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My easy royal icing recipe is perfect for cookies, treats, and more! The best part is that it’s egg-free and uses ingredients you probably already have on hand.
When my daughter had her first birthday, I was kind of sad that I didn’t know how to make a beautiful cake for her like my mom used to make for me. So, I ended up taking Wilton classes at my local Michael’s store with my best friend. We took every single class that they offered and then found a few more non-Wilton classes at a local cake store. I love learning how to make all those beautiful flowers and have a huge book of recipes and ideas from those classes, but I was tired of always relying on pre-made products to make my icing. I knew there had to be a better way.
I found a from scratch royal icing recipe that was just egg whites and powdered sugar…easy enough! However, with my egg allergy I knew I needed something that I could use on cookies and and treats that I could eat so I set out to make a royal icing that was egg-free. I’ve seen some bloggers call their royal icing egg-free, but it still calls for meringue powder (which is made from egg whites by the way).
I have only used my recipe for decorating cookies and other treats and have not attempted to create any flowers with it yet. So, use it for cookies, treats, or even gingerbread houses.
Royal Icing Tips
-use super clean utensils, tips, and bags. Any grease (like leftover from a buttercream frosting) will breakdown the icing
-keep the icing covered at all times so it doesn’t harden before you use it (cover the bowl and tips with plastic wrap)
-icing will be very thick
-Royal Icing should somewhat hold it shape for a count of 10. This will make a perfect consistency for cookies and gingerbread house decorating. (EX. Scoop up some icing with a spoon and let it drizzle into the bowl. You should be able to see where you drizzled the icing for a count of 10…if it combines too quickly with the other icing it will spread out too much when decorating.)
Watch How Easy It Is To Make Royal Icing
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups confectioner's (powdered) sugar, sifted
- 1 1/2 tbls milk (almond, rice, soy, cow)
- 2 tsps light corn syrup
- 1/2 tsp vanilla or almond extract
Instructions
- Add confectioner's sugar, milk, corn syrup, and vanilla to a clean bowl. Blend with a handheld mixer until it is mostly lump free, about 45 seconds - 1 minute.
- If it's too thick, add water by the drop (a little goes a long way). If it's too thin, add more confectioner's sugar.
- Note: Royal Icing should somewhat hold it shape for a count of 10. This will make a perfect consistency for cookies and gingerbread house decorating. (Ex. Scoop up some icing with a spoon and let it drizzle into the bowl. You should be able to see where you drizzled the icing for a count of 10...if it combines too quickly with the other icing it will spread out too much when decorating.)
Notes
To decorate cookies: Royal Icing should somewhat hold it shape for a count of 10. This will make a perfect consistency for cookies and gingerbread house decorating. (Ex. Scoop up some icing with a spoon and let it drizzle into the bowl. You should be able to see where you drizzled the icing for a count of 10...if it combines too quickly with the other icing it will spread out too much when decorating.)
To build gingerbread houses: Royal Icing should be extremely thick and completely hold it's shape.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 16Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 15Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 2mgSodium: 13mgCarbohydrates: 2gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 1g
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FAQs
To make royal icing, place the powdered sugar, water, and Meringue Powder in a large mixing bowl. With an eclectic mixer, beat the ingredients together until the mixture forms stiff peaks.
What is a good substitute for royal icing? ›
Cookie icing can be used in the same way that royal icing can; however, it doesn't dry as hard as royal icing does. It's great for flooding cookies or piping designs into wet icing. To thin the consistency of cookie icing, just pop it in the microwave for about 20 seconds.
How can I quickly harden royal icing? ›
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. Enjoy your delicious baking!
What are the disadvantages of royal icing? ›
Disadvantages: Royal icing can crack. This makes it ill-suited for covering large surface areas (for instance an entire cake) or curved surfaces. Royal icing is rarely the most nuanced of flavors, with a somewhat bland (albeit sweet) flavor.
What makes royal icing harden? ›
Royal icing is made from confectioners sugar, water, egg white, and flavorings. This is the only icing that I use to decorate my cookies. The egg white is what allows it to dry hard, which is what makes royal icing so versatile.
Does royal icing get darker as it dries? ›
Colors will darken a bit as they dry. BAKER'S TIP – If possible I recommend preparing your icing the day before (when you bake your cookies) so the colors have a full day to develop. I also like to keep a little extra white icing extra just incase my colors became to dark I can then add white and lighten them back up.
What are the three types of royal icing? ›
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.
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.
Is cookie icing the same as royal icing? ›
Like royal icing, cookie icing can be used to decorate your roll-out sugar and gingerbread cookies; however, unlike royal icing, cookie icing does not dry hard. Cookies decorated with cookie icing will set smooth, but the icing will remain soft and can be damaged if cookies are stacked or packaged.
Why do you need meringue powder for royal icing? ›
Meringue powder is most commonly used as a substitute for whipped egg whites in royal icing, but it can also be used to stabilize and thicken whipped cream and buttercream, helping them hold their shape when piped.
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.
Can you over whip royal icing? ›
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.
Why is my royal icing not getting hard? ›
I'd experienced this issue when I thinned my icing with too much water for flooding. The good news on that front is that if you noticed that you'd done it before you start icing a cookie, you can stir in some sifted powdered sugar (or some reserved piping consistency icing if you want some) and recover.
What is royal icing mix made of? ›
Royal icing is frosting that's made from confectioners' sugar, egg whites, and flavorings, and used in many ways to decorate cookies and cakes. The biggest difference between buttercream frosting and royal icing is texture-buttercream is creamy and soft; royal icing hardens to a candy-like texture.
Which of the following are the components of royal icing? ›
Royal icing is a hard white icing, made from softly beaten egg whites, icing sugar (powdered sugar), and sometimes lemon or lime juice.
What is royal icing sugar made of? ›
Royal Icing sugar is the cake decorating sugar of choice. Pipe to create delicious decorations. Royal Icing Ingredients: Icing sugar, Dried egg albumen, Anticaking agent: Tricalcium phosphate, Acidity regulator: Citric acid.
