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My easy royal icing recipe is perfect for cookies, treats, and more! The best part is that it’s egg-free and uses ingredients you probably already have on hand.
When my daughter had her first birthday, I was kind of sad that I didn’t know how to make a beautiful cake for her like my mom used to make for me. So, I ended up taking Wilton classes at my local Michael’s store with my best friend. We took every single class that they offered and then found a few more non-Wilton classes at a local cake store. I love learning how to make all those beautiful flowers and have a huge book of recipes and ideas from those classes, but I was tired of always relying on pre-made products to make my icing. I knew there had to be a better way.
I found a from scratch royal icing recipe that was just egg whites and powdered sugar…easy enough! However, with my egg allergy I knew I needed something that I could use on cookies and and treats that I could eat so I set out to make a royal icing that was egg-free. I’ve seen some bloggers call their royal icing egg-free, but it still calls for meringue powder (which is made from egg whites by the way).
I have only used my recipe for decorating cookies and other treats and have not attempted to create any flowers with it yet. So, use it for cookies, treats, or even gingerbread houses.
Royal Icing Tips
-use super clean utensils, tips, and bags. Any grease (like leftover from a buttercream frosting) will breakdown the icing
-keep the icing covered at all times so it doesn’t harden before you use it (cover the bowl and tips with plastic wrap)
-icing will be very thick
-Royal Icing should somewhat hold it shape for a count of 10. This will make a perfect consistency for cookies and gingerbread house decorating. (EX. Scoop up some icing with a spoon and let it drizzle into the bowl. You should be able to see where you drizzled the icing for a count of 10…if it combines too quickly with the other icing it will spread out too much when decorating.)
Watch How Easy It Is To Make Royal Icing
Easy Royal Icing Recipe
This easy Royal Icing recipe has no eggs and will yield about 2 cups of icing. It's perfect for icing cookies or building gingerbread houses.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups confectioner's (powdered) sugar, sifted
- 1 1/2 tbls milk (almond, rice, soy, cow)
- 2 tsps light corn syrup
- 1/2 tsp vanilla or almond extract
Instructions
- Add confectioner's sugar, milk, corn syrup, and vanilla to a clean bowl. Blend with a handheld mixer until it is mostly lump free, about 45 seconds - 1 minute.
- If it's too thick, add water by the drop (a little goes a long way). If it's too thin, add more confectioner's sugar.
- Note: Royal Icing should somewhat hold it shape for a count of 10. This will make a perfect consistency for cookies and gingerbread house decorating. (Ex. Scoop up some icing with a spoon and let it drizzle into the bowl. You should be able to see where you drizzled the icing for a count of 10...if it combines too quickly with the other icing it will spread out too much when decorating.)
Notes
To decorate cookies: Royal Icing should somewhat hold it shape for a count of 10. This will make a perfect consistency for cookies and gingerbread house decorating. (Ex. Scoop up some icing with a spoon and let it drizzle into the bowl. You should be able to see where you drizzled the icing for a count of 10...if it combines too quickly with the other icing it will spread out too much when decorating.)
To build gingerbread houses: Royal Icing should be extremely thick and completely hold it's shape.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 16 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 15Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 2mgSodium: 13mgCarbohydrates: 2gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 1g
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Can you use Lactose-Free milk (like Lactaid) instead of the Almond, Soy or Rice milk? Asking since that’s what I have on hand 🙂
Hi. I don’t see why that wouldn’t work. I’ve used all sorts of milks without any issues. Please let me know how it turns out for you. w-
I have another question! My icing turns cloudy in a matter of about 2 days…is there any way to prevent this?
I have decorated my sugar cookies (it worked great!) but I have a few days before I’m going to be using the cookies. Will they do ok in the freezer or will the icing get wrecked and discoloured? (My cookies were frozen before I decorated as well, so this would be the second time they are frozen) Thanks!
Hi Melody, I honestly don’t know the answer. I haven’t tried freezing the frosting or freezing cookies for a second time. If it’s just a day or two they should be fine on the counter. If you decide to freeze them, please come back and let us know how it turns out. w-
Thanks for your reply. I popped them in the freezer so we will see! To clarify, the icing was fresh and hadn’t been frozen before
So they turned out just fine thanks!
Can I use this recipe for cookies that I will be freezing?
Hi Vanda, I haven’t tried freezing the icing so I don’t know how it will do after it defrosts. However, if you are talking about using the icing on frozen cookies, you’d need to let the cookies come up to room temp before frosting. w-
Does this royal icing harden and, if so, how fast?
It does harden. It dries about the same as traditional royal icing. w-
Any substitute for the corn syrup?
Unfortunately, I don’t think so. w-
Can I use a glucosio?
Can I use Golden Corn Syrup??
Hi Kiyana, You can use golden corn syrup, just know your colors will be off and you won’t be able to get a white white either. w-
Your cookies are so adorable! I love this easy recipe, it was perfect for my cookies. Next time, I won’t drink a whole Diet Pepsi before I try to outline cookies… I was a little bit shaky. 🙂
I’ve never had much luck with royal icing until now! This recipe was great and so easy to make, too!
I’ve been thinking about this yummy icing recipe ever since I used it on Christmas cookies in December. I just wanted to come back to say how much I enjoyed the ease and simplicity of the recipe and the fantastic flavor and texture. Thank you so much for this wonderful icing recipe!
LOVE that there is an eggless recipe! My MIL is also allergic to eggs. I have a question about adding the water drop by drop, how would you incorporate food colouring?
Hi Heather! I would add food coloring after the first addition of water, while it’s still very thick. Then adjust the royal icing to the desired consistency. w-
You really should rename this to Glaze icing as once you take out the egg whites it is no longer Royal Icing anymore. Glaze is great but it does not have the versatility as royal icing does because it can not be made thick enough to hold texture shape. I have tried. When I started a cookie business 6 years ago I started with glaze but eventually went to royal because how much more you can do with it. But glazed cookies taste great!
Thanks for your input Natalie. This really is more like royal icing than a glaze, it does get super thick and hard and I’ve had no issues with it has royal icing. For regular home cooks and what they use royal icing for…this is perfect. 🙂 w-
Hi,
I`m about to ice an English Christmas cake ,aka, a fruit cake that has a layer of marzipan before any icing.
I was all set to roll out some Wilton fondant ,when reading the instructions it said will only keep 3 or 4 days.
So my question is can I use this Royal Icing recipe and how long will it keep
Hi, yes the frosting will last longer than 3-4 days, but after about a week it would be so hard you might not want to eat it. And it won’t keep the cake from spoiling after 3-4 days. Hope that helps. w-
How much does it make???
It makes a couple cups. w-
Will this set up hard and fast like regular royal icing? Thanks!
Yes, it totally will harden up. It’s great for gingerbread houses and decorating. w-
I have been too scared to try my hand at royal icing and cookies, but I think I might give this one a shot!
Great recipe. I added a little more icing sugar but it depends on the thickness that you want it.
Glad you like it Nicoli! Yes…sometimes you want it a little thicker so more sugar {or less liquid} is needed. w-
the corn syrup give a nice shine to the cookies.
yes it does! 🙂
Can I make this icing 1 day ahead, and if so, how do I store it?
You certainly can. Use a very clean container (tupperware or gladware). Just make sure there is no trace of grease or it could ruin the icing. Basically, keep it away from air and you should be good. I also lay a piece of plastic wrap on the top of the icing to keep a skin from forming (like you do with pudding). w-
Hi Wendy, thanks for this recipe. I, like Valerie, had big problems getting this icing liquid. Basically, with milk and powdered sugar, I end up with larger granules of powdered sugar. Since you use slightly different units, can I confirm :
1 tbsp (tablespoon) milk – 15ml, which weighs about 15g
1.5 cups powdered sugar (I don’t have confectioner’s sugar) weight 255g
2 tsps (10g) light corn syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
The ratio of liquid to sugar seems very low. Do I have these right? Or is using powdered sugar going to give me different results from confectioner’s sugar?
Hi Kevin, powdered sugar and confectioner’s sugar are the same thing. The base recipe I have is the starting point…you have to keep adding liquid to get it to the consistency you need it. The amount of liquid will depend on the humidity where you live and also the project you are working on (thick for holding gingerbread houses together and thin for flooding cookies)…so the amount of additional liquid will vary greatly. You have to add it slowly and stir and adjust. Hope that helps. w-
Thanks for this tip. What substitute can i use for the light corn syrup?
Hi Ola! To keep this egg free, I don’t think there is a substitute for the corn syrup. I’m not sure anything else would hold up. w-
I never knew royal icing had egg whites or corn syrup in it. The only royal icing recipe I have known is the one my fiance gave me. He says it was his mom’s. It only calls for powdered sugar, milk, vanilla and a little water if needed. This recipe taste good…very sweet of course. What is the egg whites or corn syrup for? Have you ever heard of the recipe I got from my fiance?
Hi Kathy. Yes, that recipe from you soon to be Mother-in-Law is a glaze and is amazing on cookies, donuts, cakes, and more. Royal Icing is the icing used for “gluing” gingerbread houses together or making fancy cookie frostings that get extremely hard (the glazes don’t get very hard). Royal Icing almost always has egg in it, but since I’m allergic to eggs I found that using corn syrup achieved the same results. ~w
Thanks Wendy for the recipe and tips. This was my first attempt to decorate Valentine cookies with royal icing. They turned out beautiful. I thought it was easy with your tips!
Thanks for the recipe! How much would you say this makes?
I just finished making sugar cookies for our Xmas party tonight and I have to say that this recipe didn’t work well for me. With the addition of the liquids as listed above I ended up with large lumps that wouldn’t smooth out no matter how much I blended. I had to add a considerable amount of additional milk in order to make the frosting usable. I have gone over and over the 4 simple ingredients to make sure I didn’t use a wrong measurement but I did as posted. I appreciate the tips you have included but the recipe isn’t making it into my keep file.
Oh no! I’m sorry it didn’t work for you Valerie. It does take quite a bit of liquid to get it perfect for sugar cookie icing and there is no magic amount I can tell you since there are many variables such as humidity, temperature, brand of powdered sugar (a cheaper brand has more lumps to be worked out too), etc.
How long does the icing dry?
Luanne, It honestly depends on several factors in your kitchen. Usually it will start to set up within minutes, but could take a while to fully harden and dry based on how hot your kitchen is, the humidity, etc. ~wendy
Could i use coloring to color the icing
Lisa, yes! Use a good gel dye to color the icing just like you would any other royal icing.
How long will this frosting keep on a decorated cookie?
Hi Lynette,
The frosting will last way longer than the cookies will. 🙂 after about a week it will be to hard to eat (this is the same frosting you’d use to “glue” gingerbread houses).
wendy
So if I’m trying to get a head start on my daughters Halloween party on Friday, the frosting will still be okay to eat?
Oh for sure. 🙂 You can make it now, keep it in an airtight container until you are ready to use it. It’s the air that hardens it. 🙂
Love these tips, I always have issues icing cookies, so this is so helpful for me!
I’ve always been horrible about avoiding anything that requires royal icing, but I have no idea why…this recipe looks so easy!
I’m so excited to find a royal icing recipe with no eggs! Thanks so much for sharing!
I’ve never see royal icing with corn syrup in it. I bet it helps to keep it fluid and moving well, though!
I needed to create a version without egg (so I could eat it). The corn syrup just holds everything together like the egg would. 🙂