Fool Proof Royal Icing Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What does Karo syrup do to royal icing? ›

Without corn syrup, your royal icing can be as hard as a rock, and no one wants to chip a tooth on a cookie. I use 1 Tablespoon of Karo Light Corn Syrup in my icing recipe. I've seen some cookiers use more but this ratio works well for me. Too much corn syrup and your icing may not dry as well.

If the icing surface becomes smooth in anywhere between 5-10 seconds, then your icing is ready to use. If it takes longer than approximately 10 seconds, the icing is too thick. Slowly add more water. If your icing surface smoothes over in less than 5-10 seconds, it is too runny.

Properly made royal icing should be mixed to medium/stiff peaks to have the structure it needs for the best results. In order to get the consistencies you need, you will thin it by using small amounts of water or thicken it by adding powdered sugar.

Using salt and acid (cream of tartar) balances the sugary sweetness. Silver rum adds a subtle flavor, without darkening the icing like vanilla. Creaming helps minimize the grit of powdered sugar.

When more corn syrup or glucose was added (either twice as much, 2X, or three times as much, 3X), the icing became markedly softer. All icings set harder under a fan than when they were air-dried, though the glycerin-icing was still very soft in all cases (1X to 3X).

Undermix, and your royal icing looks translucent and is structurally weak. Overwhip, and you're giving too much volume to the egg proteins via air, causing the structure to weaken in a different way. Overmixed icing usually looks porous when dry, and sometimes will not even fully dry and be soft/brittle.

Take care not to beat the icing any longer than is needed to turn it crisp white, and to only beat it at high speed at this very thick consistency. Extended beating, especially of looser icing, can pump a lot of air into it, creating tiny (or not so tiny) bubbles that can be difficult to eradicate once incorporated.

There are three main types of royal icing: stiff consistency, piping consistency, and flood consistency. They are used for different decorating techniques, although sometimes you can use different consistencies to achieve the same result.

One of the main keys to shiny icing is getting that icing to dry quickly. The faster the icing dries, the shinier it will be. One simple method to faster drying is to just aim a fan at your drying cookies. I like to aim the airflow so that it passes evenly over my cookie sheet, not directly down at a particular cookie.

Is milk or water better for royal icing? ›

There are different versions of royal icing out there, but this is an easy one that comes together quickly with basic ingredients. This recipe uses milk instead of water, which gives it more flavor and just a tad of creaminess.

You have to use a thicker consistency that you're used to. Think of the “glob and ribbon” consistency but with little to no ribboning. If your icing is ribboning off the spoon into the bowl, it's too thin and won't hold the shape for puffy royal icing.

The lemon juice whitens the royal icing. The royal icing should be light, fluffy, and slightly stiff. You may need to adjust the consistency by adding more egg whites if the icing is too dry or more powdered sugar if it is too wet.

A: Bad tasting icing is very disappointing. It is likely caused by bad powdered sugar or vanilla extract.

You can make royal icing—with egg whites! This simple royal icing is made with pasteurized egg whites instead of meringue powder.

If you've struggled with dull royal icing in the past, adding a small amount of corn syrup will help to keep the icing shiny (even when dry).

Luckily, there are multiple ways that you can speed up the process. Leave your cookies to try at room temperature and expose them to as much airflow as possible. If your home is humid, use a dehumidifier or a fan to help dry the cookies quicker, or use a heat gun to solidify the icing at lightning speed.

Liquid glucose, often referred to as glucose syrup, is a liquid form of simple sugar. It tends to keep products soft and moist so is often used in icings (such as royal icing) to stop them from becoming hard and sometimes in baking to keep products soft and moist.

Add Corn Syrup and/or Glycerin

Adding any one or both of these ingredients can help soften the bite of dried royal icing.