This is my first tutorial on tips and tricks for decorating cookies with royal icing. I have to say first off, that I’ve learned many great tips from various sources on the internet, from books and from cookie decorating classes. If you’re interested in other sources here are the main ones I’ve learned from:
1. Internet:
http://cakecentral.com – Find forums to chat with others about cake decorating etc., photo galleries for inspiration, tutorials and more on this gold mine of a cake decorating (& more!) site.
http://www.cakejournal.com/ – A lovely site with beautiful work by the author, Louise. She’s so great you might want to just leave here and check out her tutorial on decorating cookies! Why am I even writing this?! =)
http://chiccookiekits.blogspot.com/ – Meaghan’s got a great site dedicated to all kinds of cookie decorating. In addition to publishing her own book, Cookie Sensations, she writes for www.craftgossip.com edible crafts section.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZBXVveAEPE – Cat Cora from Iron Chef, shows how to decorate cookies on youtube.com. Hers is good for the beginner. There are lots of other video tutorials on youtube as well!
There are so many other great sites out there; have fun surfing!
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2. Books:
Peggy Porschen’s books have great recipes, easy to follow instructions, and beautiful cakes, cupcakes and cookies. She has a new book coming out in July, Cake Chic. I can’t wait for it!
Cookie Craft by Valerie Peterson and Janice Fryer is another excellent resource. It covers all the practicals of cookie decorating… from making or freezing the dough to a myriad of fab cookie ideas.
Toba Garrett’s Creative Cookies is one of the first decorating books I’ve bought. She covers many different techniques for decorating cookies, from piping royal icing, to covering them with fondant etc. For the beginner and advanced!
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Classes:
Bonnie Gordon’s School of Cake Design (www.bonniegordoncakes.com) – Super if you live in the Toronto area! I enjoyed the cookie decorating class offered there and learned some helpful tips. There are many other great-looking decorating classes I’d like to try in the Toronto area, but haven’t taken the classes yet, so I can’t comment on them at this point in time.
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Okay, here we go!
Decorating cookies is often called ‘flooding’ because you can essentially create a dam, wall or outline of icing on the edge of your cookie, and then ‘flood’ or ‘fill in’ that ‘dam’ with icing. There are those who like to decorate without using a dam by just applying the icing, but I find that I’m able to add more icing onto the cookie when the dam holds it in, therefore making the cookie surface look more thick and rich.
One of the most important components of decorating cookies is the royal icing itself. I have two favorite recipes; Antonia74’s (from cakecentral.com), and Peggy Porschen’s recipe from any of her books. Here is Antonia74’s icing recipe for decorating cookies:
Royal Icing Recipe
Ingredients:
6 oz (3/4 cup) of warm water
5 Tablespoons Meringue Powder
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 kilogram (2.25 lbs.) powdered icing sugar
*** Note; if your meringue powder has no vanilla flavour (vanillin powder) in it, add a teaspoon of clear vanilla to this recipe.
Directions:
In mixer bowl, pour in the warm water and the meringue powder. Mix it with a whisk by hand until it is frothy and thickened…about 30 seconds.
Add the cream of tartar and mix for 30 seconds more.
Pour in all the icing sugar at once and place the bowl on the mixer.
Using the paddle attachment on the LOWEST speed, mix slowly for a full 10 minutes. Icing will get thick and creamy.
Cover the bowl with a dampened tea-towel to prevent crusting and drying.
Tint with food colourings or thin the icing with small amounts of warm water to reach the desired consistency.
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Besides your cookies and the ingredients for the royal icing recipe, you’ll need your tools:
Cookie Decorating Tools:
1) piping bags
3) piping tips(at least #’s 1-5)
4) couplers
5) coupler covers – these aren’t necessary; you can just rest your tips in a damp cloth
4) glasses – to stand your icing bags in
5) clean cloths – a few damp and dry ones nearby
6) toothpicks
Icing Tips and Tricks:
One of the most important things I’ve learned about cookie decorating is that if your icing isn’t at the right consistency or thickness, the experience can be very frustrating.
So, once you have made the icing, it ususally needs to be thinned a bit to create the best consistency for decorating. This means that it needs to be fluid enough so that it will flow just enough that it settles into your cookie dam, but not too much so that it runs over.
You may realize that that the icing was thinner before you whipped it for 10 minutes according to the recipe, but it does make a difference in the texture that you mix it that long. Do mix it for 10 minutes and then thin it out if you need to.
Add just drops of water at a time to make the icing runnier. If you add too much water at a time it’s more difficult to thicken it with icing sugar than it is to add water to it.
The trick I use to make sure my icing is at the right consistency, is called the “10 second rule“. Drag a butter knife through the surface of your royal icing and count to 10. 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. Mix your icing longer or slowly add more sifted icing sugar to thicken it.
I learned a slightly different ’10 second rule’, through Sarah Bell at Bonnie Gordon School of Cake Decorating… she likes to dip a spoon into the icing, lift it and let ribbons of icing drop back into the bowl, and count how many seconds it takes to make that surface flat again. (5-10 seconds).
Some people use a thicker consistency icing to outline their cookie shape and then a runnier one to fill it in. I have come to prefer using the same icing to outline and flood because it saves me time. (I don’t have to prepare two icings for each color, prepare two piping bags for each color etc.). That being said, the icing then can’t be too runny, because the outlines will not form properly.
Some decorators like to flood their cookies with a very runny icing, so if you are one of them, prepare two icing consistencies, one thicker, one runnier. The thicker icing should not be so thick that it is dry and curls when you try to pipe it. It should just hold it’s shape when you pipe it onto the cookie.
Coloring Icing:
Once you’ve managed to reach the desired icing consistency, add food paste coloring of your choice. I use a toothpick to slowly add color bit by bit. Because deep, dark colors such as red or black usually require a lot more food paste coloring, I’ll use the end of a butter knife to scoop out those colors if they’re in a tiny container. I should also add that I have come to prefer the Americolor brand for black especially. Americolor uses squeeze bottles which makes adding the color much easier, and it seems to bleed less into other colors.
Another tip when it comes to adding color to your icing; the colors usually deepen with time, so I try to color my icings 24 hours in advance to see if I’m happy with them.
Also, stirring your icing to add color will incorporate air into it, so if you leave the icing sitting for a while the air bubbles rise to the surface, where you can pop them by gently stirring just a little before you add the icing to the piping bags.
One more tip to help avoid air bubbles in your piping bag; massage the royal icing a bit before you twist the top end of the piping bag closed. Press the icing in the bag upwards, starting from the tip and working your way up, pushing out the air bubbles as you go. Then push it back down towards the piping tip.
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Filling Piping Bags:
I have disposable and non-disposable piping bags for decorating. Either are fine, however, I tend to lean towards disposable because I can quickly see what color each bag has in it. Important when timing is key! That being said, you could color-code each with a matching elastic if you don’t like using disposable bags. I’ve also tried using squeeze bottles with my students at school, and they’re also great for being able to see the colors easily, they aren’t very messy, and the icing can be kept in them as they’re airtight with the wee little lids. Trying not to lose them with teenage students is a problem though! Sorry guys it’s true! 😉 For me, the bottles are really only good for filling in, or flooding, so I tend not to bother with them for the most part.
Cut off the ends of your disposable piping bags, insert the coupler, tip and close it off. I generally use a number 2 or 3 piping tip to outline my cookies and a number 2 – 5 to flood them. The larger the cookie, the larger the piping tip. There are some great tips for small details, such as 00 or even 000, however they clog very easily! I like to use tip #1-#1.5 for smaller details.
Get as many glasses as I have colors out, add a clean, damp cloth to the bottom of each, and set one empty piping bag into each as well, with the opening of the piping bag folded over the rim of the glass. Fill the piping bag with your royal icing. I find it easier to fill the bags with icing when I have two hands free.
Twist the openings of the piping bags closed, and tightly secure them with elastic bands. Work over your icing bowl so that the icing dripping out of the tips doesn’t go all over your work surface. Rest your finished decorating bags back in the glasses until you’re ready to use them.
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Outlining Cookies/Piping Techniques:
Practice piping on your work surface so that your hand gets some practice before you begin the cookies. I usually find I need a few minutes to play around before my piping improves. I decorate my least favourite cookies, or my extra cookies first; that way if I make a mistake it won’t matter as much!
Outline the cookies first, and wait at least 15 minutes before you flood the inside of the ‘dam’. If the outline is a dark color such as brown or black, I wait 24 hours before flooding the cookie. It lessens the chance that the colors will seep into each other. If you live in a humid climate, air conditioning or a dehumidifier will help prevent color seepage as well.
I should also mention, that if you don’t like the look of the outline on the cookie, outline your cookie and fill it in right away. The icing needs to be at medium consistency for this… not too runny or it will just flow everywhere, and not too thick or it won’t settle smoothly.
To outline the cookies, hold the bag at a 45 degree angle and position the tip at a corner of the cookie. Put enough pressure on the bag so that the icing comes out and start moving towards the direction you’d like your icing to flow at the same time. About a centimeter after you’ve begun your outline, start lifting the piping bag away from the cookie, so that the icing just falls onto the cookie. Start coming back closer to the cookie when approaching another corner. If the cookie is more intricate, or has more corners, you may not be able to just let the icing fall as there won’t really be room to. Also start to apply less pressure as you approach the corners. While decorating, every once in a while I twist and tighten the top part of the bag to create pressure so that the icing flows well.
Flooding/Filling In Cookies:
When your cookies are ready to flood use a #3 – #5 sized piping tip. The larger the cookie the larger the tip. Start at one area and quickly zig zag back and forth until you’ve covered your cookie. Don’t worry if you haven’t filled in every little spot; speed is more important at this point. If there are a few spots that haven’t quite filled in once you’ve basically covered the whole cookie, use your piping bag, a toothpick or a paintbrush (used only for food), to push the icing around and fill in the gaps.
If you would like to add more icing colors to your cookie so that they ”meld’ into the base color, you need to add it right away. The base layer starts to dry quickly so you need to add your next colors as fast as possible. For example, I added these two black lines and one colorful line and then drag a toothpick through them.
The ‘eye’ of the butterfly is then made by layering a few colored dots on top of each other, with the white or light color second last and black last. Dots are easy to make; position your piping bag straight above the area you’d like to pipe and gently apply enough pressure so that just a dot comes out of the tip. Stop the pressure on the bag and lift it away. Take your next color and keep layering, making sure that your dots get smaller each time.
Fill in each wing or every two wings at a time.
Packaging and Storing Cookies:
Let the cookies dry for 24 hours before you package them.
If you’d like to store them in tupperware instead of packaging them, stack them with the largest cookies on the bottom and the smallest, most delicate ones near the top, and insert parchment paper between each layer. Store in a cool, dry area. I try to make mine no more than one week in advance, and advise people to eat them as soon as possible! They should be eaten within one month for sure. Some people claim they are fine even up to 3 months, however, I’m a firm believer in “the sooner, the better!”
I hope this tutorial has helped you! I welcome any questions or feedback… Have I forgotten to mention something? Do you need clarification on anything? Please ask or let me know!
If you like learning with video, you can also find me on YouTube, by clicking here.
Have fun creating!!
xo,
Marian
For some other butterfly cookie examples see this older post here.
Holly says
Thanks again Marian! I will look into the lustre spray. Those teapot and teacup cookies are incredible. You are so talented, a real inspiration!
Best,
Holly
Cakelaw says
Found this post through Jill – what great tips, thanks. Your butterflies are gorgeous!
Brandi says
Love your cookies. Someone else above asked about storing the icing, but I didn’t see where you answered. If one makes the icing and colors it 24 hours ahead, how do you store the icing until you use it? Room temp or refrigerator? Do you put them into the individual bags right away or will the icing need to be thinned just before using?
Marian says
Thanks Brandi!
If I make icing with meringue powder I leave it at room temperature. If you make icing with egg whites it needs to be stored in the fridge.
I wait 24 hours, stir the icing then put the icing in piping bags and decorate.
Hope that helps! If you have any questions I’m happy to help!
Maria says
Love love love your tutorial !!!! Even I could get it.
I want to know when your book will be published?
Marian says
Mari, so sorry! I just noticed your comment!
Have you tried using clear corn syrup to adhere your edible images, instead of icing?
Either way, you could try to put them under heat lamps or you could try blowing a fan (on the low setting) over them.
I’m not sure I’d advise this for edible images but I’ve read that Colette Peters puts her cookies in the oven with the light on as heat. Some people even put the oven temperatue on low.
Hope that helps!
Lisa says
Oh my, this is by far THE BEST web site I have found for cookie decorating. Thank you so much for putting the time into building a wonderful web site, I adore your work. You are an artist, no doubt!
Melissa says
Great tutorial. I also love the book Cookie Craft and taught myself how to flood and decorate cookies after I read the book. I will definitely be checking out some of the other sites and books you recommended. Thanks for all of the tips!
Timi says
Hi Marian.Thanks a bunch for the tutorial. I tried the royal icing recipe and it turned out great. I substituted the meringue powder for meri-white coz I couldn`t get my hands on any meringue powder here in the UK. But it did take forever to dry…well I never got to find out coz my hubby and daughter ate them all by the second day, they couldn`t wait!! What`s the longest I have to wait to get them dry enough for packaging? I was able to hide a few away but they still hadn`t dried up by the third day. Please help as I`ll be baking another batch for my daughters christmas party at nursery!!!!!
Marian says
Thanks Lisa and Melissa!
Timi, mine doesn’t usually take longer than 24 hours to dry.
Meringue powder is essentially dehydrated egg whites, sugar, flavoring agents and cornstarch.
Merriwhite is powdered egg white which is usually added to water and should be interchangeable with meringue powder.
You could try substituting 5-6 egg whites (according to Antonia74), as well.
Peggy Porschen’s recipe calls for merriwhite and I usually substitute meringue powder without any problems.
Was the area where your cookies were drying humid?
Timi says
Thanks for the quick response Marian. I forgot to mention that I love your cookies…did I mention how much I love your cookies?
Since the meri-white is not the problem I`ll probably put the cookies in a room with the heater on…I have to make another batch for a fundraiser at church…then my daughters christmas party…not sure if my kitchen was humid…or maybe I didn`t mix the meri-white long enough coz now that I think about it, it didn`t stay put on the whisk like you said…it was still dripping but will let you know how it goes. Thanks a million!!
Jen says
Thank you for this tutorial. I (a beginner) so much appreciate you sharing your knowledge. Your cookies are beautiful!
kristi says
I am wondering if there is a difference between powdered icing sugar and powdered sugar when making royal icing. Is it just that particular brands name for powdered sugar? Thanks for all the tips and advice – you are very talented! Your website has become a new favorite of mine. 🙂
Marian says
Kristi; There are a few other names for icing sugar; confectioner’s sugar and powdered sugar. Icing sugar is basically granulated sugar which has been very finely ground up. It also contains approximately 3% cornstarch to help prevent clumps from forming.
I have noticed that I prefer icing sugar *not* bought in bulk food stores. I like the brand I have pictured in the image above, Redpath, better for some reason. Perhaps there’s more (or less?), cornstarch content in the bulk icing sugar – I’m not exactly sure why.
In terms of other brands, Redpath is the one most widely available here in Canada, and I haven’t notice a difference between it and other packaged brands.
Hope that helps!
TidyMom says
Thanks for all the awesome tips!! I’ve only been decorating cookies for less than a year now, and I’m still trying to learn all of the “tricks”
I’m SO going to try using one consistency for outlining and flooding – I get SO stressed mixing 2 batches of each color and worrying if I have enough of everything I need! – LOVE the 10 second tip – so that’s the consistency you use for yours correct? I can pipe and flood with that?
I’m cookied out from all our Christmas cookie decorating (we donated 250 cookies AND another 100 for family and friends) – but I’m sure I’ll be ready to give it a go again at Valentines day!
~TidyMom
Marian says
TidyMom, correct, I use the same consistency to pipe and flood.
I just went over and saw your post with your donated cookies; what a wonderful idea! I can understand though, that you must feel ‘cookied-out’. I’m sure the cookie decorating bug will hit again too. 🙂
Ines says
Your tutorial is lovely.
I read that you can substitute meringue powder with egg whites. Have you tried this? Apparently Argentina has never heard of meringue powder yet!
And another question: how long does royal icing last? Is there a good way for storing it so it can be used for more than one day?
Thank you very much! 🙂
Ines
Marian says
Ines, yes, meringue powder is essentially dried egg whites. I’ve tried it and it does work, although I would advise adding a little bit of vanilla extract for some flavour. Many meringue powders already have the vanilla flavour in it, and egg whites obviously don’t.
As long as the icing is not made with real eggs, I leave mine at room temperature for a few days to a week, but the fridge works too. My home is usually pretty cool though – I’m guessing it’s a lot warmer in Argentina so I’d chose the fridge option.
Hope that helps!
Sarah says
What causes spotting when using royal icing?@ Marian:
Marian says
Sarah, I have a few ideas but have to ask a few questions:
1) Is the water you’re using very ‘hard’. The high mineral content can cause this.
2) Are you adding water to the surface of your cookie to help the icing ‘pool’. This leaves water stains.
3) Was there humidity in the room? The moisture could cause the spots to appear.
4) Was the layer of icing thin? Perhaps some of the fat/grease (i.e. butter) seeped through and caused the spots.
5) Was there salt in the recipe you used? If it’s not thoroughly dissolved it can leave spots in your icing. (This is usually for buttercream though).
6) Were the meringue powder and icing sugar sifted? They may not have been fully incorporated.
Hope these questions give you a hint as to what’s happening. I’d love to hear if you think any of them may have been the ‘culprit’.
Julie says
Thank you so much for this tutorial. Found it by visiting SugarBelle’s website. I have been decorating cookies for only 3 months after taking a cookie decorating class, and I’ve been using the runnier icing method, but I stress too much like TidyMom thinking I didnt prepare enough icing.
Yesterday I tried your icing recipe and I am thrilled at how easy it all came together. I have one question though, do you thin your icing in the mixer? or do you add the water and mix it by hand? and then you colour it?
Thank you so much, your cookies and tips are wonderful!
Marian says
Hi Julie,
I’m glad you liked the icing too! I do thin it out in the mixer, then put the icing in separate containers and color it. (Mixing with a spatula).
I’m actually working on a tutorial specifically for making royal icing right now and will post it soon. Hopefully that helps!
Happy cookie decorating!
Marian
Candace says
Thank you for such a detailed and easy to follow tutorial! I have been making cakes but now want to venture into decorating cookies and this tutorial was great!!! Love your site!
danielle says
On these awesome frigs, what size tip did u use for the black outline?? Thanks!
Marian says
Ha ha… did you mean the frogs from the princess cookies Danielle? Either way, my favorite tip for outlining is a #2.
danielle says
oopsie-somene can’t spell tonight!!! yes frogs and #2-got it! thanks!
Memoria says
The butterfly cookies are BEAUTIFUL! Wow. Thank you for the detailed instructions.
Trinnie says
Wow, what a great site! I’m glad I accidentally found it. I started decorating cookies about a year ago. I wish I would have found your site soon. I think I could have saved myself time, money, and frustration!
Question…when the RI is made 24 hours in advance, doesn’t it harden or form a crust layer on the top? That’s the drying time for the frosting to harden on a cookie.
Trinnie says
Another question…how do you make your black frosting so black and your red so red?
Marian says
Thanks Memoria and Trinnie!
Trinnie, as long as the RI is stored in a sealed, airtight container, the recipe I use doesn’t form a crust layer on top.
For food gel colorings I use Americolor black and Americolor red; I found them to be the best colorings in terms of intensity, and ‘less bleeding’. You still have to use more than your average color for black and red, but I also find it doesn’t have a weird taste like Wilton black and red. (Wilton does have a no-taste red available too though).
Trinnie says
Hi Marian,
How long can you keep the RI in an airtight container?
Marian says
Hi Trinnie,
For about one week. If it’s been sitting for a while make sure you stir it very well. The water will separate from the icing sugar/meringue powder, so it needs to be thoroughly mixed.
Multi-Tasking Mommy says
Thank you so much for this tutorial, that was great!
I have done 3 batches of decorated cookies ever and I am so disappointed with how they turned out, I am ready to quit.
It’s the flooding icing that I am having trouble with. I add the water drop by drop, but the icing still starts to separate and the colour then isn’t a solid colour anymore. It looks terrible.
Any thoughts as to why this is happening?
Please email me!
Marian says
Don’t worry; we’ll figure it out!
I’m assuming you’re using the royal icing recipe I recommend?
*Are you thoroughly mixing the icing? After it sits a while it needs to be re-mixed a bit. The water and icing sugar separate. Even 6-12 hours is long enough for that to start happening.
*At what stage does your icing separate?
We can continue trying to work it out here in case someone else runs into the same problem, but you can also email me through my contact button at the top of the page.
Talk soon!
Alison says
I decorated my first batch today!! Look:
http://snargblog.blogspot.com/2010/02/lingerie-cookies.html
Thanks for the great tutorial!
Trinnie says
Alison- your cookies are amazing! Great job! How did you make the zebra stripes?
Nicole says
Hi Marian,
When you say to let the outline sit or the cookies dry for 24 hours, are you just leaving them out in the open or putting them in a sealed container? I imagine leaving them out for 48 hours would make them stale wouldn’t it?
I’m very new to this and I’m making cookies for a wedding shower, so I want to make sure they’re great!
Marian says
Hi Nicole; It’s a good question.
For many of my cookies the first layer is all icing, which acts as a sealant. This icing prevents the cookie from drying out.
For the black butterfly outline, I do leave them out to dry, especially in the summer when it’s very humid here; otherwise the black especially can bleed into the other colors. The first 24 hours don’t seem to make a difference with the taste/texture of the cookie dough I’m using. I wouldn’t leave them out longer though. Fill them in as soon as you know the outline is bone dry. You could make an extra cookie and test the icing periodially to see.
It can be tricky to let them dry in a sealed container. If any moisture is trapped in there (there’s even moisture in the icing of course), the icing might not completely dry.
Hope this helps and good luck with your cookies! Please leave more questions or comments if you need to!
Nicole says
Just one more question – can you explain the difference between sparkle dust, luster dust, disco dust, highlighter dust, mystical dust and pearl dust? If you know … it’s all so confusing!
Thanks!
Marian says
Nicole, they’re all different ‘decorating dusts’ with slightly different looks and properties, as I’m sure you already know, but I think I’ll have to do a post on them to show you the difference!
Alison says
@ Trinnie:
Thanks Trinnie! I used the toothpick technique that she used for the butterfly wings. I just piped short black dots and lines in the white icing while it was still wet an then drug the toothpick through it in sort of a jagged fashion. I didn’t post a picture of it but I also used the same technique to make leopard print panties!! Couldn’t have done it without sweetopia’s tutorial tho
Kate says
i love your work. thank you so much for sharing your techniques. I love to bake and have recently starated to decorate cookies and cupcakes!! I will definitely be referring back to this post often!
Karen says
Hi Marian,
Thanks so much for your awesome cookie tutorials and tips. They’ve inspired me to try new things!
I have a question about your sugar cookie and royal icing recipes. Can you tell me how many cookies the recipes make?
Thanks!
Marian says
Hi Karen,
Thanks – glad they help!
It does depend on the size of cookie you make, but on average the dough makes about 25-30ish cookies.
I never need the whole kilogram of royal icing, but it’s always nice to have extra in case one messes up coloring it!
Hope that helps!
Illona says
HI Marian,
After months and months of ogling the gorgeous cookies on this site, I finally gathered some gumption, took a deep breath and went at it. Royal icing, to me, equals wedding cake, and so you can imagine my trepidation at attempting such a ‘feat’ But, by following your recipe and tutorials, it was a success. I made little ducks, rabbits and Easter eggs over the weekend. As it turns out, I didn’t have to fear anything. I did, however, run into air bubbles and it will take me many more cookies to get them 1% as gorgeous as yours. Still, I was happy with the results. So a huge thank you.
A fan,
Illona
P/S – the ducks are still sitting in the tupperware. No one can bring themselves to eat them!