Tala icing set

Having worked out this bit of the instructions in the recipe for "Russische Waffeln" -

und spritze auf einen Teigstreifen kleine Quadrate von 1 cm. Alsdann zeichnet man an diesem Streifen durch leichtes Eindruecken mit einem nassen Bindfaden 2-3 cm breite Waffeln ab

I needed to find my piping bag. It's part of a Tala Icing Set, bought for $1.00 at a garage or yard sale in Halifax, NS, round about 1979. It's rarely used but reminds me strongly of my mother, who always used a cloth bag and perhaps never owned a "syringe". She used the star nozzle a lot to add pipings of whipped cream onto Obsttorten and Butterkremtorten, and oh how we loved it! She surely enjoyed doing that decoration, and certainly the cream added to the deliciousness of her legendary cakes.

And there, in a top cupboard, was the set, "Made in England", with its two sets of instructions, English and French - sold in Canada.

Goodness, it's a No.1705 and it'll set you back £12 or more these days! Or nearer £30 if you buy it new.

Tala has been going since 1899, when it was established as Taylor Law & Co. It became known as Tala in the 1920s. In the 1970s it was acquired by a French company and the brand became much less visible, but in the 2000s ownership passed to two British entrepreneurs and products returned to being made in the UK and bought as part of the resurgence of home cooking.