Video:How to Use Royal Icing for Cake Decorating
with Kara MickelsonUsing royal icing for cake decorating is a great way to get the desired effect or embellishment that you want. Watch this About.com video to see how to best work with this type of icing.See Transcript
Transcript:How to Use Royal Icing for Cake Decorating
Hi I'm Kara Mickelson, Owner of CreativeCulinaryGroup.com. I'm a personal chef and a food stylist. Today I'm here with About.com to show you how to use royal icing for cake decorating.
What Is Royal Icing?
Royal icing is pure white icing that dries to a hard, smooth, matte finish. Royal icing is terrific for adding accent pieces to fondant-covered cakes. It can be used to create decorative embellishments such as pearls. Royal icing is ideal for string work as it is strong and elastic. Royal icing makes rich, beautiful colors, making it perfect for intricate piping for flowers, borders and lettering.
Challenges When Working With Royal Icing for Cakes
One challenge with royal icing is it dries out quickly, so keep it in an airtight container, and covered while you’re working. If air-dried, royal icing will dry stiff, making it perfect for detail work like these decorative pine trees. It can also be used to make decorative designs for fondant, snowflakes or even cookies.
Royal Icing vs. Buttercream
Royal icing is not as palatable as buttercream and should not be used on top of buttercream frosted cakes, as the meringue will disintegrate. Royal icing holds well under the heat of your hands, verses less stable buttercream. Use small piping bags with a coupler for detail work. The coupler will allow you to change tips without changing bags. I hope you enjoyed this cake-decorating segment.
For more information, visit us on the web at About.com.