Customer Reviews

Wilton Cookie Pro Ultra II Cookie Press

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

Overall I found this to be a good cookie press, especially for the money.

The barrel is made of plastic, not glass, which was disappointing.It's fairly sturdy, but also doesn't weigh a ton. It comes apart easily which is nice for cleaning or changing the shape during cookie making. I've read reviews where people complained about the ratcheting action not working - mine worked perfectly, or the dough not sticking (this has more to do with the type of pan you use or the type of dough than the cookie press). Don't buy this press thinking you can use the premade store cookie dough - it's just too thick! The only cookie presses this might be possible with would be professional grade = $$$$$. The recipes Wilton provides are lousy, but you can find many good spritz cookie recipes - check out Recipes.com - that work fine with this press.

Some tips that I've learned after owning this for a while.... refrigerate the cookie press for about an hour before you intend to use it. The colder the barrel, the easier the dough slides through and the better shape you get. Also, try putting your cookie sheets in the freezer for several hours before making the cookies - the dough will stick to a frozen cookie sheet just like your tongue would.

I have been extremely impressed with this cookie press. This is about the 4th or 5th one that I have bought. All of the others had the same problem: no matter what the dough was like it wouldn't stick to the cookie sheet. I spent hours laboring over this and was ready to tear my hair out because no matter what I did I got the same disappointing results. I haven't experienced this with the Wilton press at all. It has very good action and produces nice cookies. This one is a keeper and I am through looking.

I was given this item as a gift about 5 years ago. For the first year (I only use it for making Christmas cookies), I was very happy with it. I love having a cookie press! However, over time the ratcheting system began to wear down, and I had to really convince the mechanism to catch for each cookie. This year I tried to use it and discovered that the plastic part (the black part in the picture) had cracked. This rendered it totally useless. I will replace it but with an all metal model.

First, I never leave reviews so this is a very honest review.

I purchased the Wilton Cookie Pro Ultra II Cookie Press because my Grandmother had the vintage Mirro Cookie Press and made Christmas Spritz Cookies every Christmas. I followed the directions for loading the dough exactly as stated in the directions and the results were perfect!

A few tips:

1. Make sure your dough is at room temperature! Do not use chilled dough!!!

2. Make sure you load dough from the bottom of the cookie press and not from the top. (I took a handful dough and rolled it with my hands to make it somewhat narrow to fit into the bottom of the barrel.)

3. I filled the barrel just over 3/4 of the way with dough. (I could have filled it more.) Then I gave the trigger a few squeezes until the plunger was on top of the dough. At this point I put the Cookie Press on my cookie sheet to make the Spritz cookies. (Note: Your first few clicks with the trigger may not produce a cookie if the plunger is still pressing dough down.)

4. You only have to squeeze the trigger with normal pressure to make it work. You will here a 'click' when the cookie is made. After the 'click' it is time to lift the press and make a new cookie.

My only issue with the Cookie Press is that the barrel is not larger to hold more dough. However, it does make it easier to switch out cookie discs. If I filled the barrel just over 3/4 of the way it about filled one cookie sheet with cookies.

I did not use the recipe Wilton included with the directions. I used my Grandmother's. Her dough worked perfectly with the press. It was soft and pliable, but not sticky, which is a must for Spritz Cookie dough.

Spritz Cookies
1 cup butter, softened/room temp - set on counter for about 15 minutes
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
3 egg yolks, room temp
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Add egg yolks and vanilla mixing well. In a small bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt with a wire whisk. Add dry ingredients slowly to the butter and sugar and mix until the dough is in small to medium sized clumps. Now mix with your hands to form dough into a ball. (Should have a consistency similar to Play Dough, but not dry.) If your dough is sticky, add flour; a tablespoon at a time. If it seems dry, add softened butter; a tablespoon at a time.

Load dough into press. Top with colored sugars or other sprinkles. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets for 8 - 10 minutes. Allow to cool for a few minutes on cookie sheets before removing and placing on cooling racks.

Makes about 5 - 6 dozen. (I am not exactly sure as we were eating them as they were coming out of the oven.) :)

I used this press about 4-5 times during the 5 years I owned it. The cookie shapes came out well, but after a few uses, the plastic ring around the barrel cracked. This year that same plastic part broke entirely, making the press unusable-- a critical engineering materials defect. Like the other reviewer (Dec 2005), I too am now in the market for an all metal press.

After going thru 2 other cheaper cookie presses in about 7 years, I decided to splurge and get the one that was supposed to be a "professional" version. It certainly looked and felt sturdier, so I was optimistic, however the very first time I tried to use it, it broke. Although, most of the construction is metal (steel?) there ARE plastic pieces on it, and the main piece that pushes (ratches) the dough thru the cylinder is plastic - it cracked after only a single tray of cookies. The dough was NOT overly stiff, so there was no reason it should have cracked. I had to get my mother's 30+ year old cookie press (made of ALL metal) to finish the batch. It handled the job with no problem. I wish they made them like they used to.

My daughter bought this because we had so much trouble forming the cookies with our old-fashioned aluminum cookie press that once belonged to her great-grandmother. The ratchet and squeeze handle are so much easier to use than the screw. However, when we tried our first recipe, chocolate spritz, the cookies spread out during baking into nearly shapeless blobs. We also noticed a very critical typo in the recipe for classic spritz cookies: it says to use a "greased" cookie sheet instead of ungreased. The French version of the same recipe and all the other spritz recipes I've ever seen say to use ungreased ("non graissee").

I'd appreciate any tips or hints that would solve the problem of spreading cookies.

This cookie press is fantasic. It makes making cookies fun again. I can make cookies in half the time now and not only is it quick, but they look and taste great. The recipes that come with the press taste great. I have noticed however that not all recipes work with this press. Sometimes you need to press the pump twice inorder for those cookies to come out. The recipes that come with it work the best, and to be honest that taste even better than any recipe I have. Overall, I highly recommend this product.

I bought this press about two years ago and was really impressed. It was so much easier to use then the Wilton press I had previously. The trigger function was a little smoother then the actual press. Well, here I am at Christmas again and the cookies I made this year cannot compare to previous years. Using the same recipe and procedure I have been using for years, I could not for the life of me get decent cookies past the first two or three presses. Then it wouldn't press the cookies at all and the disks kept slipping out of the slot and cracked and broke bacause they were thin plastic. . . going back to stainless and maybe someone other than Wilton. I have less than decent cookie shapes and one sore hand and arm from fighting this contraption.

I like the cookie press well but was disappointed in the selection of cookie disks. Previous cookie presses had always had a dog disk but this one does not. It is easy to operate and gives well formed cookies.