Help with Cookie Icings ...?

Question

I am looking for a recipe that makes the kind of icing that sort of hardens onto the cookies, (the cookies need to be saran wrapped and I want them to look nice) as well as a good cookie recipe if you have one...one people really seem to like. I would appreciate advise you have. I need to make Christmas Cookies. Also any decorating tips at all? Easy ones for a novice. Thanks so much!

Answer 1

The icing that you're looking for is royal icing...it hardens in about 10 minutes and completely dries in about 30...heres a recipe...there are raw egg whites, but as long as the egg whites are clear and have no red or pink in it you should be okay.
Ingredients:
4 egg whites
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

beat egg whites in large bowl with electric mixer at high speed until foamy, then gradually add sugar and extract until thickened. you can also add food coloring to reach any color that you desire. A good trick is to put the icing in a ziploc bag, in the corner, and you can use it as a pastry bag by snipping off the tip. To decorate the cookies a good idea is to pipe the icing around the edge of the cookies, let sit for about 10 minutes, and then to spoon the icing in to fill the cookie in, and it wont run off the edges because of the line of icing around the edges.

This is also a nice sugar cookie recipe:

1 cup sugar
1 cup butter or margarine
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

beat sugar and butter in large bowl with electric mixer at meduim speed until light and fluffy. beat in eggs and extract at medium speed until well blended, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Beat in one cup of flour, the baking powder, and salt at medium speed until well blended. gradually *** t he remaining 2 cups of flour. Beat at low speed until soft dough forms, scraping the sides of teh bowl occasionally. If you want, you can add some food coloring to the dough at this stage to make colored cookies, but you obviously dont have to. form the dough into 2 discs and wrap in plastic wrap. refrigerate 2 hours or until firm. prehear over to 375 degrees. with one disc at a time, unwrap the dough and place on a lightly floured surface. roll out dough with lightly floured rolling pin to 1/8-inch thickness. cut dough with lightly floured cookie cutters (since its for christmas you should use things like gingerbread men, trees, candy canes, ect) with the dough trimmings reroll and cut out more cookies. If the dough gets too sticky rewarp and refrigerate until it is firm again. Back 7-9 minutes or until cookies are set and a very light golden brown. put the cookies on wire wrack and cool completely. then decorate!!!
have fun! good luck! merry christmas!

Answer 2

I'm a novice, too, so here is a link I have in my favorites:
http://www.bhg.com/bhg/category.jhtml?sssdmh=dm1.227047&categoryid=/templatedata/bhg/category/data/1162583314115.xml&esrc=nwwr22&email=1073255687
****Royal Icing****
Ingredients:
You can find meringue powder wherever cake decorating supplies are sold.
3 tablespoons meringue powder
1/3 cup warm water
16-ounce package powdered sugar, sifted (4-1/2 cups)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Paste food coloring
Try This Technique:
1. Combine meringue powder, water, powdered sugar, vanilla, and cream of tartar in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until combined. Beat on high speed for 7 to 10 minutes or until frosting is very thick.
2. Divide icing, and tint with paste food coloring as desired. To pipe the icing onto cookies, place icing in pastry bags that are fitted with decorating tips. Thin the frosting with water to use as a glaze.
3. When not using, keep the surface of the icing covered with clear plastic wrap. This prevents it from drying out. It is best to use this frosting the day that it is made.
http://www.bhg.com/bhg/story.jhtml?storyid=/templatedata/bhg/story/data/11430.xml&catref=cat5710008

Answer 3

(Christmas cookies)

1¾ cups sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) good oleo or butter
4 cups flour
2 large eggs
1 level t soda
1 t vanilla
⅓ t salt
1 t butter flavoring

Cream oleo, add sugar and beat until fluffy. Add eggs and beat in. mix in vanilla and butter flavorings. Stir salt and soda into flour. Add flour a little at a time to egg mixture. Dough will be very thick. Can be shaped into rolls, chilled and sliced. For Christmas cookies, roll out on lightly floured surface. Cut desired shapes. Bake on lightly greased cookie sheets at 350° for 10 – 12 minutes or until lightly browned.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

White Mountain Icing (Allegretti)

½ cup sugar
¼ cup white karo
2 T water
2 egg whites
1 t vanilla

Boil sugar, karo and water to firm balls stage (242°). Cooks quickly. Beat egg whites until stiff enough to peak. Pour hot syrup slowly over whites while beating. Add vanilla and mix.

Makes nice soft workable icing.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Angel Icing

1 egg white
1 cup sugar
1 T light corn syrup
¼ cup water
1 t vanilla

Beat egg white in small bowl until stiff. Boil sugar, water and corn syrup to hard ball stage or until it forms a thread when poured from spoon. Pour syrup slowly over egg white while beating. Continue beating until mixture peaks. Add vanilla and spread on cool cake.

Answer 4

SWEDISH CHRISTMAS COOKIES Recipe

1 c. butter
2 egg yolks
Dash salt
1 egg white, slightly beaten
4 tbsp. chopped almonds
3/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. almond extract
2 1/2 - 2 3/4 c. flour
2 tbsp. sugar

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolks and
almond extract. Add salt. Sift in flour and mix well. Make it pliable
dough and chill 30 minutes. To shape, divide dough into 6 equal
portions. Roll out each portion to make a rope, about 24" long.
Divide each into 2" strips. Place on cookie sheets. Brush with egg
whites and sprinkle with sugar and almonds. Bake at 375 degrees for
about 10 minutes or until cookies feel firm and are lightly browned
around the edges. Let cool on cookie sheet a few minutes then remove
to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 6 dozen.

WHITE ROLLED CHRISTMAS COOKIE Recipe

1 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. soda
1 c. butter (margarine may be used)
2 c. flour

Work like pie crust.

Add:
1 egg, well beaten
1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. almond extract, if desired

This dough can be rolled and rerolled as often as necessary for
cutting desired shapes. Will not get tough. Frost with favorite
powdered sugar icing and decorate. *Also may be rolled in balls and
pressed flat to 1/4 inch. Bake at 300 to 350 degrees for 8 minutes.


Gingerbread Cookie Recipes

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup margarine
3 tablespoons molasses
1 egg
2 tablespoons water or milk
3 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. cloves

In a large bowl, beat sugar, margarine and molasses
until light and fluffy. Add egg and water, or milk; blend
well. Stir in flour, soda, salt and spices. Mix well to form
a smooth dough. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 1
hour. Heat oven to 350 degrees. On floured surface, roll
out 1/3 of dough to 1/8 thickness. Keep the rest of the
dough chilled. Cut with floured cookie cutters. Place 1
inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 9-11
minutes or until set. Cool completely. My kids love the
White Jiffy Frosting on cookies-it doesn't harden but
they always have an easy time spreading and decorating!

Great link
http://www.worldfamousrecipes.com/cookie-recipes.html

Royal Icing


1 pound powdered sugar
5 tablespoons meringue powder or 1/4 cup pasteurized egg whites
2 tablespoons water
food coloring (optional)


Combine powdered sugar and meringue powder or egg whites in a mixing bowl and beat on low speed. Add water drop by drop. The amount depends on whether you used the powder or the egg whites, and on the temperature and humidity in your kitchen. Add the water slowly and do not let the mixture get runny - you will probably not use all of it. Beat until the mixture holds a trail on the surface for five seconds when you raise the mixer from the bowl. If you like, you can tint the icing with a few drops of food coloring. Makes 6 cups.

Note: Note: we do not recommend using raw egg whites in this recipe because of the risk of Salmonella, especially if children, elderly, or pregnant women will be eating them.