This Easy Cookie Icing is foolproof! Beautiful cookies without special ingredients, equipment, or raw eggs and can be customized for any holiday or decor. The perfect, easy way to decorate your Christmas cookies! Step-by-step video tutorial below.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 20 minutesminutes
Setting Time 1 dayday20 minutesminutes
Total Time 1 dayday40 minutesminutes
Servings 1recipe is enough icing for 1 batch of cut out cookies
1cup(4.4 ounces) powdered sugar (or more - see note), sifted
1/2teaspoonvanilla extract
2tablespoonswater or milk
Gel food coloring, if desired
For the flood icing:
1cup(4.4 ounces) powdered sugar, or more, sifted
1/2teaspoonvanilla extract
3tablespoonswater or milk
Gel food coloring, if desired
Instructions
For the border icing:
In a small bowl, use a fork to beat together all the ingredients except the food coloring. Beat in the food coloring, a few drops at a time, until colored to your liking. The mixture should be very thick but still pourable. Add more powdered sugar as needed.
Transfer the border icing to a squeeze bottle using a funnel. You can also scoop into a pastry bag fitted with a small plain tip. Before you begin icing any cookies, take a few moments to practice on a piece of parchment paper to get the feel of the icing.
Holding the bottle or bag tip directly over one corner of a cookie, begin tracing an outline of the cookie, squeezing gently and using both hands if needed to maintain consistent pressure. I prefer to allow a little slack in my icing line as I go. If you mess up, simply wipe the icing off and start again. Allow the icing to dry slightly before continuing with the flood icing.
For the flood icing:
In a small bowl, use a fork to beat together all the ingredients except the food coloring. Beat in the food coloring, a few drops at a time, until colored to your liking. The mixture should still be pretty thick, but will drizzle more freely than the border icing. If needed, add a splash of additional water or milk to loosen until the consistency is pourable. Or, add more powdered sugar as needed to thicken. Pour the flood icing into a squeeze bottle or into a pastry bag fitted with a small plain tip.
Prepare as many batches and colors of flood icing as you need to decorate your cookies.
Begin filling the interior of the border drawn on each cookie with the flood icing, being careful not to add too much that it overflows the border icing. Use either the nose of the bottle or a small toothpick to push the icing evenly over the cookie and up against the corners.
Leave the iced cookie to dry for 24 hours. The cookies are dry when the surface is completely smooth and resists smudging when touched. Store the dried cookies between sheets of parchment paper in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 10 days.
Video
Notes
The amount of powdered sugar needed for the icing will depend on whether you use milk or water, the sugar brand used, and the humidity of your kitchen. Adjust until you get the desired consistency.For best results, use organic powdered sugar, which is made with tapioca starch, for a thicker sturdier consistency and better flavor.The iced cookies will need to dry for 24 hours before they can be safely moved or packaged without damaging the icing.