Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (2024)

Ye ask and Ye shall receive!

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (1)

Egads! After my last post here many of you have been asking for me to post my sugar cookie icing recipe, to say I was shocked is an understatement! Who knew that sugar cookie icing recipes were such a hot commodity!! And let me just say I’m so sorry I never posted it with the cookie, I didn’t know, honest! Anyways this icing is sooo sooo good that it really does deserve it own post and taking the pretty pictures for this one was almost as fun and colorful as my fabric cabinet post🙂 (Yay for me!) And let’s just say my hubby and the kids sure didn’t mind that I was making another batch of sugar cookies either, my little sugar martyrs…they’ll do anything for an iced sugar cookie (and so will I ahthankyouverymuch!)

So, this recipe is my go-to, my favorite, my best-est icing ev-ah recipe. It gives you that nice and shiny icing that hardens perfectly so that you can stack your cookies for all those cookie trays you are handing out this year…or really anytime of year! And unlike Royal Icing it doesn’t have egg whites or egg white powder (which just weirds me out a bit anyway) aaaand it doesn’t make your cookies rock hard and dentist-appointment-making-worthy.

Sugar Cookie Icing

Recipe Type: Dessert

Prep time:

Total time:

Ingredients

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons milk
  • 2 tsp corn syrup
  • 1/2 teaspoon extract (vanilla or almond!)

Instructions

  1. Add your powdered sugar to a medium sized bowl and to that bowl add your milk and your corn syrup.
  2. Mix well.
  3. Then add your extract and slowly add more milk and corn syrup until you get the consistency you prefer.
  4. More runny for flooding or more thick for well, a more thick icing!

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (2)

First, place 1 cup of powdered sugar in a bowl and add 2 tsp of milk and corn syrup each…

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (3)

You will get something that looks like this…basically it looks like a complete fail BUT it’s not!

It will be all lumpy and dry looking and that is okay, actually it’s just right!!

Let’s keep going, shall we?

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (4)

Next, add in 1/2 teaspoon of the extract of your choice. I like to use almond and vanilla would be my runner-up choice. I love vanilla but there is something oh-so-yummy about a touch of almond in this icing!

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If you choose to use vanilla let it be known that if you are looking for that perfectly pure white icing you will want to use CLEAR vanilla extract, most commonly found at Michael’s or some store that sells Wilton products (possibly even Joann Fabrics, anyone? Bueller?) Regular vanilla extract is brown in color so it will never give you that wedding cake white color. Now, if you are planning on coloring your icing red, green, blue, etc than go ahead and use your regular vanilla, you won’t be able to tell the difference! Also, almond extract is clear…just an FYI for y’all!

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (6)

Okay, back to the show…

So, once you’ve added your extract you still will have a bit of lumpiness going on there so what you are going to do is add 1 tsp of milk and then 1 tsp of corn syrup at a time (mixing after each addition) until you get a nice and shiny icing. If you have some small lumps you can whisk it a bit but truth be told I never do, I just smash ’em up with the back of my spoon.

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (7)

Now, depending on what kind of icing you are looking for you are more or less done. For my sugar cookies I like my icing to be a bit runny yet thick. Not runny enough where the icing is running off the edges of the cookies (watery) but runny enough where I can easily spread it with a spatula…capiche?

Just so you know I used 3 tsp of milk and 3 tsp of corn syrup to decorate these cookies. But again, this will totally depend on YOU and what you want your end product to be oh,aaand your climate. We are pretty dry and humidity-free here in the midwest right now!

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (8)

And a quick side note about food coloring. You can use these liquid food colors, found at almost any store in the baking aisle, just fine with this recipe. Actually, these are what I usually have around anyways. This recipe is NOT finicky to the type of food coloring you use…YAY!

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (9)

Or, if you prefer you can use these concentrated paste/gel colors found again at any Michael’s or usually any store that sells Wilton products. Oh! Hobby Lobby would be another one, boo-yah!

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (10)

And, that’s it!

Just keep adding more food coloring until you have that most perfect pretty color you are looking for and start your cookie de-cor-a-ting!!

Fa-la-la-la-la-la-laaaaaaa!

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On another side note, here’s a peek at the cutters I used to make my round sugar cookies from this post.

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (12)

They are actually a biscuit cutter, for reals! They are smooth on one edge and rounded on the flip side.

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (13)

This is the one I used for those Melted Snowman Cookies… a 3 7/16 inch circle…in case you really cared or just want to indulge my picture taking fun.

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Mmmm…stacks and stacks of sugar cookies.

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (15)

What’s that? You’d like to be iced!?!

Aww, I guess I should since you asked so nice and all.

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And on yet another side note, since I mean really when can a post have too many side notes?

This is what the bottom of the sugar cookies should look like if you bake them juuuust for the most minimum of time…6-7 minutes. They will be soft yet firm, NOT crunchy! (For those of you that have asked anyways!) Do not, and I repeat, do not let them get golden brown!!!

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Ahhh, all iced!

Just what the doctor ordered 😉

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Pretty little pretties!

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We all need a star to tree ratio like this, don’t you think?

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And, you wanna know one of the best-est things about this recipe?

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (21)

That shiny icing dries up nice but not hard and rock-like!

You can stack those babies as high as you’d like.

(If you’ve made it this far, I think a congratulations are in order. This was a long post fo’ sho but well worth it, right!!)

Happy Icing!!

Oh and if you haven’t entered the Weebles Wobble and HasbroToyShop.com $100 gift card giveaway enter here to do so now!!

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (22)

You may also like -

Toothless and Light Fury Dragon CookiesDairy Free Gluten Free Baked Lemon DonutsOrange Marmalade Thumbprint CookiesOrange Marmalade Sandwich CookiesPecan Pie Bars Recipe

Sugar. Cookie. Icing. {The Recipe} - Smashed Peas & Carrots (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between royal icing and sugar cookie icing? ›

Cookie icing can be used in the same way that royal icing can; however, it doesn't dry as hard as royal icing does. It's great for flooding cookies or piping designs into wet icing. To thin the consistency of cookie icing, just pop it in the microwave for about 20 seconds.

How to frost sugar cookies like a pro? ›

Start by outlining the cookie with piping-consistency icing in any color you choose. Then, use flooding-consistency icing to fill the outlined area, starting by flooding around the edges and working your way towards the center. If the flooding is inconsistent in thickness, redistribute the wet icing with a toothpick.

What kind of frosting is on a sugar cookie? ›

Sugar cookies are often decorated with royal icing (a hard icing made from egg whites, powdered sugar, and citrus juice) or fondant (a sugary confection that can be used as a filling, decoration, or icing).

What are the disadvantages of royal icing? ›

Thanks to the way royal icing dries, it doesn't serve well as a frosting. However, it can be done. But it will still dry harder than other icings, unless of course you mix in a teaspoon of glycerin for pliability.

How long do sugar cookies need to dry before icing? ›

Follow this tip: Don't rush the cooling process. The first step to making beautifully decorated cookies is making sure the cookies are completely cooled when you begin adding the icing. Play it safe by making it a two-day process: Bake the cookies one day, then decorate the next day.

What is the easiest way to decorate sugar cookies? ›

Here are a few ideas:
  1. Use colored sugars, sprinkles, and edible decorations.
  2. Use melted chocolate and colored icing to create patterns.
  3. Use cookie cutters to create shapes and use icing and decorations to embellish.
  4. Use a toothpick or small brush to create designs with icing.
Jan 23, 2018

What consistency should icing be for sugar cookies? ›

Yes, thickness or fluidity is important when decorating sugar cookies with royal icing, but it can be demystified by knowing that the two main consistencies used are a thicker piping consistency (think the consistency of toothpaste or really soft cream cheese) and a thinner flood consistency (think the consistency of ...

Can you use a Ziploc bag as a piping bag for cookies? ›

i use these all the time if I'm in a pinch. (for chocolate only, buttercream would be too thick)

Can I use a piping bag instead of a cookie press? ›

To Make Cookies With a Piping Bag

If you are using a piping bag to make the cookies, fit the bag with a large-star tip and fill the bag about 1/3 full of the spritz dough. Squeeze the dough out into simple stars.

Can you decorate sugar cookies without icing? ›

But sometimes I just want to jazz them up a bit without hours of decorating. And that's where almond bark or melting chocolate saves the day! You can also use the fun-colored candy melts too. These products make it SO easy to simply melt and then drizzle or dip for beauty and flavor!

Why is my sugar cookie icing not hardening? ›

Undermix, and your royal icing looks translucent and is structurally weak. Overwhip, and you're giving too much volume to the egg proteins via air, causing the structure to weaken in a different way. Overmixed icing usually looks porous when dry, and sometimes will not even fully dry and be soft/brittle.

What should I use to decorate sugar cookies? ›

Royal icing is the key to perfectly iced cookies. The secret ingredients are powdered sugar and meringue powder (or whipped pasteurized egg whites). That's it! You could add a small amount of lemon juice for flavor that won't disrupt the pure white color of the icing, but that's your call.

What do professionals use to decorate cookies? ›

With these in your arsenal, all you'll need to bring to the pastry kitchen is a little artistic sensibility.
  • Rolling pin with thickness rings. ...
  • Piping tips and couplers. ...
  • Piping bags. ...
  • Piping bag ties. ...
  • Scribe tool. ...
  • Gel food coloring. ...
  • Edible paint pens.
Aug 27, 2019

Is royal icing sugar same as icing sugar? ›

Royal icing is a hard white icing, made from softly beaten egg whites, icing sugar (powdered sugar), and sometimes lemon or lime juice. It is used to decorate Christmas cakes, wedding cakes, gingerbread houses, cookies, and many other cakes and biscuits.

Can I use royal icing on cookies? ›

This thicker royal icing is perfect for the final decorations that sit on top of a cookie and make it so much fun. Remember that each flooded cookie should be completely dry before you start to decorate with piping icing. If it's not dry, your piped decorations will bleed into the thinner icing.

What is the difference between royal icing and regular icing? ›

Royal icing is frosting that's made from confectioners' sugar, egg whites, and flavorings, and used in many ways to decorate cookies and cakes. The biggest difference between buttercream frosting and royal icing is texture-buttercream is creamy and soft; royal icing hardens to a candy-like texture.

What makes royal icing different? ›

Royal icing is a type of icing made with powdered sugar, water, and meringue powder (or egg whites). It may be similar to a basic icing you've made before, but with the added meringue powder it dries completely smooth and hardens so that you can stack and package cookies without ruining your hard work.

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