Photo credit: @dolcecakesconfections
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Finding the perfect royal icing recipe is tricky. The key is to understand if you're using it to outline, pipe or flood a cookie. You'll want to have a stiffer royal icing if you're making that outline to flood (like the photo above). You'll want a thinner royal icing to flood your cookies. Below is a basic royal icing recipe. To find what works best for you, you'll have to test a few consistencies. Change the thickness/stiffness of the royal icing by adding a little bit of water and mix it for a few minutes with an electric mixer to create the new consistency.
To test, you can start with the standard recipe below and then divide it into three bowls. The first bowl will be the standard. The second two you can add one tablespoon of water at a time to thin it out and create a different consistency. Happy decorating!
What you'll need:
-1 box of powdered sugar (1 pound)
-2 egg whites (substitute with 5 tablespoons of meringue powder for children and pregnant women)
-1/2 cup of water
Combine powdered sugar and egg whites in a bowl. Mix at low speed and slowly add in the 1/2 cup of water. Change speed to medium-high for about 5 minutes. It should take around 7 to 10 minutes of mixing to get that ribbon-like trail when you dip and lift a spatula into the royal icing. (Almost like a runny caramel consistency).
Photo credit: @thedessertpantry
For an easy, no mess option for cookie decorating, try Tipless Piping Bags. Simply cut the tip size you want and discard the bag when you're done. No need for clean up!