Simple Cookie Glaze
This glaze dries hard and shiny, and is perfect for coating the top of your cookies in preparation for decorating with food-safe pens or makers, or adding sprinkles or other decorations. It's the perfect way to transform rollout cookies — like these Chocolate Cutout Cookies — from basic to beautiful.
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 2 tablespoons light corn syrup or honey
- 1 to 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon milk
- Food coloring (optional)
Instructions
- Mix all of the ingredients together. Stir until smooth; a fork works fine. The glaze should be thick, but soft enough to "settle" when you spread it. If the glaze is too thick, dribble in another teaspoon of milk, 1/2 teaspoon at a time.
- Glaze one cookie and set it aside briefly. The glaze won't be perfectly smooth when you apply it, but should settle into a smooth surface within half a minute or so. Has the glaze settled into a smooth surface? If so, it's the right consistency. Remember, it's easier to add more liquid than to stir in more sugar, so start with a glaze that's thicker than you think it should be, then add milk little by little to adjust the consistency.
- Add food color, if you like; gel paste food colors are preferable, as they yield vibrant color, and don't alter the liquid/sugar ratio as regular food colors might.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size 2 teaspoons
- Servings Per Batch 18
Amount Per Serving:
- Calories 60
- Calories from Fat 0g
- Total Fat 0g
- Saturated Fat 0g
- Trans Fat 0g
- Cholesterol 0g
- Sodium 0g
- Total Carbohydrate 16g
- Dietary Fiber 0g
- Sugars 15g
- Protein 0g
* The nutrition information provided for this recipe is determined by the ESHA Genesis R&D software program. Substituting any ingredients may change the posted nutrition information.
Tips from our bakers
- Be sure you measure accurately here. Too little milk, and the glaze won't spread nicely. Too much milk, and it will be thin, spotty and develop splotches overnight.
- Once the glaze has hardened, you can color on it with foodsafe markers, or you can pipe another color over the top with Royal Icing. You can sprinkle sugar on top of the wet royal icing for a sparkly effect.
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Reviews
I love using royal icing glaze. My question is will it stand up to the 90 degree heat in Florida this coming June. I offered to make cookies for a 90th birthday party and have a concern the using will be affectHi there! We'd suggest using our regular Royal Icing recipe for your cookies this summer rather than this recipe. It's a bit heartier and will stand up to the humidity a little better. We hope this helps and happy baking! Morgan@KAF
Can you freeze the cookies after you ice them?Hi Janine! You can freeze glazed cookies for up to three months, but expect the appearance of the glaze to be duller, slightly faded, and lacking the shine of fresh glaze. It'll still taste great! Annabelle@KAF
Love this glaze! It's my go-to! Just wondering, does it freeze well? For example, after the cookies have been iced and glaze hardens, could I put them in the freezer until ready to eat?Hi Rebecca! The glazed cookies will freeze decently. Usually, after freezing, the glaze will taste fine but it loses its shine and has a slightly faded, matte appearance. This is especially noticeable if it's been colored with purple or blue food coloring because those two colors tend to fade the fastest. It's not the end of the world — sprinkles can fix everything! Annabelle@KAF
Sometimes I get spots or marbling after the icing dries! Should I use water instead of milk? Will that change the flavor or consistency?Hi Laura! You're welcome to use water instead. If you're using food coloring, marbling can be the result of the color not being mixed totally evenly in the icing, or if the icing is on the watery side. If it's plain white, a little more whisking to make things cohesive might be just the ticket! Annabelle@KAF
I prefer the taste and texture of this glaze. I found that it took color beautifully. It would be difficult to do fine work with it.
How long will the icing being good, if stored in air tight container? I know it has milk so I wasn't sure if it would spoil from sitting out or can it be refrigerated?Hi, Tara. This wouldn't be a good choice if you're looking for a glaze you can make ahead and store overnight as it sets up rather quickly. We might suggest checking into our Royal Icing recipe which has some tips from our bakers at the bottom of the recipe for storage. Kindly, Morgan@KAF
Definitely my go-to cookie decoration frosting. I use it every year, never disappointed.
This icing worked just as expected. I did a test run of white only and it was very easy to work with. It also hardens enough to stack cookies once they are dry! Can't wait to use it for the official Christmas baking party and to try it with the gingerbread village baking pan.
I LOVE the fact that this is a thin, hardening icing that does not use egg whites! I eat eggs yet I am sensitive to things that carry an "eggy" smell. To me almost all home made royal icings made with egg whites have this smell as you put the cookie up to your mouth. I'm loving this egg free icing!
My grandson has a dairy allergy. Can I substitute orange juice or water for the milk? Will it still harden?Feel free to use orange juice or non-dairy milk instead of the milk in this recipe (almond, coconut, soy, or rice milk will all work). Start with the smaller amount of liquid and add more only as necessary to make a thick, pourable glaze. If you add just the right amount of liquid, the glaze should still harden nicely. Happy baking! Kye@KAF
