Once we have made our Sugar Cookies and allowed them to cool, we are almost ready to decorate! First, you will need to make royal icing (see recipe below).
There are 2 ways to make royal icing. You can either use egg whites or meringue powder. I opt for the meringue powder, mainly because I don’t have to worry about disclosing that my icing contains raw eggs! My favourite to use is the Wilton Meringue Powder which can be found at Michael’s or online at Amazon.
Divide the icing into smaller portions and mix a few different colours. Cover the icing with a wet towel when you are not using it to prevent it from drying out!
Now, let’s decorate 🙂
Step 1: Outline (aka. “dam”)
Step 2: Fill (aka. “flood”)
Step 3: Decorate with sprinkles
ALL DONE! 🙂 I can’t wait to take them in and share with my co-workers!
Royal Icing for Sugar Cookies
Prep Time: 10 mins- Total Time: 10 mins
Yield: 24 cookies 1x
Category: Dessert
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Pin RecipeDescription
It’s that time of year again and one of my favourite holiday traditions is baking and decorating sugar cookies with royal icing.
Ingredients
- 3 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 2 tablespoons meringue powder
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- food colouring (optional)
Instructions
- In large bowl, combine the meringue powder with the confectioners’ sugar
- Add the water and vanilla extract and beat with a mixer on medium-high until smooth. If you find that the icing is too thick, add more water. If too think, add more sugar.
- Add food coloring, if desired. Note that if you are adding liquid food colouring, this will have an effect on your consistency. You may need to add more sugar to thicken it out.
If you were to make this using egg whites, how many egg whites would you suggest?
I read that cookies decorated with royal icing does not freeze well (the icing that is)
Have you put yours in the freezer?
Hi Helene, unfortunately I have not tried freezing mine yet…
This recipe is so timely. I was going to look up a royal icing recipe this year, since I’ve never tried it. Your recipe will be perfect!
This recipe is so timely. I was going to look up a royal icing recipe this year, since I’ve never tried it. Your recipe will be perfect!
Question – how long does the icing take to harden? I’m concerned about the drying process since I live in Hawaii and other people who I know have had problems with royal icing not hardening properly. The humidity here is terrible for baking…. thanks!
It takes at least 12 hours to completely harden so I leave them overnight. I am not sure about the effects of humidity in Hawaii though…
A great idea of making the icing. Your cookies turned out really well. 🙂
Thanks, Swati! It took a long time to decorate!
Fab tips here! Royal icing is not something I’ve used a lot of. Need practise!
It’s easy to get the hang of it once you give it a try 🙂
Interesting. I have always wondered how to make my own icing and I never thought it of egg whites. Awesome!
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Haha yup, that is the secret ingredient! Although, I prefer meringue powder 🙂
Frosted sugar cookies are my favorite! There’s nothing like them 🙂
I always need some Royal Icing tips. Thanks Sam! These looks awesome.
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No problem! Glad I could help 🙂
Wow! Your cookies turned out great! I am making this for Valentine’s Day. I have never worked with royal icing before so thanks for the tips!
Anytime!! Let me know how it turned out! Tweet me a pic 🙂