Royal Icing Recipe Tutorial
Ingredients:
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3 Tablespoons Meringue Powder
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4 cups confectioners' sugar (1 pound)
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4 to 6 Tablespoons warm water*
Directions:
Beat all ingredients until icing forms peaks (7-10 minutes at low speed with a heavy-duty mixer, 10-12 minutes at high speed with a hand-held mixer). Recipe makes 3 cups.
NOTE: Keep all utensils completely grease-free for proper icing consistency.
The icing will start melting otherwise. Spatulas must be new or metal. The bowl if is plastic should be new, metal or glass. When making Royal Icing and storing, grease is its #1 enemy.
* Start with less water and add until desired consistency
Thinned Royal Icing: To thin for pouring, add 1 teaspoon water per cup of royal icing. Use grease-free spoon or spatula to stir slowly. Add ½ teaspoon water at a time until you reach proper consistency
TIPS:
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This recipe is not meant to use as covering for the cake.
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Once you pipe something that needs to dry hard, let it air dry. Do not cover
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Do not place Royal Icing pieces in the refrigerator.
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If you plan to store the pieces, let them air dry for a week then store in a box in a dry place
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If you plan to use for piping flowers, is best to use it fresh.
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If you store it it will be ok for up to a month, but the consistency will change.
The recipe above should give you a very white icing with a nice strong texture that is great for piping flowers that need to hold shape.
The photo on the right is the way the icing should look. If you get an icing that is shiny like the one in the photo below, something went wrong. Make sure you follow the correct steps and remember no grease.
Once the icing tends to look shiny, it can't be fixed. It
doesn't mean it's bad, it just won't hold shape for certain piping techniques. You can still use to attach items, pipe over a cake and do other things that might require a soft icing so don't throw it away.
Since this Royal Icing has not real egg whites, it will last for a month outside the fridge, But keep in mind that the consistency will change. This means that, if you need to pipe something that requires it to be strong, make the icing fresh and use it right away. After a day or 2 it tends to get softer and works best for other work that requires less stiff icing.
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Royal Icing is a pure white icing that dries to a smooth, hard, matte finish. It colors beautifully and it can smooth really well. I never use it to ice a cake, but some countries do use it with the addition of some glycerin, to make sure it doesn't get as hard.
This hard-drying icing is perfect for making decorations that last for long periods. It is also useful to fasten decorations together or on fondant cakes. To save your decorations for later use, make sure to let them fully dry in an open space that is not hot or humid. The bigger the decoration the longer it will take to dry.
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Royal Icing is a pure white icing that dries to a smooth, hard, matte finish. It colors beautifully and it can smooth
really well. I never use it to ice a cake, but some countries do use it with the addition of some glycerin,
to make sure it doesn't get as hard.
This hard-drying icing is perfect for making decorations that last for long periods. It is also useful to fasten
decorations together or on fondant cakes. To save your decorations for later use, make sure to let them fully
dry in an open space that is not hot or humid. The bigger the decoration the longer it will take to dry.
Below you will find a video tutorial and scroll down for the recipe and more tips that are important.
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