My favorite way to frost Sugar Cookies is with Royal Icing- Royal Icing is a frosting made up of Confectionery Sugar, Meringue Powder with Water and this icing dries super hard thanks to the Meringue Power. Simply mix these 3 ingredients in a stand mixer until you achieve a smooth glue like texture and you having Royal Icing. There are many great recipes available on the Internet, but I always start with this Martha Stewart Recipe (yes, If you haven't guessed it yet, I am a huge fan of Martha Stewart's recipes.)
Now, there is a reason I said that I "start" with using the Martha Stewart Recipe for Royal Icing. When I am making icing for my base or first layer of icing, I prefer it a bit thinner than what M.S. suggests, and I add a bit extra water. This helps create a super smooth base of icing and makes it easier to pipe. I always start with the same method as well... Create a damn by outlining the cookie with icing piped through a piping bag, then fill in the center of the cookie. I let this dry for at least a couple hours before I add any details on top of the cookie.
When I am prepping icing for doing smaller details, I stick to pretty closely to Martha's Recipe. When the icing is a little bit thicker- you have greater control over the smaller details. And, I always use the smallest round piping tip I have on hand... this yields great results.
Here are a few other tips and things I keep in mind when I am frosting Cookies....
-I always keep the frosting not in using in the fridge covered with a damp cloth- The icing will tend to dry up quickly, and this helps keep it as moist as possible.
-Always burp your piping bag after you refill... Not sure what I mean?... When you refill your piping bag with frosting, twist off the top and squeeze all the frosting down to the tip until you hear an air bubble pop and see the splatter of icing come through the tip--- better that this happen in the icing bowl than on your cookie!
-Gel-Paste food coloring I find lends for the most vibrant and bright colors. No need to mix colors according to ratio on a box. Though- one work of caution... keep in mind that when you are adding food coloring to Royal Icing you are adding a liquid- this will thin out your icing a bit. Keep a little extra powder sugar on hand in case things get too thin...
-Need black icing? Start with Chocolate! Simply add cocoa powder to the base dry ingredients of your icing, then add the black gel-paste coloring. This will help prevent your frosting from getting too thin, yet will get you a nice rich dark black.
-It's better to refill your piping bag frequently, then load it up with lots of icing... the heat from your hand will thin your icing and may make it too runny... so frequent refills will prevent this from happening.
-Looking to work with Sprinkles? Think back to your elementary school crafting days with sparkles! Pipe on your icing, sprinkle with sprinkles, then shake the excess sprinkles off onto wax paper- super fun and super easy!
-Lastly- set aside an afternoon, turn up your Christmas carols- experiment a bit and have fun with this! I love piping decorating Sugar Cookie- there's so much creativity involved and is a great way to get in the holiday spirit!
Thanks for reading and happy decorating!
