Icing
A sweet coating for cakes, cookies and pastries, made mainly from sugar and often thinner and glossier than frosting.
- Fillings, creams, frostings and sauces
Also called: frosting
In American usage, icing usually means a thin, pourable or pipeable sugar coating, such as a powdered sugar glaze or royal icing, while frosting means a thicker, fluffier spread like buttercream. In British usage, icing covers both.
A basic icing is powdered sugar stirred with a small amount of milk, water or juice. A few drops of liquid change the consistency a lot, so it's best to add liquid gradually.
Bake it at VanillaGoods
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Tools for this
OXO Bent Icing SpatulaSmooth, even frosting and filling with a flick of the wrist.See it on Amazon
Piping Bags & Tips SetFill and pipe neatly, no ziplock-bag mess.See it on Amazon
RFAQK Cake Decorating Kit with TurntableTurntable, spatulas and piping tips for bakery-style finishing.See it on Amazon
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Related entries
Sources
Written by VanillaGoods in our own words from these sources. Last reviewed October 15, 2026.
- Icing (Q29437), Wikidata