Royal icing
A smooth icing made from egg whites or meringue powder and powdered sugar that dries hard and matte, used to decorate cookies.
- Fillings, creams, frostings and sauces
Royal icing is mixed to different consistencies for different jobs: stiff for piping borders, flowers and gingerbread house seams, and thinned with water for flooding the surface of a cookie. A common test is the 10 to 15 second rule: a ribbon drizzled on the surface should disappear in that time for flood icing.
Meringue powder is a safe, shelf-stable stand-in for raw egg whites. Decorated cookies need several hours, often overnight, to dry hard.
Bake it at VanillaGoods
- RecipeClassic vanilla royal icing
- RecipeLemon royal icing
- RecipeOrange royal icing
- Baking Academy lessonButtercream and piping 5 royal icing
Tools for this
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
Ann Clark Every Season Cookie Cutters (11)A cutter for every holiday and season, made in the USA, for cut-out cookies that keep their shape.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.
- Royal icing (Q29263), Wikidata