends warm water). After I'd left it for a minute, the icing was nice and soft and when I went to open it, I noticed there was no tear in the packet so had to opt for scissors. The one advantage of this is that you get to control the size of the icing when it comes out so if you wanted to write a word, you could do so before increasing the size of the cut if you were to ice a larger area.

I noticed the icing came out quite quickly (due no doubt to being left in hot water!) but stayed put and didn't run. It was quite thick and very sticky but my girls had great fun swirling it around and then adding sprinkles. We all enjoyed the taste and it was a nice rich chocolate flavour. I found the sachet adequately covered the 12 cupcakes and there was still more icing left, although this had started to go hard. The pack says to dispose of any unused icing although if there were lots left, I'd be keen to put it in the fridge and then try to reheat it again!

One of the best parts was that when we had finished, I got to throw the packet away and there no mess to clean up! Okay, so this product may not be great for the environment but if you were in a rush or going out and had to decorate in a hurry, this would be perfect. Although this is something I probably won't use all the time, I will have a couple of sachets in the cupboard for those surprise occasions when a cake is needed or when I simple can't be bothered to tidy up!!!

I don't bake very often, mostly because it is just me in the house and I don't need the temptation, but every now and then when heading to visit someone I like to make something to take with me. I usually opt for something that doesn't use icing, as I don't tend to have icing sugar in the house - being that I don't bake often I don't need it! So when I saw these Dr. Oetker easy icing packets up for review I thought it would be the perfect time to request them and see if I am lucky enough to get to trial it. When my parcel arrived and I found the chocolate one inside I was excited, as chocolate is probably the flavour I would pick over the options in the range.

Noticing the size of the packet I was a little disappointed that it seemed so small. I would have thought that for the price it would have been a little bit bigger. Reading the back of the packet it says it covers 6-8 cupcakes, which is also disappointing as if I did bake a batch of cupcakes I would generally get 12 out of a batch, which would require two sachets and at that price, I would be better to buy a bag of icing sugar and make my own.

After kneading the sachet for a few minutes I had to opt for the warm water option. After placing it in a jug of warm water for a minute or two the icing had softened a lot more and I felt it was ready to be used. My next disappointment came when I wanted to open the packet and realised there is no tear tab, I had to then find scissors. Having recently moved house I had no idea where they were, and had to settle for a knife to open it! Once it was open I was able to squeeze the icing out of it onto the pikelets that I had made (rather than one of the recommendations on the packet). The icing came out easily but it was quite thick and sticky, I'm not sure how it would go if you wanted to spread a thin layer onto a cake or cupcakes. I did also notice on the packet that you have to discard left over icing so I made sure to use it in one go. There is no mention of how long it lasts once on top of a cake or other baking item.

After having previously reviewed both the blue and pink easy icings by Dr Oetker and having such pleasing results from doing so, so I was very happy as was Miss 5 when we found upon receiving our next round of review goodies that we had been given the opportunity to review the chocolate easy icing. Being chocolate flavoured I decided to make a chocolate flavoured baked product as I knew this would likely be the best match for such a product, so after thinking what this was to be in the end I decided to make some afghan biscuits, nice and easy and Miss 5's favourite so these would make a perfect lunchbox treat for the next week or so.

Like the rest of the range the chocolate icing was super to prepare, so much so that Miss 5 did it all on her own. After the afghans were cooled enough I handed the packet over to Miss 5 who kneaded it for several minutes until she thought that it felt soft and warm enough to be squeezed on to the biscuits, I had a quick check and agreed it was perfect, so snipped one of the corners off using a pair of scissors. The icing was able to be squeezed easily from the packet and we had no issues with it sticking or getting stuck on the way out. As we had iced the biscuits while they were luke warm the icing spread itself out beautifully in a perfect layer and so there was no need for us to use a knife to do so.

The packet of chocolate icing was enough to cover 14 medium sized afghan cookies with a generous amount of icing per biscuit, taste wise it was very yummy a nice rich chocolate flavour, and it wasn't overly sweet which I liked as to often when I prepare my own icing it is just way to sweet by the time I finally get the end result in regards to consistency that I have been after. This is a product I will be buying again for sure, perfect to have on hand in the pantry for those times of need and simple enough to use, best of all the price is fantastic.

Ok so we love baking in our house, in fact we actually bake cakes for kids birthdays, special events etc. The kids love baking aswell and when we are not baking for customers we bake for the kids lunches with butter cream icing this can use up so much icing sugar and butter. Thinking to use a easy icing, all ready to use would be perfect this would save so much time. The packet is small and says it will do cupcakes, and a 18cm cake. So thought I would bake a cake for the kids school lunches a yummy chocolate cake like I have always made. Followed the instructions on the small packet stating massage it and push it around and if it felt hard then use a bit of hot water to get it moving in the packet again.

Well I stood there for a while and even used hot water, then cut the corner off and stated squeezing the icing out of the packet. It looked really thick and once on the cake I tried to spread it like it said on the back of the packet and it started pulling up my cake (which has never happened before) so I put hot water over my spoon to try and get it to spread more, nope that didn't help me either. I was actually a little disappointed something that was meant to make it easy to ice actually ended up with me giving up which never happens.

The taste of the product was good though it tasted nice. The smell of the chocolate icing was also pleasing. The price suits well for something like this. I guess it would be good for the kids to do on cupcakes and then use a sprinkle over top, but I would not use it on a cake again. I feel it needs to be on something you don't actually need to spread over. For me, nope I wont buy it again I will just make it myself.

I enjoy making cakes and such for my kids but I royally suck at making icing, I can never get the consistency right. I was keen to give this a try and even happier to see that it is a product that is suitable for vegetarians. I was a bit dubious about how much this would cover as it seems such a small amount. As per the instructions I started to knead that packaging to warm up the icing and ended up getting nowhere so I then opted for the 'pop it in warm water' approach to see if I could get it going. A positive of having to cut the packet open is you can choose how much you want to come out when using it.

The kids wanted to dip some lollies into this, so I got out some liquorice like lollies that the kids enjoy and after dipping them in it, left them to solidify, hopefully. The kids also opted to grab some cookies and squeeze a decent amount of icing on one before placing another on top. Luckily the kids had a muffin each left that we could put icing on as the packaging tells you to discard any leftovers, which works against this product. Taste wise, my three kids loved them and happily chowed everything down however I felt that the icing was too sweet and so wouldn't want to have more than just a little on anything.

For the kids, this is perfect, but for me.... It wasn't a huge hit.

I recall making chocolate eclairs in cooking lessons at school but had never made them again until today. When I saw the picture on the Dr. Oetker Chocolate Easy Icing I was prompted to make them. I soon realised why I hadn't made them for all these years. I forgot how fiddly it was to make the cases and was very grateful that I didn't have to make the icing too.

The easy icing is ready to use. You massage the packet to soften it up (even the kids can help with this). Then snip off a corner and squeeze it out. As someone that can never get the ratios right in icing I was pleased that I didn't have to worry about it and I didn't have a mess either. My other problem is I usually make far more icing than necessary. The easy icing took away all this stress.

There was enough icing to do a full batch of eclairs. Miss 8 enjoyed licking out the packet and the knife she used to spread the icing. She commented that it was very drippy at first but not once it had set. She loved the chocolate taste too. As we know eclair cases aren't that appealing until the icing and cream are added. This icing really did transform the cases both with colour and taste. My daughters and I ate far too many eclairs as they tasted so good.

This is a very convenient product to have in the pantry and I can see myself using it regularly when I do some lazy cooking. It is a bonus that there are a lot less dishes.

I had high hopes of becoming a master baker when I requested this. Images of me baking in the kitchen and actually having something that looked good as well as edible flashed thru my mind - but as usual life takes over and again I find I am pressed for time. I had the idea of making cupcakes while the girls were at school and then when they came home we would all put on aprons and laugh as we iced them, looking so professional - but instead, I am working all week right up to school pick up and then both girls have after school activities so again time is not on my side - so I brought shortbread cookies instead.

The first part of my dream did not go to plan but at least I full filled the second part (except for the aprons.) While my daughter read me her homework I sat on the couch kneading the packet. I found the top half was very easy but the bottom part around the seam was a little tougher, it did suggest putting in warm water for 30 seconds to soften but as the book took about ten minutes that was ample amount of time for me to soften it all out.

Once homework was out of the way I put the cookies on the plate and asked who wanted to help. There was no short of volunteers. As suggested I cut the corner of the packet and then let it run on to the biscuit. It was much runner then I was expecting and also a lot thicker, so when I poured it on a biscuit quite a bit came out. It did not take long to ice all of the cookies - I did the first four and then I let my six year old finish the job while I used a knife to try and smooth it down, I did find it was rather sticky so the knife really did not help that much but I managed to cover a majority of the biscuit.

As the picture on the packet was of a Profiterole I was dying to try the chocolate. My mum makes them all the time and makes the yummiest icing and the picture reminded me of them and I was killing me holding off as long as I did. I realise it was not set but I could not resist and well neither could my daughter and we quickly ate a couple of them. It was sweeter than I expected and as nice as it was I did not find it as chocolately as I wanted. So I put in the fridge to set. While writing this I have snuck back and grabbed another one, but got busted by Miss Six and she also had to 'try another one'. By this stage Miss 9 came up and also joined it and we all agree that it is very easy to use and makes for a tasty treat.

I find the price spot on as anything that can make my life easier is a winner in my book. With all the baking I have to do with cake sales and so forth this couldl become my new best friend.

I used to use a chocolate icing dry mix which was very easy to use, but didn't give a dark enough representation of chocolate icing which looked good on cakes and muffins. So I was very excited to try this ready-made chocolate icing.

The whole process of kneading the icing in the actual packaging was very simple, as were the instructions on what to do. And although the kneading and instructions were easy enough to follow and do, and as much as I followed these instructions, it still didn't flow out of the packaging like I would expect icing to do.

The taste was divine; so smooth and didn't overpower the rich chocolate cake which lay beneath. Once out of the packet and onto the cake, a heated knife smoothed out the icing with ease and didn't dry too quickly so adding marshmallows to it was simple that it stayed wet long enough for Miss 6 to help out also.

I have been very happy with the Dr. Oetker products I have used so far, and this one hasn't disappointed either. I will continue to try these baking components which are slowly changing my way of thinking about baking; changing from a must do to a want to do attitude towards all baking needs. The packaging takes on the iconic mint coloured packet which I have come to know, which makes finding it on the supermarket shelves very simple. The price of just over $2.50 is very affordable when it covers a whole cake, or a tray of cupcakes, and I already have a small stash in my pantry for our next baking day. Along with the microwaveable Easy Choc, my pantry is set for cake decorating!

Ever since I can remember I have always chosen sweet foods over savoury foods, I have a really big sweet tooth. I like to do a lot of baking and my children are always keen to help me, I love that they are learning an important life skill and it is precious bonding time for us too.

I decided to see what was available to request to review on the KIWIreviews site and my eyes were drawn to the Dr. Oetker products. I liked the sound of the Easy Icing as I am constantly making icing from scratch but it quite often turns out runny and too sweet. There were three colours available to request, there was pink, blue and brown (chocolate). The packet looked distinctive in the notable Dr. Oetker colours, and the delicious looking cream puffs were covered in a chocolate icing that looked pretty perfect.

Upon opening my review goodies I was lucky enough to receive a packet of the Chocolate Easy Icing. I had already had an idea to do some baking and I was tossing up between making vanilla cupcakes or a chocolate cake. In the end, the children decided that they would like chocolate cake more, so we made one. After the cake had been cooling for a while we started getting the icing ready.

Following the instructions, I began to knead the icing in the packet, as the icing wasn't hard I did not need to place it in any warm water to soften it. After about 2 minutes I snipped the corner of the packet and proceeded to squeeze the icing onto the top of the cake. The icing came out in a smooth way and was fairly easy to spread over the cake. There was a decent covering of icing over the cake and I was very impressed with the glossy sheen.

I couldn't help myself so ate the little amount left in the packet and I found myself wanting more. I love how easy this product is to use, this is an ideal way of icing with my children as there is hardly any mess, tastes delicious, and can be prepared without using warm water (as long as the icing isn't too hard to knead) Like usual I am impressed with Dr. Oetker and their products, I will certainly be purchasing this product in the future to have on hand in the pantry. I look forward to trying the other colours and highly recommend to all that love to bake.

Mr Eight assured me that he could manage this icing all by himself. He is fast becoming a capable chef, taking pride in producing various culinary delights for the family (with occasional supervision, of course - but only as necessary). He had already made some ginger biscuits he could ice, using an assortment of animal shapes to cut them, and had spread them out on the bench ready to be decorated.

We missed the fact that there was a fold at one end of the pouch which enabled the packet to stand on end. He had cut an opening at this end before he started asking for help to get the icing out! We soon realised his mistake - the top end of the pouch was flat so would not have been problematic. It was probably my fault for not checking what he was doing, but it would be good if the manufacturers could add a scissors icon to the correct end so that it is clear where you have to cut! Although the contents were somewhat messy to get out because of this glitch, he managed in the end to get everything safely moved on to the biscuits.

Once the icing was delivered to each biscuit (in soft blobs) he was able to spread it with a knife. The mixture remained workable for some time, so he was able to get the effect he wanted before it started to form a skin. He had tasted the icing and thought it was quite rich so he aimed to spread it thinly over the biscuit surface. Once he had finished, we left the masterpieces to set in the fridge for half an hour before offering them round. It probably would not be necessary to refrigerate them normally - the instructions did not refer to this - but it was an extremely hot day so it was a vital step in the recipe.

Mr Eight was very pleased with the outcome. He enjoyed the baking and icing processes, and felt he had ended up with a snack item the whole family would enjoy. His mother thought she would get some in as she could see several uses for it. She did enjoy the combination of chocolate and ginger flavours and said she could see herself icing crystallised ginger for an adult party! Another of the adults present said she thought the chocolate flavour was too weak for her taste, but she was the only one who had that reaction. Others said they would use it to drizzle chocolate on to an orange souffle or to decorate a whipped cream blob on top of an iced coffee to make an ersatz mochaccino.