They are those little silver balls that have been around for years. when I was a kid we used them to decorate christmas cookies. They now come in different colors.
miniature jaw breaker that'll crack a tooth!
the cake decorator's version of a BB
a mess to pick up if dropped (did you see the episode of Ace of Cakes where Duff did just that with a whole big bag of them)
banned in CA.
4 pages of them to order: http://www.cakedeco.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_main.html?p_catid=72
india tree dragees are actually soft on the inside so they end up like a marshmallow with an M&M type shell. I make sure to use them if I think they are going to be eaten like kids cakes) 4 Millimeters is the standard side, but I like to use 6 mm for cakes. 4 mm is really more "cookie" sized.
Anyone know why they banned them?
I did a search and this is what I found:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drag%C3%A9e
This is taken directly from the FDA's site:
"When small silver balls known as 'silver dragees' are sold exclusively for decorating cakes and are used under conditions which preclude their consumption as confectionery, they are not considered to be in the category of a food or confectionery."
Here's the link to the above:
http://www.fda.gov/ForIndustry/ColorAdditives/RegulatoryProcessHistoricalPerspectives/default.htm
I thought since the India Tree ones were supposed to be soft on the inside that maybe those would not be banned in California (where I live)...NOPE, they are banned too. Oh well, guess I'll never have one of those pretty, dragee cakes....*sigh*
Chef Rubber will sell you dragees in California. www.chefrubber.com
Chef Rubber will sell you dragees in California. www.chefrubber.com
Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!
So I guess its because of the coloring they use?? Sounds kinda crazy to only ban it certain states if it does have stuff in it thats harmful to eat.
It's not that the problem is with the coloring; it's that they use the actual metal --real SILVER-- to coat them. Some more info on this thread! http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=645223&postdays=0&postorder=asc&&start=0 including an explanation of why most companies (except chefrubber--yay!) won't sell them to California 
and also how to make your own (double )
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