Royal Icing For Nutcracker Cookies Recipes

SUGAR COOKIES WITH ROYAL ICING

Steps:

• Sift the cake flour, baking powder and salt onto a piece of parchment paper or into a medium bowl; set aside. Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the flour mixture in 2 batches until just incorporated. Divide between 2 pieces of plastic wrap; shape into disks. Wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour. (The dough can be frozen for up to 1 month; thaw overnight in the refrigerator before rolling.)
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with 1 disk at a time, roll out the dough on a floured surface, dusting with flour as needed, until about 1/8 inch thick. Cut out shapes with 2-to-4-inch cookie cutters; arrange 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. (If the dough becomes too soft as you work, return to the refrigerator until firm.) Gather the scraps and refrigerate until firm; reroll once to cut out more cookies. Chill the cutouts 30 minutes.
• Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Bake, switching the pans halfway through, until the cookies are slightly puffed and just golden, 13 to 15 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely before icing.
• Whisk one 1-pound box confectioners' sugar and 2 tablespoons meringue powder in a large bowl. Add 5 tablespoons water and beat with a mixer on medium-high speed until soft glossy peaks form, adding up to 1 more tablespoon water if necessary. Cover the bowl with a damp paper towel and plastic wrap until ready to use to prevent the icing from drying out.

NUTCRACKER COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, sift flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and brown sugar on medium speed until fluffy. Add ginger, cinnamon, cloves, salt, and pepper; beat to combine. Add eggs and molasses; beat to combine. Reduce speed to low; add flour mixture; beat until incorporated. Divide dough into thirds; shape into flat disks. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a floured work surface, roll out dough to an 1/8-inch thickness. Cut out shapes using nutcracker cutter; transfer to baking sheets lined with Silpat baking mats. Refrigerate until firm, at least 15 minutes. Bake until crisp but not darkened, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on racks. Tint each batch of icing as described in royal icing recipe. Decorate cookies with icing, sanding sugar, and dragees.

NUTCRACKER BUTTER COOKIES

Steps:

• In a small bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle., On a lightly floured surface, roll out to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a 6-in. nutcracker cookie cutter. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks., For icing, in a large bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, water and meringue powder; beat on low speed just until combined. Beat on high for 4-5 minutes or until stiff peaks form. Tint as desired with food coloring. (Keep unused icing covered at all times with a damp cloth. If necessary, beat again on high speed to restore texture.), Using pastry bags and small round tips, decorate cookies as desired. Let dry at room temperature for several hours or until firm. Store in an airtight container.

ROYAL ICING

Steps:

• Whisk the egg whites until lightly whipped. Add the icing sugar a few tbsps at a time, whisking continuously until all incorporated. Add the glucose and lemon juice.
• Continue whisking until the icing is thick enough to hold stiff peaks when you lift the beaters and is smooth and shiny.
• Use a palette knife to spread the icing over the top and sides of your marzipaned cake. For a snowy effect, make little dips and peaks with a teaspoon. Leave to firm up somewhere cool and dry (not the fridge) for 24 hrs before cutting the cake.

ROYAL ICING

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment, beat the egg whites on high speed until foamy. You can also use a hand mixer.
• Switch to low speed and gradually sift the sugar into the egg whites until it's completely incorporated. Because both ingredients are white, it's easy to miss lumps. Look carefully.
• Add the lemon juice and beat on high speed until the icing is very thick and forms stiff peaks, about 5 to 10 minutes.
• At this point, you can add the food coloring if you're only going to need a full batch of one color. If you need more than one color, separate quantities of icing into individual bowls and just stir in the coloring you want.
• Use the royal icing to decorate your cookies. Enjoy.

MY FAVORITE ROYAL ICING

Steps:

• Watch the video of the icing above so you get an idea of what the final consistency should be.
• Pour confectioners' sugar, meringue powder, and 9 Tablespoons of water into a large bowl. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat icing ingredients together on high speed for 1.5 - 2 minutes. When lifting the whisk up off the icing, the icing should drizzle down and smooth out within 5-10 seconds. If it's too thick, beat in more water 1 Tablespoon at a time. I usually need 10 Tablespoons but on particularly dry days, I use up to 12-14 Tablespoons. Keep in mind that the longer you beat the royal icing, the thicker it becomes. If your royal icing is too thin, just keep beating it to introduce more air OR you can add more confectioners' sugar.
• When applied to cookies or confections in a thin layer, icing completely dries in about 2 hours at room temperature. If icing consistency is too thin and runny, it will take longer to dry. If the icing is applied very thick on cookies, it will also take longer to dry. If you're layering royal icing onto cookies for specific designs and need it to set quickly, place cookies in the refrigerator to help speed it up. See blog post above for make-ahead and freezing instructions.

EASY ROYAL ICING RECIPE FOR SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the meringue powder and powdered sugar, then slowly mix in the water and vanilla while the mixer is running on medium-low speed. Increase speed to medium and beat until stiff peaks form, around 5 minutes. This can be done with a hand mixer, but will take a couple minutes longer.
• Divide the thick white icing into individual bowls for how ever many colors you want and add gel food coloring, a few drops at a time, mixing well until you achieve the shades you like. From there, you can reserve half of each color at piping consistency for piping borders as described in the post, or thin all the icing to flood consistency.
• To thin each color to flood consistency, add 1 teaspoon of water at a time and stir well, continuing to add water by 1/2 teaspoon increments until you reach your desired consistency.
• Once your icing is colored and the right consistency, scoop it into a piping bag fitted with a size 2 or 3 tip. Decorate your sugar cookies by first outlining the border, then filling in the middle with flood icing which should settle into itself. Use a toothpick or scribe tool to fill in any gaps by spreading the icing around, then tap the cookie on the counter a few times to help the icing settle into a smooth, even layer.
• Dry cookies at room temperature for 6-8 hours until the royal icing is completely firm before adding additional layers or design or stacking for transport.

ROYAL ICING FOR NUTCRACKER COOKIES

Steps:

• Combine meringue powder, sugar, and water in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low until the icing is smooth and thick, 10 to 12 minutes. The consistency may be adjusted by adding water, one tablespoon at a time, if desired. Using a toothpick, mix in very small drops of the gel-paste food color; stir by hand with a spatula until combined.